Are Short-Term Capital Gains Considered Earned or Unearned Income for Taxes?

The definitive answer is that short-term capital gains are considered unearned income, just like long-term capital gains. The difference is how they're taxed, not their classification as earned/unearned. Short-term capital gains (from assets held less than a year) are taxed at your ordinary income tax rate, which makes people sometimes confuse them with earned income. But being taxed similarly doesn't make them the same type of income. Earned income comes from working - wages, salaries, tips, self-employment income, etc. Unearned income comes from investments and includes interest, dividends, and ALL capital gains regardless of whether they're short or long-term. This distinction matters for things like the Earned Income Tax Credit, which is only calculated based on earned income. Your $4,500 in short-term gains won't count toward qualifying for the EITC.

After struggling with this exact issue last tax season, I found this amazing tool called taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) that helped clear up my confusion. I was also mixing up how my capital gains were classified and it was messing with my tax planning. The tool analyzed my tax docs and immediately flagged that I was incorrectly categorizing my short-term gains as earned income on some worksheets. It explained exactly what you're asking about - that ALL capital gains are unearned income, but short-term gains are just taxed at ordinary income rates. It also showed me how this affected other parts of my return I hadn't even considered, like the Net Investment Income Tax and some education credits I was claiming.

I was skeptical about taxr.ai when I first saw it mentioned here, but I gave it a try with my investment docs since I was having the same confusion about my capital gains. It immediately clarified that my stock trades (even the short ones) were all unearned income. The tool actually saved me from making a mistake on my EITC calculation where I almost included some short-term gains that would have messed up my credit amount. The analyzer flagged it right away and explained exactly why it was wrong. What impressed me most was how it explained the different income classifications in plain English instead of tax jargon. Highly recommend if you're confused about income types!

If you're still confused after getting the technical answer and need to speak with someone at the IRS to confirm, I'd recommend using Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I was in this exact situation last year - unclear about how my trading income affected various tax credits. I spent DAYS trying to get through to the IRS directly. Complete nightmare. Then I found Claimyr and they got me connected to an IRS agent in about 15 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent confirmed everything about short-term gains being unearned income, even though they're taxed at ordinary rates. They also explained exactly how it would affect my specific situation with education credits that have earned income requirements.

Ok I have to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After dismissing it as impossible, I got desperate enough to try it when my tax software flagged an issue with how I was reporting some trading income. I still can't believe it worked. Got connected to an IRS agent in about 20 minutes, and she confirmed everything about short-term capital gains being unearned income. She even walked me through exactly how this would affect my EITC calculation and gave me some pointers about documenting my trading activity correctly. Saved me hours of research and probably from making an expensive mistake on my return. Sometimes it's worth admitting when you're wrong!

There's a simple rule I use to determine earned vs unearned income: if you didn't actively work to earn each dollar (meaning trading your time/labor), then it's unearned income. So wages from a job = earned income Self-employment income = earned income Rental income = unearned income ALL capital gains = unearned income Interest and dividends = unearned income The confusion happens because short-term gains are taxed at ordinary income rates, but that just determines the percentage you pay, not whether it's earned or unearned income.

I actually just dealt with this on my 2024 taxes. Here's what my accountant told me: 1. ALL capital gains = unearned income 2. Short-term capital gains are taxed at ordinary income rates 3. Long-term capital gains get preferential tax rates The tricky part is some tax forms and software ask for "income taxed at ordinary rates" which includes both earned income AND short-term capital gains, causing the confusion. For your $4,500 in short-term gains, it will be taxed at whatever your marginal tax bracket is, but it WON'T count as earned income for things like EIC, Social Security contributions, or IRA eligibility.

Just want to add another perspective since I went through this confusion too. The key thing that helped me understand is that the IRS has very specific definitions for "earned income" - it's basically income from working (W-2 wages, self-employment, tips, etc.). Investment income like capital gains - whether short-term or long-term - is always considered "unearned income" regardless of how much time or effort you put into researching stocks or making trades. The fact that short-term gains are taxed at ordinary income rates is just about the tax calculation, not the income classification. This matters a lot for tax planning. For example, if you're trying to maximize your IRA contributions or qualify for certain credits, you need to know that only your actual work income counts as "earned income." Your $4,500 in trading gains won't help you qualify for a larger IRA contribution limit. I'd recommend keeping track of both types of income separately when you're doing tax planning throughout the year - it makes things much clearer come tax time!

Just to summarize what everyone's been saying since there's a lot of great info here - your $4,500 in short-term capital gains is definitely unearned income, even though it gets taxed at the same rates as your regular job income. I made this same mistake when I first started trading. The confusion comes from tax software that groups short-term gains with your W-2 income for tax rate calculations, but they're still fundamentally different types of income. Here's what this means practically for you: - Your gains will be taxed at your ordinary income tax rates (so if you're in the 22% bracket, that's what you'll pay) - They WON'T count toward earned income requirements for EITC, Child Tax Credit, or other credits that specifically require work income - They WON'T help you qualify for IRA contributions (you need earned income from actual work for that) - They WILL count toward the Net Investment Income Tax if your total income is high enough The IRS is actually pretty clear about this if you dig into the right publications, but their website can definitely be overwhelming when you're just trying to get a straight answer!

This is a really common confusion that trips up a lot of new investors! The key distinction everyone's highlighting is spot-on: short-term capital gains are always unearned income, even though they're taxed at ordinary income rates. I went through this exact same confusion when I started trading options and crypto. What helped me remember the difference is thinking about it this way: "earned income" literally means you earned it through your labor/work - like wages, salary, tips, or self-employment income. Everything else (interest, dividends, capital gains, rental income, etc.) is "unearned income" because you didn't trade your time and labor for it directly. The tax rate is just how much you pay - it doesn't change what type of income it is. So your $4,500 will get added to your other income and taxed at your marginal rate, but it won't help you qualify for things that require earned income. One practical tip: when you're doing tax planning throughout the year, it helps to think of earned vs unearned income as two separate buckets with different rules. This becomes really important if you're trying to maximize retirement contributions or qualify for certain tax credits.

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm in a similar situation as a new investor and was making the exact same mistake. I had about $3,200 in short-term gains last year and was planning my taxes thinking it was all just "regular income." What really clicked for me reading through everyone's explanations is that the IRS has very specific definitions that don't always align with how we think about things intuitively. Just because I'm actively trading and spending time researching doesn't make it "earned" income in the tax sense. The practical implications are huge too - I was about to contribute to my IRA based on my total income including the trading gains, which would have been a costly mistake. Now I know I can only contribute based on my actual W-2 wages. One question though - does anyone know if this changes if you elect Mark-to-Market accounting as a trader? I've heard conflicting info about whether that affects the earned vs unearned classification or just how you report the gains and losses.