Capital Gains Harvesting Room

2026 bands and Medicare tiers · reviewed September 4, 2026

Shows how much investment gain you can take this year at a zero percent tax rate, and what a larger gain costs. About

In plain words. When you sell an investment you have held more than a year for more than you paid, the profit is a long-term capital gain, and the first slice of it is taxed at zero percent if your other income is low enough. This tool takes your income and shows how much gain fits in that zero band, and what happens to a larger gain as it climbs into the 15 and 20 percent bands, the extra 3.8 percent surtax, and the next Medicare tier.

Why it matters. Selling and immediately rebuying resets your cost, so future gains are smaller, and if the gain fits in the zero band it costs nothing. December is when this gets sized, and this shows the room.

An example. A single person with $50,000 of income has about $15,500 of room at zero percent. Taking a $20,000 gain costs about $670, because the last $4,450 is taxed at 15 percent.

Where it stops. It assumes the standard deduction and no dividends already in the picture, which use up room. State tax, and a Social Security benefit that becomes more taxable as income rises, both add to the cost. Everything it leaves out.

Your income this year, before the gain

Adjusted gross income, which is line 11 of your Form 1040. Leave out the gain you are testing.

Filing status

SingleMarried filing jointly

Long-term gain you would take this year

Long-term means held more than a year. Your taxable income before the gain is $27,800, after the $32,200 standard deduction.

Gain you can take at 0% tax this year

$71,100

Up to that much long-term gain is taxed at 0%, and the next dollar is taxed at 15%. The room is the space left in the 0% band above your other income. Gains also count as income for Medicare premiums two years later. $158,000 more of income would move your Medicare premiums up a tier.

Federal tax on the gain: $0; 0.0% of the $30,000 gain
Rates the gain is taxed at: 0%; $30,000 at 0%
Change in Medicare premiums in 2028: No change; Stays in tier 0 with $90,000 of income

Long-term gains are stacked on top of your other income and taxed by where they land. The rate is 0% up to $98,900 of taxable income, 15% up to $613,700, and 20% above that. A separate 3.8% surtax on investment income begins at $250,000 of income for a joint return, and that line is never adjusted for inflation. Medicare premiums are set by income tiers, and this year's income sets the premium two years from now. The wash-sale rule applies only to losses, so shares sold at a gain can be bought back right away. The point of selling is the new, higher cost basis, which means less gain to tax later.

This uses the 2026 capital gains rate bands, the standard deduction, the 3.8% surtax on investment income, and the Medicare premium tiers. It counts long-term gains only, and any qualified dividends you already have take up part of the room. It leaves out state tax, itemized deductions, the taxation of Social Security benefits, the extra deduction for seniors and its phase-out, and the alternative minimum tax. Educational, not advice.

This is a simplified model, not your actual tax return or plan. It only knows what you type in, leaves out rules that may apply to you, and cannot weigh the other facts and trade-offs a real decision depends on. Before you act, talk with a professional who knows your whole situation.

Educational only, not investment, tax, or legal advice. Results are hypothetical estimates that vary with each use and over time and are not guaranteed accurate or complete. Using this tool creates no client relationship with Considerate Capital, and the site that linked here is not affiliated with it. By using it you agree to the tool terms.