Calculate your stock profit or loss instantly. Enter buy price, sell price, shares, and commissions to see total return, ROI percentage, and per-share breakdown.
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Whether you are a day trader, long-term investor, or just sold your first stock, knowing your actual profit or loss after commissions and fees is essential. Our stock profit calculator shows your total return, per-share profit, ROI percentage, and annualized return instantly — so you can evaluate every trade with precision. Simply enter your buy price, sell price, number of shares, and any commissions to get a complete breakdown of your stock trade performance.
Stock profit (or capital gain) is the difference between the price you sell a stock for and the price you originally paid, minus any trading fees or commissions. If you sell for more than you paid, you have a profit (capital gain). If you sell for less, you have a capital loss. The basic formula accounts for the number of shares, buy and sell commissions, and optionally any dividends received during the holding period. For short sellers, the calculation reverses — you profit when you buy back shares at a lower price than you originally sold them.
Stock Profit Formula
Profit = (Sell Price − Buy Price) × Shares − Buy Commission − Sell CommissionTrading commissions, SEC fees, and platform charges can eat into your returns. See your true net profit after all costs are deducted from your stock trade, including flat fees, percentage-based commissions, or per-share charges.
A $500 profit means different things on a $1,000 investment vs. a $50,000 investment. See your percentage return and annualized return to compare trades fairly and evaluate your overall trading performance.
Before placing a sell order, know the minimum price you need to sell at to cover your purchase price plus all commissions. Our break-even table also shows target prices for 5%, 10%, 25%, 50%, and 100% returns.
See an estimated capital gains tax based on whether your holding period qualifies for short-term or long-term rates. Plan tax-efficient trades and know your net profit after taxes before you sell.
Short selling profits are calculated differently — you profit when the price drops. Our calculator supports both long and short positions with accurate profit and loss calculations for each trade type.
Dividends are an important part of stock returns, especially for long-term holdings. Add dividends received to see your total return including both capital gains and dividend income.
Bought 100 shares of AAPL at $150 and sold at $175? Instantly see your $2,500 gross profit, net profit after commissions, and percentage return on investment.
Held 200 shares for two years and received dividends? Calculate your total return including capital gains and dividend income, plus see your annualized return rate.
Considering selling a losing position to offset gains elsewhere? Calculate your exact loss amount and get an estimated tax benefit before executing the trade.
Shorted a stock and bought it back at a lower price? Calculate your short selling profit accurately, including commissions on both legs of the trade.
Before placing a sell order, use the break-even targets table to find the minimum sell price needed to cover all costs, plus prices needed for your desired return targets.
Stock profit is calculated as: (Sell Price − Buy Price) × Number of Shares − Total Commissions. For example, buying 100 shares at $50 and selling at $75 with $10 total commissions gives you: ($75 − $50) × 100 − $10 = $2,490 profit.
Return on investment (ROI) for stocks is: ROI = (Net Profit ÷ Total Cost) × 100. Total cost includes the purchase price of shares plus buy commission. If you invested $5,000 and your net profit is $1,200, your ROI is 24%.
In the US, stock profits are taxed as capital gains. Short-term gains (held less than 1 year) are taxed at your ordinary income rate (10%–37%). Long-term gains (held over 1 year) are taxed at preferential rates of 0%, 15%, or 20% depending on your income. An additional 3.8% Net Investment Income Tax (NIIT) may apply for high earners.
Realized gains occur when you actually sell the stock — this triggers a taxable event. Unrealized gains (paper gains) are profits on stocks you still hold. You only owe taxes on realized gains. Our calculator helps you compute both: your actual profit if you've sold, or your projected profit at a target sell price.
If you bought shares at different times and prices (dollar-cost averaging), your cost basis is the weighted average: Total Amount Spent ÷ Total Shares Owned. For example, buying 50 shares at $40 ($2,000) plus 50 shares at $60 ($3,000) gives an average cost basis of $5,000 ÷ 100 = $50 per share.
Annualized return converts your total return into a yearly rate for fair comparison. The formula is: Annualized Return = ((1 + Total Return)^(1/Years) − 1) × 100. A 50% total return over 3 years equals about 14.5% annualized return. This lets you compare investments with different holding periods on an equal basis.
Break-even price accounts for all trading costs: Break-Even = (Total Purchase Cost + Buy Commission + Sell Commission) ÷ Number of Shares. If you bought 100 shares for $5,000 with $10 buy and $10 sell commission, your break-even is $5,020 ÷ 100 = $50.20 per share.
While many US brokers now offer commission-free trading, commissions, SEC fees, and FINRA TAF fees still apply on some platforms and international brokers. Even small per-trade fees add up over frequent trading. Our calculator lets you include flat fees, percentage-based fees, or per-share commissions to see their exact impact.
For short selling, the profit formula reverses: Profit = (Short Sale Price − Buy-Back Price) × Shares − Commissions. You profit when the stock price drops. If you shorted 100 shares at $80 and bought back at $60, with $20 total commissions: ($80 − $60) × 100 − $20 = $1,980 profit.
For total return analysis, yes. Total return = capital gain + dividends received. If you bought a stock for $10,000, sold for $11,500 (capital gain of $1,500), and received $300 in dividends during the holding period, your total return is $1,800 or 18%. Dividends are especially significant for long-term and income-focused investments.