How does New York tax capital gains?

New York has no special capital gains rate. It taxes both short-term and long-term gains as ordinary income at your regular New York marginal rate, which ranges from 4% to 10.9% in 2024. That is why even long-term federal gains still carry a meaningful New York tax on top.

What is the difference between short-term and long-term federally?

Assets held one year or less produce short-term gains taxed at ordinary federal rates up to 37%. Assets held more than a year produce long-term gains taxed at preferential federal rates of 0%, 15% or 20% depending on your total taxable income. New York ignores this distinction.

Why does my other income matter?

Both the federal long-term brackets and the New York ordinary brackets are progressive, so your gain is stacked on top of your other income to find which rate bands it falls into. A large gain can push part of itself into a higher bracket, which the calculator accounts for.

Does this include the 3.8% net investment income tax?

No. High earners may owe an additional 3.8% federal net investment income tax (NIIT) on gains above certain income thresholds. This calculator excludes the NIIT, as well as New York City resident tax, so your true bill could be somewhat higher.

How can I reduce capital gains tax in New York?

Common strategies include holding assets over a year to get federal long-term rates, harvesting losses to offset gains, and timing sales across tax years. New York still taxes the net gain at ordinary rates regardless, so the main lever for the state portion is reducing the net gain itself.

New York Capital Gains Tax Calculator

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The New York Capital Gains Tax Calculator estimates the total tax — federal plus state — on a profit from selling an investment in New York. The key fact New Yorkers often miss is that New York has no preferential capital gains rate: gains are taxed as ordinary income at your regular New York marginal rate. So even a federally favoured long-term gain still carries a 4%–10.9% New York charge on top of the federal tax.

How it works

You enter the gain (sale price minus cost basis), your other taxable income, the holding period, and your filing status. Because both federal long-term brackets and New York ordinary brackets are progressive, the gain is stacked on top of your other income to find the correct bands. For a long-term gain, the federal portion uses the 0/15/20% thresholds — the slice of gain falling below the 0% ceiling is untaxed federally, the next slice is 15%, and any remainder is 20%. A short-term gain instead uses ordinary federal brackets. New York then taxes the entire gain at its ordinary marginal rates regardless of holding period. The two are summed.

Example and notes

A single filer with $90,000 of other income and a $20,000 long-term gain pays 15% federally on most of the gain plus roughly 6% to New York, for a combined effective rate in the low 20s. The same gain held short-term is taxed at the higher ordinary federal rate, raising the bill. The estimate excludes the 3.8% net investment income tax, NYC resident tax and state credits, so high earners should expect more. All math runs locally in your browser.