CryptoTaxCalculator Review: The Sydney-Built Tool Aussie Accountants Quietly Recommend
CryptoTaxCalculator is a Sydney-built crypto tax tool that has quietly become the preferred recommendation of Australian crypto-aware accountants for complicated cases. Where Koinly is the global tool with Australian extensions, CryptoTaxCalculator is the Australian tool that has expanded internationally — and that origin shows up in how cleanly it handles ATO-specific concepts, SMSF reporting, and the messier DeFi positions Australian investors have got themselves into. This review covers what CryptoTaxCalculator does well, where it lags Koinly, the pricing and who it actually suits.
What CryptoTaxCalculator is
CryptoTaxCalculator (CTC) was founded in Sydney in 2018 by Shane Brunette. It is now one of the better-funded crypto tax tools globally and has expanded to cover the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and a long list of other jurisdictions. The Australian operating heritage remains visible — the local team is meaningful, the support is Australia-aware, and the product handles a number of ATO-specific positions that global competitors handle less precisely.
ATO-specific positioning
CryptoTaxCalculator has consistently been one of the first tools to integrate the ATO’s published guidance on the more contentious crypto tax positions. When the ATO clarified its position on DeFi transactions (lending and borrowing, liquidity pool deposits and withdrawals, wrapped-token treatment), CryptoTaxCalculator reflected those positions in its categorisation defaults. When SMSF-specific reporting requirements came into focus, the SMSF reporting workflow was built out before global competitors got to it.
Practical examples. Wrapping ETH to wETH is treated as a CGT event by the ATO’s default position — CTC defaults to recording it as such, while some global tools default to treating it as a non-taxable conversion. Providing liquidity to a Uniswap V3 LP position triggers a disposal of the underlying assets and acquisition of LP shares — CTC handles this correctly out of the box.
Exchange and chain support
CTC supports all major Australian exchanges — CoinSpot, CoinJar, Swyftx, Independent Reserve, BTC Markets, Digital Surge, Kraken Australia, Coinbase, Binance — via direct API or CSV import. On-chain support covers Bitcoin, Ethereum and all major EVM chains, Solana, Cardano, Polkadot, Cosmos, Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, Base and most other Layer 1 and Layer 2 networks. The breadth is comparable to Koinly, with a slight edge in DeFi-specific protocol categorisation on Ethereum and EVM chains.
Pricing
Australian pricing for CryptoTaxCalculator is roughly: Rookie (100 transactions) ~AUD $79 per tax year, Hobbyist (1,000 transactions) ~AUD $159, Investor (10,000 transactions) ~AUD $309, Trader (100,000 transactions) ~AUD $499. Pricing is per tax year. There is a free trial that lets you import and preview but not download the report.
Compared to Koinly, CTC is marginally more expensive at the lower tiers and broadly comparable at the higher tiers.
SMSF reporting
Where CTC pulls clearly ahead is SMSF reporting. The tool produces an SMSF-specific output that segregates the fund’s holdings, calculates the relevant CGT treatment under SMSF rules (which differ in some respects from individual taxpayer rules), and produces audit-friendly documentation that SMSF auditors recognise and accept. For Australian SMSFs holding crypto, CTC is the most commonly recommended tool.
DeFi categorisation depth
CTC’s DeFi categorisation is the strongest of any tool in the Australian market. The product distinguishes between: a swap on a DEX (a CGT event); providing liquidity to a pool (a disposal of underlying tokens and acquisition of LP tokens, both potential CGT events); withdrawing liquidity (a disposal of LP tokens and acquisition of underlying); borrowing against collateral (not a CGT event); collateral liquidation (a CGT event on the collateral); and a dozen other granular cases. For Australians who have meaningfully participated in DeFi, this depth saves hours of manual reclassification.
Where CTC lags Koinly
Two areas. First, the user interface is slightly less polished than Koinly’s — the workflow is more granular and therefore takes more clicks for simple cases. Second, while exchange and chain coverage is broad, Koinly’s coverage of obscure global exchanges and microcap chains is marginally wider. For Australian-focused work, these are not material gaps.
Accountant integration
Most Australian crypto-aware accountants accept either Koinly or CryptoTaxCalculator exports. CTC has a ‘view-only’ accountant access feature that lets your accountant log in to your CTC account read-only — useful for accountant-led reviews where the client does not want to email exports back and forth.
Verdict
CryptoTaxCalculator is the right tool for Australian SMSFs, for investors with meaningful DeFi exposure on EVM chains, and for anyone whose accountant is using it. The Sydney origin shows up in the product’s ATO-specific handling, and the SMSF reporting in particular is the best in the Australian market. For straightforward retail cases — buy on Swyftx, hold on a Ledger, occasional sales — Koinly is more approachable and slightly cheaper. The decision usually comes down to how complicated your situation is and whether you have DeFi or SMSF exposure.
Related guides
- The definitive australian crypto tax guide
- Australian crypto tax for investors, traders and DeFi users
- How the ato tracks cryptocurrency in australia
- Koinly Review (Australia): How the ATO-Ready Crypto Tax Tool Stacks Up
- Crypto Tax Software Compared (Australia): Koinly vs CryptoTaxCalculator vs Crypto Tax Australia
- DeFi Tax in Australia: Lending, Borrowing, Liquidity Pools and the Mess of CGT Events
Frequently asked questions
Is CryptoTaxCalculator an Australian product?
Yes. CryptoTaxCalculator was founded in Sydney in 2018 and remains an Australia-anchored operation, despite supporting many other jurisdictions.
Does CryptoTaxCalculator support SMSF crypto reporting?
Yes — this is one of CTC’s standout features. The SMSF reporting workflow produces audit-friendly documentation that Australian SMSF auditors accept.
How does CryptoTaxCalculator compare to Koinly?
CTC handles Australian-specific edge cases (SMSF, granular DeFi categorisation, ATO position alignment) more cleanly. Koinly has a slightly more polished UI and marginally broader coverage of global obscure exchanges. For complex Australian cases CTC wins; for simple retail cases Koinly is easier.
How much does CryptoTaxCalculator cost in Australia?
Plans range from roughly AUD $79 per tax year (Rookie, 100 transactions) to AUD $499 (Trader, 100,000 transactions). There is a free trial that lets you import and preview.
Does CryptoTaxCalculator handle DeFi correctly?
Yes — CTC has the most granular DeFi categorisation of any tool used in Australia, with distinct treatment for swaps, liquidity provision and withdrawal, borrowing, collateral liquidation, wrapped tokens and more.
Important Australian disclosure — The information in this article is general and educational only. It does not constitute personal financial product advice and should not be relied on as such. Cryptocurrency products are highly volatile and many crypto exchanges or platforms operating in Australia are not licensed by ASIC. You should consider whether crypto suits your objectives, financial situation and needs before making any decision. Tax treatment varies by individual circumstance — consult a registered tax agent or financial adviser, and refer to the official guidance at ato.gov.au and moneysmart.gov.au.
