UK Crypto Tax Calculator 2026/27: CGT, Staking & Records

A UK crypto tax calculator can help you estimate the size and shape of a 2026/27 tax position, but it cannot turn a wallet history into a tax return by itself. The difficult part is usually not multiplying a gain by a Capital Gains Tax rate. It is deciding which transactions are disposals, reconstructing the cost of the units sold, matching acquisitions under the same-day and 30-day rules, separating investment gains from income, and ensuring that losses or exemptions have not already been used elsewhere.

Use the Crypto Tax Calculator→ to create a clearly labelled estimate from total disposal proceeds, total cost basis, exemption already used, taxable income and mining or staking income. The model is a planning aid. It does not inspect an exchange API, identify every transfer between wallets, prove that a reward is capital or income, or prepare the transaction schedules needed for a Self Assessment return.

The existing Cryptoasset Tax UK guide explains the wider rules. This companion focuses on the calculator workflow: what each field means, how to prepare the records behind it, how to interpret a CGT result beside mining or staking income, and when a simplified output is too uncertain to use for a filing decision.

Key takeaways

What the calculator does

The simplified model follows this shape:

Gross gain = disposal proceeds − cost basis
Taxable gain = gross gain − unused annual exempt amount
CGT estimate = taxable gain allocated to the applicable CGT rates
Total illustration = CGT estimate + estimated tax on entered mining or staking income

The arithmetic is deliberately transparent. It lets you test questions such as:

• What happens if the cost basis is higher or lower than the exchange export suggests?
• How much of the annual exemption is already used by share or property disposals?
• Does adding staking income change the income band in which the gain falls?
• How different is the result if a disposal is made in another tax year?
• Is the apparent profit still positive after transaction fees and tax assumptions?

The model is not a substitute for matching every disposal to the correct acquisition. If your total proceeds or cost basis changes after a proper reconciliation, the result can change materially. Treat the displayed number as an estimate until the supporting schedule is complete.

Step 1: define the tax year and the person

Start with the individual and tax year, not the token price. The UK tax year runs from 6 April to 5 April. A disposal on 5 April and a disposal on 6 April belong to different tax years, even if the market price is nearly identical. The annual exempt amount, tax rates and reporting position must be aligned to the year of the disposal.

Record:

• UK residence and any relevant residence change;
• whether the activity belongs to an individual, company, partnership or trust;
• every disposal date and asset;
• other chargeable gains and losses in the same tax year;
• whether the asset was received from employment, mining, staking, lending or services; and
• whether a return or payment has already been made.

The calculator is aimed at a simplified individual scenario. Companies, trustees, employment rewards, trading businesses and cross-border situations need a separate analysis. Do not enter a company’s transactions into an individual CGT model simply because the wallet is in a director’s name.

Step 2: build disposal proceeds from all disposal types

Disposal proceeds are more than money withdrawn to a bank account. HMRC’s cryptoasset guidance treats a sale for fiat as a disposal, and a token-to-token exchange or a purchase of goods and services can also be a disposal. A gift to someone other than a spouse or civil partner can raise a disposal question, while moving an asset between your own wallets is normally a transfer rather than a disposal.

Add proceeds across exchanges and wallets only after removing internal transfers and duplicate records. Exchange CSV files can show a withdrawal as well as a deposit; counting both as sales or purchases can inflate the gain. Stablecoin swaps also need to be considered rather than dismissed as cash management.

Step 3: calculate the cost basis instead of guessing it

The cost basis is not always the sum of obvious purchase payments. It can include the permitted acquisition cost and transaction costs connected with the disposal or acquisition, subject to the applicable rules. For pooled assets, the cost is normally tracked through an average Section 104 pool with special matching rules.

Use a transaction ledger with at least:

• asset and quantity;
• timestamp and tax year;
• GBP value at the transaction date;
• exchange, wallet or platform;
• fees and whether they were paid in fiat or tokens;
• transaction type;
• source of the asset; and
• linked acquisition or disposal record.

If a fee is paid in a token, that payment can itself create a disposal question. If an exchange reports values in dollars or euros, preserve the conversion method and rate used. A single cost-basis figure without the underlying ledger is not enough to prove the calculation.

Step 4: apply pooling and matching rules carefully

HMRC’s cryptoasset manual explains that Section 104 pooling and the special same-day and 30-day matching rules can affect the cost allocated to a disposal. The simplified calculator accepts an already-prepared total cost basis; it does not recalculate those matches.

