Post-Tax Return Calculator

Calculate your investment returns after taxes and inflation.

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After-Tax Returns

Enter the investment details to see your true after-tax return.

After-tax value
$0
Effective annual return: 0%
Pre-tax value
$0
After-tax value
$0
Tax paid
$0
After-tax annual return
0%
After-tax + inflation
0%
Tax drag
0%

Worked example

With the default inputs shown below, this calculator returns the following results:

InputValue
Initial investment ($)$100,000
Annual return before tax (%)8%
Capital gains tax rate (%)15%
Holding period (years)10
Account typeTaxable account
ResultValue
After-tax value$198,509
Pre-tax value$215,892
Tax paid$17,384
After-tax annual return7.10%
After-tax + inflation3.98%
Tax drag0.90%

Values shown are produced by this page in your browser; change any input to update them.

How to use the After-Tax Returns

  1. Initial investment ($) — default $100,000
  2. Annual return before tax (%) — default 8%
  3. Capital gains tax rate (%) — default 15%
  4. Holding period (years) — default 10
  5. Account type — default Taxable account
  6. Press Calculate to update the results instantly.

Frequently asked questions

Multiply the return by (1 minus your tax rate), then subtract inflation. A 7% return at 24% tax and 3% inflation is 2.3% real.
Long-term capital gains rates (0/15/20%) are lower than ordinary income rates. Holding over a year can raise your net return by several points.
In an ISA, 401(k) or Roth, dividends and gains are not taxed annually, so the pre-tax return is closer to the real return.

Sources & references