Plan your ISO exercise — AMT-aware, multi-year
Calculator · free · no signupSee how many shares of your Incentive Stock Options (ISOs) you can exercise this year before Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) kicks in — and how you can minimize the exercise cost in a multi-year schedule.
Beta · invite-only · AlphaLatitude Inc. · Free Tools
Your grant
Tax inputs
Grant timeline
Exercise tax cost — optimized plan
$97,243
Total bill: $325,617 ($228,374 regular + $97,243 from exercise)
Optimized plan saves $36,689 vs. lump-sum.
Up to 1,270 shares ($57,162 bargain element) this year before federal AMT applies.
Cumulative exercise cost
A line can dip when AMT credit from a prior year recovers. Hover a year for plan totals.
Optimized exercise schedule
You pay the higher of Regular tax and AMT tax each year (per jurisdiction). Hover any number for the bracket-by-bracket breakdown.
| Year 1 | 5,500 | $247,500 | — | $140,134 | ||
| Year 2 | 2,400 | $120,000 | — | $93,278 | ||
| Year 3 | 2,100 | $116,550 | — | $92,205 |
Federal AMT credit
Earned
$85,872
Recovered
$0
Remaining
$85,872
The AMT credit only recovers in years where regular tax exceeds AMT — typically a year with no ISO exercise. Every year in this schedule has bargain element, so AMT exceeds regular tax in every year and the credit carries forward untouched. Try a longer horizon or fewer total shares to introduce a recovery year.
Plan comparison
Exercise tax cost (regular tax baseline excluded).
Lump-sum
All in Year 1
$133,932
+$36,689
Even split
Equal shares each year
$103,522
+$6,280
Optimized
Tax-aware schedule
$97,243
Cheapest
Estimates only. Excludes disqualifying dispositions, NSOs, multi-state moves, and AMT preferences other than ISO bargain elements. State AMT figures are 2025 (next-year values published in late 2026). Not financial advice.
One piece of the puzzle.
OptionsAhoy plans your ISO exercise alongside hedging, RSU vesting, and de-concentration — across bullish, neutral, and bearish market scenarios. Free during beta.