Users should still carefully review their returns before e-filing and remember that premium software doesn’t guarantee protection from audits. While it may provide more assistance in the event of an audit, users will still need to be actively involved. TurboTax takes much of the complexity out of tax preparation by offering a guided, user-friendly experience that supports a wide range of tax situations. The free version is designed for simple tax returns and may not cover more complex situations like itemized deductions or certain types of income.
- Various promotions and limited-time offers from us and our affiliate partners will deviate from our direct-from-Intuit pricing.
- H&R Block has something for everyone, whether you’re filing online yourself, looking for expert advice, or want to hand it off to a professional.
- With the Full Service plan, a tax professional prepares your return on your behalf.
- TurboTax has long been the most popular do-it-yourself tax software option, thanks to the company’s focus on design and user experience.
Compare TurboTax Online Products
You will have access to AI tax assistance and the community forum for questions. You’ll get the TurboTax guarantees, such as the Maximum Refund Guarantee and the 100% Accurate Calculations Guarantee. More complicated returns won’t qualify, and you could pay up to $119 for the federal return and $59 per state return. Instead, they’ve organized it by the level of “assistance” you need. From there, the final amount you’ll pay is determined by how complicated your taxes are. At no added cost to you, some of the products mentioned below are advertising partners and may pay us a commission.
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Unless otherwise stated, each offer is not available in combination with any other TurboTax offers. Certain discount offers may not be valid for mobile in-app purchases and may be available only for a limited period of time. I may be compensated through 3rd party advertisers but our reviews, comparisons, and articles are based on objective measures and analysis. For additional information, please review our advertising disclosure. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank or financial institution.
Here’s a little more about how much they cost and what they offer. IMHO there is no real advantage to the ADVANTAGE program any longer so just buy the program from a reputable reseller for less and cancel your advantage account. ALL the downloaded versions can handle ALL the same forms and situations … If you don’t qualify for TurboTax’s free version, you may want to give FreeTaxUSA a look. Federal returns are free, and state taxes are just $14.99, regardless of how complicated your taxes are.
Pros
TaxAct provides professional tax expert assistance, which includes help from CPAs, enrolled agents (EAs) and tax attorneys, at an additional cost of $59.99. In 2017, TurboTax Live Assisted was launched, allowing customers to reach out for help from a credentialed tax expert if they get stuck or have questions while preparing their returns. And in 2020, the company introduced TurboTax Live Full Service, which lets customers hand off their tax filing to an expert.
Instead of doing your taxes on your own, you’ll have access to a live tax expert with an average of 12 years of experience, per TurboTax. At the end, included in the cost of your filing, you will have an expert final review guaranteed at 100% accuracy. You’ll also have access to the AI-powered Intuit Assist for any of your last-minute questions. So you’ll pay nothing if you’re filing a simple tax return, which means using only the IRS Form 1040. About 37% of taxpayers are eligible for this option, per TurboTax. This makes the process of filing your taxes generally seamless — the program never drops the curtain between you and the IRS forms.
You should always double-check that the data was imported correctly before moving on. TurboTax also publishes reviews of its tax-filing products on its website, which show an average rating of 4.6 stars out of 5 across more than 600,000 reviews. It’s unclear how the reviews are solicited or selected to appear on the website. You upload all of your documents digitally and speak with the tax pro on a phone or video call when needed. Once complete, the tax pro signs your return and files it on your behalf.
Before you start, look at the various deductions you plan to take and income you have to report. That way, you won’t be turbotax advantage cost surprised into buying a more expensive version of TurboTax halfway through. Not only does it tally up your estimated bill or refund, but it also provides a detailed breakdown of what factors are currently affecting it.
TurboTax’s customer support options
You’ll connect with an assistant who will gather some info and be able to provide you an estimated total. Intuit-TurboTax has not been extensively reviewed by customers on Trustpilot, a popular platform for reviewing businesses. Of the roughly 500 reviews, nearly 95% gave the company 1- and 2-star ratings. Several customers complained of deceptive pricing and unhelpful, if not misguided, advice from customer service agents and experts.
In Live Assisted, you won’t be able to choose the tax expert you work with, but you will have access to an expert through phone, chat or live on-screen through one-way video chat. With its intuitive design and variety of human support options, TurboTax is, in many ways, the standard for the do-it-yourself tax-prep industry. However, its products come at a price, and confident filers might find that similar offerings from competitors provide a better value. For the second year in a row, TurboTax will give some Full Service filers the option to work with a local tax pro in person if they prefer face-to-face help. The company says the local pro is vetted by Intuit, but beware that you’ll be venturing outside the TurboTax world. This means the pro may have different work hours, and the services they offer may be different from those advertised by TurboTax.
Investment reporting and rental income (Schedules D and E, and K-1s), plus business income, expenses on a Schedule C, home office deductions and features for freelancers. Many, or all, of the products featured on this page are from our advertising partners who compensate us when you take certain actions on our website or click to take an action on their website. The following TurboTax Online offers may be available for tax year 2024. Intuit reserves the right to modify or terminate any offer at any time for any reason in its sole discretion.
TurboTax’s free version
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more – straight to your e-mail. All users have access to a comprehensive, searchable help center with over 12,000 articles covering common tax questions and software functionality. TurboTax’s “Smart Scan” technology identifies 87% of available deductions, especially useful for common deductions. However, some advanced features are limited to the premium versions. If your employer, payroll provider, or financial institution is a TurboTax Import Partner, you can import your W-2s and 1099s. Otherwise, you can snap a picture and upload it to have the information automatically entered on your return.
- Say you’ve done your taxes through TurboTax, whether individually or with a professional, and you end up receiving an audit letter from the U.S.
- Many, or all, of the products featured on this page are from our advertising partners who compensate us when you take certain actions on our website or click to take an action on their website.
- TurboTax has a $0 option for qualified customers for both federal and state tax returns, which is available with no income cutoff, but does not cover certain income types.
- If you want someone to represent you in front of the IRS, you’ll need TurboTax’s audit defense product, called MAX.
- For the 2025 filing season, H&R Block’s federal plan covers more situations than TurboTax’s and its paid plans are more attractive because they include live expert help.
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Upon cancelation, you will no longer receive TurboTax automatically each year or TurboTax Advantage exclusive benefits. If you already received your product for the current tax year, canceling your membership does not initiate a refund. If you want to change your payment method or card, or if there’s a change in your credit card validity or expiration date, you may edit your payment information by logging into your account. Your credit card will be billed at the time each product becomes available on turbotax.com.
If you have any income or losses to report from trading stocks, crypto, or bonds, you’ll need to upgrade to TurboTax’s Premium Edition. The company also says this is the best plan for contractors and freelancers claiming tax breaks such as the home office deduction. Also, it only allows claiming of the Earned Income Tax Credit, the Child Tax Credit, and the student loan interest deduction. Itemizing deductions or claiming other credits requires an upgrade. TurboTax uses industry-standard encryption practices to protect your financial and personal data, including secure document uploads to your TurboTax account.
There is no other advantage than getting it as soon as it comes out. And if you get the CD on the Advantage plan they also put the download in your account. And even at Turbo Tax they might have lower prices during the year. TurboTax Advantage is an annual subscription which includes your TurboTax Desktop software, plus exclusive benefits at no additional cost. The content on this site is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as professional financial advice. Please consult with a licensed financial or tax advisor before making any decisions based on the information you see here.