This article applies to US customers only.
CoinTracker compares the proceeds you uploaded on the 1099-DA against the proceeds it calculated from your transaction history. A "Poor Match" status in the 1099-DA portal means CoinTracker's calculated proceeds for an exchange does not match the proceeds reported on the uploaded 1099-DA. Beyond small rounding differences, most mismatches trace to a missing transaction, a misclassified one, or a cost basis method difference.
How do I investigate a mismatch?
The cause of a mismatch can come from several places. Check each of the following:
- Re-sync the exchange connection. Open the Wallets page, find the exchange, and refresh the sync. A missing recent transaction often resolves here.
- Filter 2025 transactions by the exchange. On the Transactions page, filter by the exchange and the 2025 tax year. Verify the sales and disposals match the dates and quantities on your 1099-DA. Look for misclassified entries, such as anything categorized as a Send or Receive that should be a Sale.
- Check for missing cost basis history. If you sold something in 2025 that you bought before connecting the exchange (for example, a 2021 purchase sold in 2025), the original buy needs to be in CoinTracker. Without it, the cost basis is missing.
- Check for duplicates and wrong-year entries. Filter for the same date and asset to find duplicate transactions. Confirm the year filter is set to 2025. A transaction from 2024 or 2026 dragged into the comparison will distort the proceeds.
- Verify the proceeds you entered in the guided flow. Open the 1099-DA portal, compare what you entered against the summary page of the PDF, and confirm they match line by line.
- Confirm your cost basis method matches the exchange's. Open Settings > Taxes > Cost basis method, select the tax year, and check the method for that exchange. Coinbase and Kraken accounts connected by API sync their method automatically and show it as Direct (for example, HIFO · Direct). A warning icon means the method was set by hand in CoinTracker. If the exchange used a different method, the realized gains will differ from CoinTracker's even when every transaction matches.
Coinbase and Kraken accounts connected by API sync their cost basis method automatically. To learn more about this, check out the article: Cost basis method synced from Coinbase and Kraken
Is a small mismatch a problem?
Small mismatches (rounding differences of a few dollars) are normal and do not require action. CoinTracker and exchanges sometimes pull prices from different sources, and a crypto-to-crypto trade priced at the trade's fair market value can land a cent or two off from the exchange's recorded value.
Large mismatches (more than a few dollars, or a percentage shift in proceeds) are a red flag. Work through the investigation steps above before filing. Filing a return that significantly disagrees with the 1099-DA the IRS already has on file could prompt a review.
What is and is not covered by the 1099-DA
For the 2025 tax year, the 1099-DA form reports only the proceeds from sales and disposals on the issuing exchange. Several common transaction types do not appear on the form and will not be considered in the comparison:
- Transfers between your own wallets or exchanges.
- Deposits and withdrawals of crypto or cash.
- Staking rewards, interest, and airdrops: these are income, not proceeds.
- Mining rewards and other earned crypto.
If you spot one of these in CoinTracker but not on the 1099-DA, that is expected. The 1099-DA also does not cover cost basis or activity on other exchanges. Each form only reflects its own platform's sales.
Why is my exchange's 1099-DA total proceeds higher than CoinTracker's total?
The IRS gives exchanges an optional way to report stablecoin sales on their 1099-DA form, known as the aggregate reporting method. An exchange that uses it:
- Reports your stablecoin sales for cash or for another stablecoin as a single combined total, rather than listing each sale.
- Does not report stablecoin sales where you received a different, non-stablecoin cryptocurrency, for example using USDT to buy BTC or ETH.
- Does not report that combined total at all when it comes to under $10,000.00 for the year.
Most exchanges use this method, and CoinTracker's calculation for the total proceeds will follow this same method. If your exchange's 1099-DA form shows a higher proceeds total than CoinTracker, the exchange may not be using this method, meaning their 1099-DA form reported stablecoin sales that CoinTracker leaves out of the matched total.
These sales are not missing from your CoinTracker tax forms. They are still reported, on the part of Form 8949 for sales that were not reported on a 1099-DA, so your total proceeds stay complete.
Important: A large gap is not always from stablecoin reporting, so work through the investigation steps in the mismatch section before concluding the above.
What proceed total to choose from
When CoinTracker offers to adjust the proceeds matched to the exchange's 1099-DA total proceeds, choosing CoinTracker's calculated proceeds helps avoid counting these sales twice. Using the exchange's 1099-DA proceeds instead would report the stablecoin proceeds a second time, since they already appear on Form 8949.
What should I bring to support if I need help?
If the investigation steps above do not surface the mismatch, contact support with:
- A screenshot of the mismatch comparison from the 1099-DA portal
- A copy of the 1099-DA PDF from the exchange
- A CSV export of your transactions from that exchange