2026 Capital Gains Tax Rates

Long-term capital gains — profits on assets held more than one year — use preferential federal rates of 0%, 15%, and 20%. For tax year 2026, the IRS inflation-adjusted the taxable-income thresholds in Revenue Procedure 2025-32. These amounts generally apply to returns filed in 2027.

Always confirm the final tables in the Form 1040 / Schedule D instructions and on IRS.gov.

2026 long-term capital gains brackets

Thresholds below are taxable income breakpoints from Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (maximum zero-rate and maximum 15% rate amounts).

Long-term rate	Single	Married filing jointly	Married filing separately	Head of household
0%	$0 to $49,450	$0 to $98,900	$0 to $49,450	$0 to $66,200
15%	$49,451 to $545,500	$98,901 to $613,700	$49,451 to $306,850	$66,201 to $579,600
20%	Over $545,500	Over $613,700	Over $306,850	Over $579,600

Qualifying surviving spouses generally use the same thresholds as married filing jointly. Estates and trusts have much lower capital-gains breakpoints — confirm those separately if you prepare a fiduciary return.

Short-term vs long-term

Holding period	Typical federal treatment
One year or less (short-term)	Taxed as ordinary income using the 2026 tax brackets
More than one year (long-term)	Preferential 0% / 15% / 20% rates above

Collectibles, certain real-estate depreciation recapture (unrecaptured §1250 gain), and some small-business stock situations can use different maximum rates. Check Schedule D instructions for those special cases.

How the capital gains “stack” works

Capital gains rates are based on taxable income, not sale proceeds alone.

1. Ordinary income (wages, interest, short-term gains, etc.) after deductions fills the lower part of your taxable income.
2. Long-term gains are stacked on top.
3. Only the portion of long-term gains that falls into each capital-gains band gets that band’s rate.

Simplified example (single filer): If taxable income without long-term gains is $40,000 and you realize $20,000 of long-term gains, part of the gain may still sit in the 0% band (up to $49,450 total taxable income) and the rest may be taxed at 15%.

Net Investment Income Tax (NIIT)

Higher-income filers may also owe an additional 3.8% Net Investment Income Tax on investment income (including many capital gains) when modified AGI exceeds statutory thresholds that are not inflation-adjusted in the same way as the capital-gains brackets — commonly $200,000 single / head of household and $250,000 married filing jointly (confirm Form 8960).

NIIT can apply even when your long-term rate is 15% or 20%, so your combined federal rate on some gains can be higher than the headline capital-gains percentage.

Planning notes (educational)

• Hold period: Crossing the one-year mark can move a gain from ordinary rates to preferential rates.
• Loss harvesting: Capital losses can offset gains; $3,000 of net capital loss ($1,500 MFS) can generally offset ordinary income per year, with the rest carried forward.
• Home sale exclusion: Many primary-residence sales qualify for a gain exclusion under §121 (commonly up to $250,000 / $500,000) — separate from the 0%/15%/20% rate tables.
• Estimates: Large sales can trigger quarterly estimated taxes if withholding will not cover the bill.

Related 2026 amounts

• 2026 federal income tax brackets
• 2026 standard deduction amounts
• Federal tax deadlines & estimated taxes
• Side-hustle taxes & underpayment penalty
• Best tax software 2026

Source

IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32 §3.03 (maximum capital gains rate amounts under §1(h) / §1(j)(5)). Educational only — not tax advice.