TurboTax Conclusion

We've found that TurboTax offers excellent tax products. The biggest advantages of using TurboTax's software are its error checking, on-screen guidance, and tax support. In fact, TurboTax is the only vendor to provide free live professional tax support. The only downside of using TurboTax is that their products are relatively expensive compared to their competitors. We recommend TurboTax to any user who needs robust guidance and support.

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TurboTax’s tax products provide one of the most user-friendly and helpful online interfaces we have reviewed.  TurboTax offers helper text bubbles to explain jargon and guide you through your tax return. They warn you to save your progress before changes are lost and let you flag pages you want to return to.  TurboTax displays a refund meter that calculates your refund as well as an audit triggers meter, which calculates your chance of being audited. Past returns for the past seven years may be accessed for free with all plans except the free plan. TurboTax double-checks your W-2 for proper Social Security, Medicare, and Federal Income Tax withholdings.

TurboTax now offers free live tax support over the phone and live chat for all versions of the online software. You may also contact TurboTax for support through free email correspondance.  All tax support is available Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. PT. TurboTax advertises a two-hour response rate to any tax support question. TurboTax's audit support helps you find out why the IRS contacted you, determine what it means, and prepare your next steps. TurboTax provides Audit Defense, which will represent you in the event of an audit, schedule and attend all audit appointments and handle all audit correspondence. Audit Defense costs an additonal $39.95.

When we tested TurboTax tech support, wait times for phone, live chat and email were minimal to none. (Wait times may vary with increased demand closer to the April filing deadline.) TurboTax's tech support is fairly helpful but not very thorough in their explanations. Tech support is available Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. PT.

TurboTax is an acutely reliable company, as TurboTax is owned by Intuit Inc. and has been in business for over 20 years. They provide an Accuracy Guarantee, which reimburses you if you are assessed a penalty based on a miscalculation that is the fault of TurboTax. TurboTax also offers a Maximum Refund Guarantee, which ensures you get the biggest tax refund possible using their system.

TurboTax offers the most expensive tax products we have reviewed. The cost of filing your federal tax return ranges from free to $74.95, depending on which product fits your needs. If you need to purchase a state add-on, it will cost you $36.95, which is fairly expensive when compared to competing products from other brands. You pay the total price only after you file your return.