Templates · Tax
Free Capital Gains Tracker Template
Stay on top of your realized gains and losses across all asset types so tax season does not catch you off guard. This tracker separates short-term and long-term gains, manages loss carryforwards, and helps you estimate your tax bill before year-end.
- Tax
- Tracker
- Free template
What's included
This tracker includes 4 sections covering everything you need.
Realized Gains & Losses
Every position you closed, with the gain or loss calculated.
| Asset | Buy Date | Sell Date | Proceeds | Cost Basis | Gain/Loss | Short/Long Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
YTD Summary
Your running totals for the current tax year, broken out by category.
| Category | Short-Term Gains | Short-Term Losses | Long-Term Gains | Long-Term Losses | Net |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
Tax Estimate
A rough estimate of what you will owe based on your bracket and gain types.
| Gain Type | Net Amount | Estimated Tax Rate | Estimated Tax |
|---|---|---|---|
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
Loss Carryforward
Capital losses you could not use this year that roll into future years.
| Tax Year | Net Loss | Used Against Gains | Used Against Income ($3k max) | Remaining Carryforward |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
How to use this template
Follow these steps to get the most out of this template.
- 1
Record every time you sell an investment, crypto, or other capital asset.
- 2
Figure out the holding period — long-term means you held it for 1 year and 1 day or more.
- 3
Net your short-term gains against short-term losses, and long-term against long-term.
- 4
If you end up with net losses, you can offset up to $3,000 of regular income per year. The rest carries forward.
- 5
Before year-end, look at your unrealized positions to see if tax-loss harvesting makes sense.
Who this template is for
Active investors and traders who realize gains and losses throughout the year.
Anyone who needs to estimate their capital gains tax for quarterly estimated payments.
Investors carrying forward losses from previous years.
People who want to be smart about timing their gains and losses to lower their tax bill.
Why use Clarity instead?
This template is great for manual tracking, but Clarity automates everything for you. Connect your bank accounts, brokerages, exchanges, and wallets and see real-time data without entering a single number.
- Automatic transaction imports from 12,000+ institutions
- Real-time portfolio values and net worth tracking
- AI-powered spending insights and budget recommendations
- Tax-ready reports with automatic cost basis calculations
- One dashboard for banks, brokerages, crypto, and DeFi
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between short-term and long-term capital gains?
Short-term gains (held 1 year or less) are taxed like regular income — anywhere from 10% to 37%. Long-term gains (held more than 1 year) get better rates: 0%, 15%, or 20% depending on your income. That is a big reason to hold investments for over a year when you can.
What is tax-loss harvesting?
It is selling investments at a loss to cancel out your gains. You can also deduct up to $3,000 in net losses against regular income each year. Just watch out for the wash sale rule — you can not buy the same (or very similar) investment within 30 days before or after selling.
How much capital loss can I carry forward?
There is no cap. After you net your losses against gains and take the $3,000 deduction against regular income, whatever is left carries forward indefinitely until you use it all up.
Related templates
Other templates you might find useful.
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See all your investments in one place — stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds, the works. Track your cost basis, see how much you have gained or lost, check your asset allocation, and keep tabs on dividend income.
Ready to go beyond spreadsheets?
Clarity connects to your financial accounts and automates what this template does manually. Real-time data, zero data entry, and AI-powered insights.