How do I get started with crypto tax calculation?

Connect your exchanges using secure API keys, let Moonscape import your transactions, review for accuracy, and generate your tax reports. The whole process takes just a few minutes.

What exchanges do you support?

We support 300+ exchanges including Binance, Coinbase, Kraken, KuCoin, and more. You can also manually upload CSV files from any exchange.

How are crypto taxes calculated?

Crypto taxes depend on your country. In the US, crypto is treated as property with capital gains tax. We calculate your gains/losses using methods like FIFO, LIFO, or Specific ID.

What forms do I need for crypto taxes?

In the US, you'll typically need Form 8949 for capital gains/losses and Schedule D. We generate all the necessary forms with your data pre-filled.

Do I need to report crypto if I didn't sell?

Generally, simply holding crypto isn't taxable. However, trading, selling, earning rewards, or receiving crypto as payment are all taxable events that must be reported.

We use secure API keys (read-only), and never store your private keys or have access to withdraw funds.

Moonscape

Coinbase retired its old API keys on 5 February 2025. Any key made before then stopped working, and the screens described in older guides no longer exist. Keys now come from the Coinbase Developer Platform, and there is one setting on that screen that decides whether the key works at all.

There are two ways in. Connecting directly is quicker and involves no keys, so start there.

Connect directly, no keys needed

In Moonscape choose Add a source, pick Coinbase, and click Connect with Coinbase. You sign in on Coinbase's own site, approve read access, and you are done. Nothing to copy, nothing to store, and you can revoke it from Coinbase at any time.

Use an API key instead if you would rather not sign in through a browser, or if you are connecting an account you do not hold the login for.

Create an API key on Coinbase

Go to the Coinbase Developer Platform and sign in with your Coinbase account.
Under the API Keys tab, select Secret API Keys.
Click Create API key and give it a nickname.
Expand API restrictions and set the permissions to read only. Leave trade and transfer permissions off.
Expand Advanced Settings and change the signature algorithm to ECDSA.
Leave the IP allowlist empty.
Click Create API key, then Download API key to save the file.

ECDSA, not Ed25519. This is the one that catches people. Coinbase offers both, but Ed25519 does not work with the API we read your history through, and a key made that way fails every time with no useful error. If you already made one, delete it and create another with ECDSA.

The private key is shown once. Download it before you leave the page. If you lose it you have to delete the key and create another.

Connect it in Moonscape

Your key comes as two parts. The key name looks like organizations/1a2b3c/apiKeys/4d5e6f, and the private key is a block of text beginning -----BEGIN EC PRIVATE KEY-----.

Open the Moonscape web app and go to Settings.
Under Exchange connections, click Connect exchange.
Choose Coinbase from the list.
Paste the key name into the API key field.
Paste the private key into the Secret field, including the -----BEGIN and -----END lines.
Click Add.

Paste the private key whole. Line breaks are part of it. If you strip them out or paste only the middle section, the key will not authenticate.

Your transactions sync from here on, for both portfolio tracking and tax.

If something is missing

If your Coinbase connection stopped working and you set it up before February 2025, the key itself has expired. Create a new one with the steps above, or connect directly instead.

If transactions are not appearing correctly, email us and we will get them into the import. Every report shapes what we build next.

How to import data via Coinbase Exchange API key?

Connect directly, no keys needed

Create an API key on Coinbase

Connect it in Moonscape

If something is missing

Start with a free diagnostic scan.