NUA Employer Stock Calculator

NUA or IRA rollover: which leaves you with more after tax?

If your 401(k) holds your employer's stock, you can take the shares out in kind and pay ordinary tax only on the cost basis, leaving the net unrealized appreciation to be taxed as a long-term gain when you sell. Or you can roll it all to an IRA and pay ordinary rates on every dollar later. Enter your figures and see both.

The numbers stay in this browser tab. It does arithmetic on what you type; it is a worksheet, not tax advice, and the decision is hard to undo.

Your figures

Market value of the employer stock, dollars

Cost basis of that stock in the plan, dollars

Your age

Separated from the employer in or after the year you turned 55?

Will you take the whole plan balance out in one calendar year?

Ordinary tax rate this year, percent

Long-term capital gains rate, percent

Ordinary tax rate on IRA withdrawals later, percent

State tax rate, percent (optional)

Expected yearly growth of the stock, percent

Years you would hold it after the distribution

Yearly return on the money you use to pay the tax now, percent (blank = same as growth)

Fill in the figures, then click Compare the two routes.

NUA route minus rollover, after tax

How the answer moves with the share of value that is basis

Basis share of value	NUA route, net	IRA rollover, net	NUA advantage

What it does, and what it leaves to you

NUA route: tax now = cost basis at your ordinary rate (plus the 10% additional tax when it applies), then the NUA taxed at the long-term rate at sale, and growth after distribution taxed long term if held over a year, ordinary if not. The tax paid now is charged the return you give it.
Rollover: no tax now; the whole grown value is taxed at your later ordinary rate.
Not decided: whether your plan allows an in-kind distribution; whether your distribution qualifies as a lump sum; net investment income tax, bracket effects, IRMAA, state rules, required distributions, estate treatment; and whether holding one stock is wise.

Common questions

What is net unrealized appreciation (NUA)?

NUA is the growth in your employer's stock while it sat in your 401(k): the market value when it leaves the plan minus the plan's average cost basis. If you take the shares out in kind in a qualifying lump-sum distribution, you pay ordinary income tax only on the cost basis now, and the NUA is taxed as a long-term capital gain when you sell, whenever that is.

What is a lump-sum distribution for NUA?

The entire balance of all of the employer's plans of the same type, paid out within a single calendar year, after a triggering event such as separation from service, reaching age 59½, disability or death. A partial distribution generally loses NUA treatment. Ask the plan administrator to confirm before you act.

Is there a 10% penalty on an NUA distribution?

The 10% additional tax can apply to the cost basis you are taxed on now if you are under 59½, unless an exception applies, for example separation from service in or after the year you turn 55. The NUA itself is not hit by it. This page asks your age and whether you separated at 55 or later and adds the 10% when it applies.

When does NUA beat an IRA rollover?

Roughly when the cost basis is a small share of the stock's value and your ordinary tax rate is well above the long-term capital gains rate. A rollover defers all tax, but every dollar comes out later as ordinary income. The table on this page shows how the gap moves as basis share rises.

Does this tell me what to do?

No. It is a worksheet that does arithmetic on the figures you enter. Rules differ by plan and by state, and the decision is often irreversible, so check the result with a tax professional and your plan administrator before distributing shares.

Is my data uploaded anywhere?

No. Everything is worked out in your browser and nothing is sent; a test in the code asserts there are no network calls.