Capital Gains Tax Calculator

How Capital Gains Tax works in Australia

In Australia, a capital gain arises when you sell an asset for more than its cost base (purchase price plus associated costs). The net gain is added to your other income and taxed at your marginal rate — there is no separate “CGT rate.” The tax is effectively your marginal rate applied to the capital gain portion of your total income.

50% CGT discount: If you’re an Australian resident individual and you owned the asset for at least 12 months (the ATO excludes both the purchase day and the sale day when counting), you only include 50% of your capital gain in your income. Foreign residents and companies don’t get the discount, and complying super funds get a one-third discount.

The discount is ending. The 2026-27 Budget replaces the 50% discount from 1 July 2027 with cost base indexation (only the inflation-adjusted gain is taxed) and a 30% minimum tax on capital gains. Gains that build up before 1 July 2027 keep the 50% discount. This calculator applies the current discount, so it is only reliable for sales before 1 July 2027.

Crypto is taxed as property, not currency. Every sale, trade, or use of cryptocurrency to purchase goods is a CGT event. Swapping one crypto for another also triggers CGT. The 12-month discount applies equally to crypto if held long enough.

Capital losses offset capital gains. Losses from one asset can be applied against gains from another in the same income year. Unapplied losses carry forward indefinitely — but they can only offset future capital gains, not other income.