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Stock Profit Calculator
Enter what you paid, what you sold for, and your commissions to see the net profit or loss on a trade, your return on cost, and the break-even price you needed to clear.
Written by TopicDrill Editorial Team·Updated June 2026
Cost vs proceeds
Cost Proceeds
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How the stock profit calculator works
The tool builds your trade from both sides. On the buy side it adds the shares times the purchase price to your buy commission to get the total cost. On the sell side it takes the shares times the sale price and subtracts the sell commission to get your net proceeds. The difference between proceeds and cost is your net profit or loss.
The chart puts cost and proceeds side by side so the gap between the two bars is your profit at a glance. When proceeds fall short of cost, that gap is the loss you took once fees are counted.
A quick example
Buy 100 shares at $45 with a $5 commission, so your cost is $4,505. Sell them at $62 with another $5 commission, leaving proceeds of $6,195. Your net profit is $1,690, which is a return of about 37.5% on the $4,505 you put at risk.
Things to keep in mind
The break-even figure is the number to watch on thin trades: small price moves can be wiped out entirely by commissions. For a primer on how brokerage costs eat into returns, see Investor.gov. If you bought in several lots, find your blended cost first with our stock average calculator.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate profit on a stock?
Take the price you sold each share for minus the price you bought it for, multiply by the number of shares, then subtract any buy and sell commissions. The result is your net profit. As a formula it is sell price minus buy price, times shares, minus total fees.
What is the break-even price?
The break-even price is the sell price per share at which your net profit is exactly zero. It is your total cost including the buy commission, plus the sell commission you will pay, divided by the number of shares. Sell above it and you make money, sell below it and you take a loss.
Does this include taxes on my gain?
No. This calculator shows your pre-tax trading profit after commissions only. Capital gains tax depends on how long you held the shares and your income, so your take-home amount will usually be lower. Treat the net profit here as the figure before any tax is applied.
What does return on cost mean here?
Return on cost is your net profit divided by the total amount you put in, expressed as a percent. It tells you how hard your money worked on this trade regardless of the share count, which makes it easy to compare one position against another.
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