Capital Gains Tax Brackets for 2026: 0%, 15%, and 20% Rates

Long-term capital gains (assets held over one year) are taxed at 0%, 15%, or 20% depending on your taxable income and filing status in 2026. Short-term capital gains (assets held one year or less) are taxed as ordinary income at your regular tax bracket rate.

Long-term vs. short-term: the key difference

The IRS distinguishes between two types of capital gains based on how long you held the asset before selling it.

Short-term capital gains arise from assets sold after holding them for one year or less. These gains are added to your ordinary income and taxed at your regular federal income tax bracket rate, which can be as high as 37%. There is no preferential rate for short-term gains.

Long-term capital gains arise from assets sold after holding them for more than one year. Congress has set preferential rates for long-term gains under IRC 1(h). In 2026, those rates are 0%, 15%, or 20%, and they apply to the gain itself, not to your entire income. The one-year threshold is strict: you must hold for at least one year and one day. Selling on the exact one-year anniversary date still produces a short-term gain.

The rate difference between short-term and long-term treatment can be enormous. A single filer in the 32% bracket who sells stock after 11 months pays 32% on the gain. If they wait two more months, the rate drops to 15%. The holding period decision is one of the most powerful levers in individual tax planning.

2026 long-term capital gains brackets

The brackets below are based on taxable income, not just capital gains income. Your entire taxable income picture determines which rate applies to your long-term gains. Source: Rev. Proc. 2025-32, section 4.03.

Single filers

Married filing jointly

Married filing separately

Head of household

The 0% bracket opportunity

Single filers with taxable income up to $49,450 pay 0% federal tax on long-term capital gains. For married filing jointly filers, the 0% threshold is $98,900. This is one of the most underused planning opportunities in the tax code.

If your taxable income for the year is below these thresholds, you can sell appreciated investments and owe nothing in federal capital gains tax on those gains. This strategy is sometimes called "gain harvesting" and is the mirror image of tax-loss harvesting. It is especially useful for:

• Retirees living on portfolio withdrawals whose income falls below the threshold
• Young workers in low-income years who have appreciated stock from employee stock plans
• Filers who retire mid-year and have a temporarily low income

Note that the capital gains themselves count as income for purposes of determining which bracket applies. If your ordinary income is $45,000 (single) and you realize $10,000 in long-term gains, your taxable income is $55,000, which exceeds the $49,450 threshold. In that case, the first $4,450 of gain ($49,450 minus $45,000) falls in the 0% bracket, and the remaining $5,550 is taxed at 15%.

Net Investment Income Tax (NIIT) add-on

High-income taxpayers may owe an additional 4% Net Investment Income Tax (NIIT) on top of the regular capital gains rate under IRC 1411. This tax applies to the lesser of your net investment income or the amount by which your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) exceeds the threshold for your filing status.

NIIT thresholds (statutory, not indexed for inflation):

• Single / Head of household: $200,000
• Married filing jointly: $250,000
• Married filing separately: $125,000

For example, a single filer with $250,000 of MAGI and $50,000 in long-term capital gains would owe 15% regular capital gains tax plus an additional 3.8% NIIT on the gain, for a combined rate of 18.8% on the gains. At the 20% bracket, the combined rate reaches 23.8%.

Note: NIIT figures are marked TODO_VERIFY in the data file. These statutory amounts have not changed since enactment but should be confirmed for the current tax year.

Collectibles: the 28% rate

Not all long-term gains benefit from the 0%/15%/20% rate schedule. Under IRC 1(h)(4), collectibles held more than one year are taxed at a maximum rate of 28%. Collectibles include:

• Art, antiques, and rugs
• Coins and stamps
• Precious metals held directly (gold and silver bullion, coins)
• Gems and jewelry
• Wine and spirits

The 28% rate is a cap, not a floor. If your ordinary income tax rate is below 28%, your collectibles gain is taxed at your ordinary rate. But if your ordinary rate exceeds 28%, the collectibles rate is capped at 28%.

Note: Gains from the sale of Section 1250 real property (depreciation recapture) are taxed at a maximum rate of 25% under IRC 1(h)(1)(D), which is a separate category from the collectibles rate.

Worked example

Here is how capital gains taxes work for a single filer in a realistic scenario.

Situation: Maria is single. Her taxable income from wages (after standard deduction) is $80,000. She also sells stock she has held for 18 months, realizing a $20,000 long-term capital gain. Her total taxable income is $100,000.

Step 1 - Determine ordinary income tax: Maria's $80,000 of ordinary income is taxed at the regular income tax brackets. Her capital gains are stacked on top of her ordinary income for bracket-placement purposes.

Step 2 - Determine where the capital gain falls: With ordinary taxable income of $80,000, the applicable long-term capital gains bracket starts at the point where her total income ($80,000) sits relative to the LTCG thresholds. Since $80,000 exceeds the $49,450 single 0% threshold, the entire $20,000 LTCG falls in the 15% bracket (which runs up to $545,500 for single filers).

Step 3 - Calculate the capital gains tax: $20,000 x 15% = $3,000 in federal capital gains tax.

Step 4 - Check NIIT: Maria's MAGI of $100,000 is below the $200,000 NIIT threshold for single filers, so no NIIT applies.

Result: Maria pays $3,000 in capital gains tax on her $20,000 stock sale gain. If she had sold after only 10 months (short-term), that $20,000 would be added to her ordinary income and taxed at her marginal bracket rate instead.