Stock Profit Calculator
A stock profit calculator turns a buy and a sell into a net result: profit equals shares × sell price minus sell fees, minus shares × buy price plus buy fees. Buy 100 shares at $50 with $4.95 commission and sell at $75 with $4.95: profit is $2,490.10, a 49.75% return.
Buy Details
Sell Details
Tax Estimate
The tax selector is an assumption, not a determination of tax liability. Holding period alone does not establish a rate; jurisdiction, year, taxable income, losses and account type matter. No wash-sale, foreign exchange, dividend or split adjustment is automatic. Zero sold shares have no per-share break-even. Batch totals concern realized trades and exclude the tax estimate.
Short Term = 1 year or less · Long Term = more than 1 year
The tax selector is an assumption, not a determination of tax liability. Holding period alone does not establish a rate; jurisdiction, year, taxable income, losses and account type matter. No wash-sale, foreign exchange, dividend or split adjustment is automatic. Zero sold shares have no per-share break-even. Batch totals concern realized trades and exclude the tax estimate.
Price Scenarios
| Sell Price | Profit/Loss | Return % |
|---|---|---|
Several positions at once
Each row is priced exactly like the single trade above: the buying fee joins the cost basis, the selling fee comes out of the proceeds, so a row and the calculator report the same return for the same trade. Leave a fee at 0 for a commission-free broker.
| Position | Shares | Buy price | Sell price | Buy fee | Sell fee | Net profit | Return | Remove this position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio total | ||||||||
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How do you calculate profit on a stock?
Net profit is what the sale pays you minus what the purchase cost you, commissions on both sides included. Return percentage divides that profit by the money you actually tied up — the total cost — not by the market value of the position at the exit price.
- Total cost = shares × buy price + buy commission — The realized sale receives 1 and the unsold shares retain 1. A sale fee of 1 is fully charged to the sale.
- Total proceeds = shares × sell price − sell commission
- Net profit = total proceeds − total cost
- Return % = net profit ÷ total cost × 100
Worked example: 100 shares bought at $50.00 with a $4.95 commission cost $5,004.95. Sold at $75.00 with another $4.95 commission they return $7,495.05. Net profit is $2,490.10 and the return is 49.75% — not the 50.00% the raw prices suggest.
What is the break-even price after commissions?
Break-even is the sell price at which the proceeds exactly repay the total cost, so both commissions have to be earned back by the sale: break-even = (shares × buy price + buy commission + sell commission) ÷ shares. With 100 shares at $50.00 and $4.95 on each side, break-even is $50.099, so you round up to $50.10. Sell at $50.09 and you are still 90 cents down on the round trip.
How much gain do you need to recover a loss?
A loss and the gain that cancels it are never the same number, because the gain is measured against a smaller balance. Down 20% you need +25% to get back to even; down 50% you need +100%. This table assumes a $10,000 position and ignores fees.
| Price drop | Value of $10,000 | Gain needed to break even |
|---|---|---|
| −5% | $9,500 | +5.26% |
| −10% | $9,000 | +11.11% |
| −20% | $8,000 | +25.00% |
| −25% | $7,500 | +33.33% |
| −30% | $7,000 | +42.86% |
| −40% | $6,000 | +66.67% |
| −50% | $5,000 | +100.00% |
| −60% | $4,000 | +150.00% |
| −75% | $2,500 | +300.00% |
| −90% | $1,000 | +900.00% |
How much tax will you pay on a stock profit?
For a partial sale, allocate purchase commission in proportion to shares sold; the remaining purchase fee stays with unsold shares. Sale commission belongs to this sale. Return = realized profit ÷ realized cost. The selected tax rate applies to positive profit for either holding-period label; no long-term rate is inferred.
The table applies each listed rate to the same illustrative gain for both holding-period labels. It does not infer a long-term tax rate or a saving from waiting.
| Scenario rate | Tax, short-term label scenario | Same scenario rate | Tax, long-term label scenario | Difference between scenarios |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10% | $500 | 10% | $500 | $0 |
| 12% | $600 | 12% | $600 | $0 |
| 22% | $1,100 | 22% | $1,100 | $0 |
| 24% | $1,200 | 24% | $1,200 | $0 |
| 32% | $1,600 | 32% | $1,600 | $0 |
| 35% | $1,750 | 35% | $1,750 | $0 |
| 37% | $1,850 | 37% | $1,850 | $0 |
Reference scope: cached primary documentation recorded on 2026-10-21, not freshly verified advice. IRS Topic 409 thresholds in that cache concern 2025. CFPB PMI guidance was reviewed 2026-08-28 and modified 2026-08-31; it concerns qualifying borrower-paid conventional PMI, with conditions.
