Updated October 4, 2026. Quick answer: Yes. Delaware’s taxable income “shall be the federal adjusted gross income as defined in the laws”, so a gain is taxed at the graduated rates, topping out at 6.6% above $60,000. A taxpayer 60 or older may exclude up to $12,500 of pensions and eligible retirement income, which the instructions say includes “capital gains net of capital losses”.
Selling your home? How the state taxes the profit, from its own tax documents: Does Delaware tax the profit from selling your home?.
The same question for dividends and interest: does Delaware tax dividends and interest.
How Delaware treats capital gains
| Item | What the documents say |
|---|---|
| Treatment | Part of federal adjusted gross income, taxed on the graduated schedule; no separate rate for gains |
| Rates (30 Del. C. 1102(a)(14)) | 2.2% over $2,000; 3.9% over $5,000; 4.8% over $10,000; 5.2% over $20,000; 5.55% over $25,000; 6.6% over $60,000 |
| Age 60 or older | Up to $12,500 of pensions plus eligible retirement income, which includes capital gains net of capital losses |
| Under 60 | A $2,000 pension exclusion; no exclusion for gains |
A $50,000 long-term gain
A taxpayer under 60 has no exclusion for the gain. Taxed wholly at the top rate, 6.6%, a $50,000 gain is computed as $50,000 x 6.6% = $3,300; lower brackets cost less.
A taxpayer 60 or older with no other pension or retirement income can exclude up to $12,500: $50,000 minus $12,500 = $37,500 left. The tax on it at 6.6% is computed as $37,500 x 6.6% = $2,475.
What changes in 2026
The documents read print no 2026 rate or change.
Federal rules
The state’s treatment sits on top of the federal one. The IRS explains the federal tax on gains in Topic no. 409, Capital Gains and Losses and Publication 550, Investment Income and Expenses.
Related: whether Delaware taxes pensions, how Delaware taxes retirement income, the capital gains tax by state table, and the federal capital gains tax calculator.
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Answer againSources
- 30 Del. C. Chapter 11, Subchapter I, section 1102 (Imposition and rate of tax): https://delcode.delaware.gov/title30/c011/sc01/index.html
- 30 Del. C. Chapter 11, Subchapter II, sections 1105-1106 (Taxable income; Modifications): https://delcode.delaware.gov/title30/c011/sc02/index.html
- Delaware Individual Income Tax Return Resident Instructions 2025 (PIT-RES): https://revenuefiles.delaware.gov/2025/PITForms_Instructions/Instructions/PIT-RES_Instructions_2025-01.pdf
Sources: the primary documents linked above, read on October 4, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer, the plan administrator or the agency itself is the right place to confirm anything consequential.