Crypto tax tools for Canadians
Canadians report crypto gains using the adjusted cost base: the average cost of every unit of a coin you hold, pooled across all wallets and exchanges. Each sale or swap is a disposition, one-half of the net gain is taxable, and a loss is denied if you rebuy the same coin within 30 days.
Worked example: why one exchange report isn't enough
| Buy on exchange A | 0.1 BTC for $9,000 + $9 fee |
|---|---|
| Buy on exchange B | 0.1 BTC for $13,000 + $13 fee |
| Sell from exchange B | 0.05 BTC for $6,500, $6.50 fee |
| Average cost per BTC, all wallets | $110,110.00identical properties are pooled |
| Cost base of the 0.05 BTC sold | $5,505.50 |
| If you wrongly used exchange B's cost alone | $6,506.50per-wallet cost: not how the CRA counts it |
| Capital gain on the sale | $988.00a per-wallet cost would have shown −$13.00 instead |
Exchange tax reports only see their own wallet, so each one shows a different cost for the same coin. Your return needs the pooled average across all of them, which is why the ACB tool reads every exchange's file together.
Open this example in the calculator →Computed 2026-11-02.
Tools
ACB & superficial loss
Multi-coin ACB from your exchange CSVs, swaps split, superficial losses found, Schedule 3 totals.
Tax toolSuperficial loss check
One sale, the 61-day window, and how much of the loss waits.
Also useful at tax time: the staking calculator values every reward in CAD on the day it arrived, by tax year.
What this means for you
Download the transaction history from every exchange and wallet you used, then load them all into the ACB calculator together. One exchange's tax report can't see your other wallets, so its cost figures are usually wrong for your return.
Swaps and rewards are the two things people miss. A crypto-to-crypto swap is a sale; staking and other rewards are income when received. The superficial loss check covers the 30-day rule on its own.
Definitions
- Adjusted cost base (ACB)
- The total cost of the units of a property you hold, including fees, divided by the units: your average cost.
- Disposition
- Any sale, swap, gift or spend of crypto. Each one produces a capital gain or loss.
- Schedule 3
- The T1 schedule where capital gains and losses are reported; crypto goes on the line for other properties.
Questions about the tax tools
Which exchanges can the ACB calculator read?
Wealthsimple, Kraken, Coinbase, Newton, Shakepay, NDAX and Bitbuy CSV exports, plus our own template for anything else (wallets, DeFi, other exchanges). Files are read in your browser and never uploaded.
Does it produce my Schedule 3?
It produces the totals Schedule 3 asks for — proceeds, adjusted cost base, outlays and the gain or loss — for each tax year, with a CSV you can keep with your records. You or your preparer enter them on the return.
Does it handle DeFi?
It handles anything you can describe as a buy, sale, swap, reward or fee. CRA has published little on lending, liquidity pools or wrapping, so how to record those is a judgment call; our sister site DecentralizedFinance.ca explains the options.