The workflow should be:

1. Group the same asset correctly; do not combine unrelated tokens because their symbols look similar.
2. Match acquisitions on the same day according to the rules.
3. Check acquisitions in the following 30 days before allocating from the Section 104 pool.
4. Allocate the remaining cost from the pool and update the average cost.
5. Repeat for later disposals and preserve the working paper.

This can matter when a person sells and rebuying occurs around the same date. A superficial “sell, calculate gain, add all purchases to the average” method can allocate the wrong cost to the disposal. A tax-software export may assist, but you remain responsible for checking missing wallets, failed transactions, wrapped assets and transfers.

Step 5: enter exemption already used across assets

The calculator asks for any CGT annual exemption already used. This is not a crypto-only allowance. If you sold shares, an investment property, a fund or another chargeable asset in the same tax year, those gains and losses can change the remaining exemption and the final CGT result.

For 2026/27, GOV.UK publishes the applicable CGT rates and allowances. The model uses the current annual exempt amount configured for the tax year, but it should not be treated as a universal personal answer without checking the final rate and allowance position. The exemption is not a per-token or per-exchange allowance, does not usually carry forward, and cannot be reserved solely for crypto.

Keep separate lines for:

• gross gains;
• allowable losses brought forward or realised in the year;
• the annual exempt amount used by other assets;
• gains that may qualify for a special relief; and
• gains that fall within or above unused basic-rate band space.

If the calculator shows a zero taxable gain, that may mean the entered gain is covered by the remaining exemption. It does not prove that no reporting or record-keeping obligation exists, particularly where total proceeds, Self Assessment status or HMRC’s disposal reporting rules are relevant.

Step 6: enter taxable income before adding the gain

The CGT rate depends partly on how much of the basic-rate band remains after taxable income. Enter the tool’s requested “taxable income after allowances” consistently. Do not enter gross salary if the field asks for taxable income after allowances, and do not subtract the CGT gain twice.

Other income can include employment, pension, self-employment or taxable benefits. Mining or staking income is entered separately in this calculator so the illustration can show a distinct income-tax line. The actual income classification depends on the activity, organisation, terms and facts. A return labelled “staking” by a platform is not automatically taxed identically in every arrangement.

The allocation order matters. A gain may be partly within remaining basic-rate band space and partly above it. Adding income from rewards can use the remaining space before the capital gain is allocated. Scottish taxpayers may also need a fuller calculation because Scottish Income Tax applies to non-savings income while CGT uses its own rules.

Step 7: separate mining, staking, lending and employment rewards

Crypto received is not automatically a capital gain. HMRC’s guidance covers different activities and facts. Mining or staking rewards may be income when received, and a later disposal can create a capital gain or loss based on the value and cost attributed at receipt. Lending, liquidity provision and decentralised-finance arrangements can require a more detailed classification. Tokens received for employment can involve PAYE, National Insurance and employment-related securities rules.

Use separate records for:

The calculator’s income line is a scenario input, not a legal classification. If the income figure is uncertain, model a range and obtain advice before filing.

Step 8: keep proceeds, tax and cash separate

An apparent gain does not equal cash available to pay tax. A person can still hold the token, have a gain caused by a token-to-token swap, and owe tax in pounds. Reserve cash after every disposal or keep a tax ledger that converts the gain into a payment plan.

Do not confuse:

• disposal proceeds with profit;
• profit with taxable gain;
• taxable gain with CGT due;
• CGT due with income tax on rewards; or
• a tax estimate with the amount already withheld.

If tokens were sold to fund a tax payment, that sale is itself a transaction that may need recording. If a platform withheld tokens or fees, preserve the gross amount, quantity withheld and market value rather than recording only the net wallet movement.

Step 9: reconcile before relying on the output

HMRC has also announced information-reporting rules for cryptoasset service providers. A future or current provider report does not remove the taxpayer’s responsibility to keep their own records. Reconcile provider data with self-custody wallets, transfers and non-custodial activity rather than assuming that a pre-filled or third-party figure is complete.

Common questions

Run the Crypto Tax Calculator→ only after assembling the transaction ledger, then read the Cryptoasset Tax UK guide, Capital Gains Tax guide and the official sources below.

Official sources

• GOV.UK — Tax when you sell cryptoassets
• GOV.UK — Tax when you receive cryptoassets
• HMRC Cryptoassets Manual
• HMRC Cryptoassets Manual — pooling and matching
• HMRC Cryptoassets Manual — staking and lending
• GOV.UK — Capital Gains Tax rates and allowances
• GOV.UK — Information for UK cryptoasset service providers

This guide is educational. It does not prepare a Self Assessment return, classify a token, verify a wallet history or provide tax, legal or financial advice.