Guides
Plain-language explainers for the tax situations equity-comp employees actually hit. 2026 tax year.
Why your RSU withholding is wrong
The 22% flat withholding vs. your real marginal rate — with a worked example and three ways to fix it.
ESPP taxes: qualifying vs. disqualifying dispositions
The 2-year and 1-year holding tests, how each splits your gain, and the 1099-B basis trap.
ISO exercises and AMT, explained simply
The bargain element, the 2026 AMT exemption and phase-out, and the AMT credit.
How to read your Form 3921 / 3922
Box-by-box: what each number means and what to do with it at tax time.
Quarterly estimated payments and safe harbor rules
The 100%/110% safe harbor, 2026 due dates, and how equity comp creates underpayment penalties.
Sell-to-cover vs. net settlement
The three ways employers collect tax at vest — plus the $1M / 37% withholding rule.
FICA on RSUs: the Social Security cap and the 0.9% surtax
Why $184,500 is a magic number, and the extra Medicare tax that big vests trigger.
RSUs at a private company
Taxed at vest with no market to sell into: single- vs. double-trigger RSUs and the cash plan.
Tax-loss harvesting with RSU shares
Turn fallen shares into a tax asset: offsets, the $3,000 rule, and the wash-sale trap.
Donating appreciated shares
Deduct full fair market value and skip capital gains — but only if you donate the shares, not cash.
RSUs vs. ISOs
How to tell which you hold, and why their tax playbooks point in opposite directions.
Exercising ISOs without an AMT surprise
The $100k annual limit, multi-year spreading, the 90-day clock, and the private-company paper-tax trap.
83(b) elections
The 30-day clock for restricted stock and early-exercised options — and why it never applies to RSUs.
ESPP beyond the basics
Lookback pricing, the $25,000 annual cap, and whether to flip or hold after purchase.
Run the calculators
RSU withholding gap, ISO/AMT, ESPP, and estimated payments — live results, no account.