How do dividends, splits and leverage change the result?
Dividends
The calculator measures price return only. To get total return, add the dividends per share you collected to the sell price: 100 shares that paid $0.62 four times earned $248, so enter $77.48 instead of $75.00. Dividends are taxed in the year they are paid, separately from the capital gain.
Stock splits
A split changes the share count, never the money. After a 2-for-1 split, double the shares you bought and halve the buy price — 100 at $50.00 becomes 200 at $25.00 — and the profit comes out identical. Your broker reports split-adjusted cost basis, so use those figures.
Margin and leverage
On margin the profit is still calculated on the full position, but the return you earned is measured against your own equity. Buy $10,000 of stock with $5,000 of cash and a $500 gain is 5% on the position and 10% on your money. Enter accrued margin interest as part of the sell commission so it comes out of the profit.
Sources
- IRS, Topic no. 409: Capital gains and losses — holding period and the 0%, 15% and 20% long-term rates.
- IRS, Publication 550: Investment income and expenses — cost basis, commissions and the wash-sale rule.
- Investor.gov (U.S. SEC), Wash sales — when a repurchase disallows a realized loss.
- FINRA, Stocks — how share ownership and stock orders work.
Scenario guide
Calculate a realized sale, allocated fees and an entered tax-rate scenario.
Method and posting
For a partial sale, allocate purchase commission in proportion to shares sold; the remaining purchase fee stays with unsold shares. Sale commission belongs to this sale. Return = realized profit ÷ realized cost. The selected tax rate applies to positive profit for either holding-period label; no long-term rate is inferred.
Amounts post to two decimal places. Totals use the posted amounts; final loan payments can differ from the regular payment. Use the same currency for every input. A display currency or language does not select a jurisdiction. Rounding ties are away from zero; input amounts round from their decimal representation.
Arithmetic example
10 × 10 + 1 = 101; 10 × 12 − 1 = 119; 119 − 101 = 18; 18 ÷ 101 × 100 = 17.821782%; (101 + 1) ÷ 10 = 10.20.
Assumptions and limits
The tax selector is an assumption, not a determination of tax liability. Holding period alone does not establish a rate; jurisdiction, year, taxable income, losses and account type matter. No wash-sale, foreign exchange, dividend or split adjustment is automatic. Zero sold shares have no per-share break-even. Batch totals concern realized trades and exclude the tax estimate.
Use anonymous amounts and neutral position names. Copy and CSV controls include the entered position data. Page, account and advertising features have separate data policies; this calculator is not a guarantee of privacy.
Reference scope: cached primary documentation recorded on 2026-10-21, not freshly verified advice. IRS Topic 409 thresholds in that cache concern 2025. CFPB PMI guidance was reviewed 2026-08-28 and modified 2026-08-31; it concerns qualifying borrower-paid conventional PMI, with conditions.
About Stock Profit Calculator
Calculate a realized sale, allocated fees and an entered tax-rate scenario. For a partial sale, allocate purchase commission in proportion to shares sold; the remaining purchase fee stays with unsold shares. Sale commission belongs to this sale. Return = realized profit ÷ realized cost. The selected tax rate applies to positive profit for either holding-period label; no long-term rate is inferred.
Use Cases
How to use
Enter bought shares, purchase price and purchase commission.
Enter sold shares (no more than bought), sale price and sale commission.
Select holding-period information and the tax-rate scenario.
Compare realized cost, proceeds, return, break-even and price scenarios.
Open multiple positions; add, remove or import the current realized trade, then copy or export CSV.
Pro Tips
- Use the actual fill price from your trade confirmation, not the closing price. Three cents of slippage on 1,000 shares is $30 of real profit that never existed.
- Enter a sell commission even when your broker advertises $0 trades: regulatory fees are charged on the sale side and still come out of your proceeds.
- Bought in several lots? Give each lot its own row in batch mode. A lot held 13 months and one held 11 are taxed under completely different rules.
- Use anonymous amounts and neutral position names. Copy and CSV controls include the entered position data. Page, account and advertising features have separate data policies; this calculator is not a guarantee of privacy.
- If you sold at a loss and bought the same stock back within the 30 days before or the 30 days after that sale, the wash-sale rule disallows the loss. The calculator still shows it, so check IRS Publication 550.
Frequently Asked Questions
The realized sale receives 1 and the unsold shares retain 1. A sale fee of 1 is fully charged to the sale.
Sold shares, prices, allocated purchase fee and sale fee are copied as a separate batch snapshot. Later edits to the main trade do not alter that row.