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TurboTax vs. TaxAct 2026

There is stiff competition between the biggest tax-prep software providers. TurboTax may be more widely recognized, but TaxAct is a strong competitor with its affordable tax help.

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Sabrina Parys

Editor & Content Strategist

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Expertise

• Taxes
• Investing

Sabrina Parys is an editor and content strategist on the taxes and investing team at NerdWallet, where she manages and writes content on personal income taxes. Her previous experience includes five years as a copy editor and associate editor in academic and educational publishing. She is based in Brooklyn, New York.

Published in

Editor & Content Strategist

Sabrina Parys is an editor and content strategist on the taxes and investing team at NerdWallet, where she manages and writes content on personal income taxes. Her previous experience includes five years as a copy editor and associate editor in academic and educational publishing. She is based in Brooklyn, New York.

Arielle O'Shea

Head of Content, Investing & Taxes

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19 years of experience

Expertise

• Retirement planning
• investment management
• investment accounts

Arielle O’Shea leads the investing and taxes team at NerdWallet. She has covered personal finance and investing for nearly 20 years, and was a senior writer and spokesperson at NerdWallet before becoming an editor. Previously, she was a researcher and reporter for leading personal finance journalist and author Jean Chatzky, a role that included developing financial education programs, interviewing subject matter experts and helping to produce television and radio segments. Arielle has appeared on the "Today" show, NBC News and ABC's "World News Tonight," and has been quoted in national publications including The New York Times, MarketWatch and Bloomberg News. She is based in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Published in

Head of Content, Investing & Taxes

Arielle O’Shea leads the investing and taxes team at NerdWallet. She has covered personal finance and investing for nearly 20 years, and was a senior writer and spokesperson at NerdWallet before becoming an editor. Previously, she was a researcher and reporter for leading personal finance journalist and author Jean Chatzky, a role that included developing financial education programs, interviewing subject matter experts and helping to produce television and radio segments. Arielle has appeared on the "Today" show, NBC News and ABC's "World News Tonight," and has been quoted in national publications including The New York Times, MarketWatch and Bloomberg News. She is based in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Bella Avila

Content Management Specialist

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2 years of experience

Expertise

• Personal income taxes
• Investing basics
• Investment funds

Bella Avila is a content management specialist on the investing and taxes team at NerdWallet. Previously, she was a copy editing intern at NerdWallet through the Dow Jones News Fund internship program. Bella graduated from The University of Oklahoma with a bachelor's degree in journalism. She lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Content Management Specialist

Bella Avila is a content management specialist on the investing and taxes team at NerdWallet. Previously, she was a copy editing intern at NerdWallet through the Dow Jones News Fund internship program. Bella graduated from The University of Oklahoma with a bachelor's degree in journalism. She lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

TurboTax's packages are easy to use, and they come with plenty of professional tax support if you're willing to pay more. TaxAct may not have the same bells and whistles, but the company offers filing and tax support at a compelling price point.

How the costs compare

FREE TIERS

$0 + $44.99 per state filed.

For dependents and simple filers who need help with college expenses, unemployment or retirement income.

$0 + $0 per state filed.

TurboTax Free Edition supports a simple Form 1040 and no schedules except for the 1-A, earned income tax credit, child tax credit and student loan interest. Roughly 37% of taxpayers are eligible.

PAID PACKAGES

Deluxe $52.99 + $59.99 per state filed.

This option is ideal for homeowners and those who need to consider child care expenses or certain deductions, credits and adjustments.

Premier $89.99 + $62.99 per state filed.

Premier is good for investors who need to report capital gains and losses and those who have sold a home or own a rental property.

Self-Employed $104.99 + $62.99 per state filed.

This tier is good for freelancers, contractors and small-business owners. Includes access to Schedule C and Schedule F.

Access to tax pro support requires upgrading to Xpert Assist for $45.

Promotion: NerdWallet users get 20% off federal and state filing costs.

Deluxe $69 + $59 per state.

Itemize and claim several tax deductions and credits. Works well for business income but no expenses.

Premium $129 + $59 per state.

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.

Access to tax pro support requires upgrading to TurboTax's Expert Assist packages, which range from $49 to $199, plus state fees of $54 to $64.

Promotion: NerdWallet users can save up to an additional 10% on TurboTax.

One note about prices: Providers frequently change them and often offer discounted services and packages toward the beginning of tax filing season. These markdowns tend to get replaced with surge pricing the closer we get to the tax filing deadline. We base our reviews on the list prices and not the discounts to reflect this. Prices are accurate as of March 2. The latest price by clicking through to the provider's website.

What it’s like to use

The IRS, not the tax software you choose, determines how much you owe in taxes for the year. So, barring any programming error, you should get the same numerical “answer” no matter which tax software you use. What does vary: How easy it is to feed the software your information. That's why we look at features and ease of use — we want to know which offerings are least likely to make you want to pull your hair out.

TurboTax

TurboTax’s interface is like a chat with a tax preparer, and you can skip around if you need to. A banner running along the side keeps track of where you stand in the process and flags areas you still need to complete.

Embedded links throughout the process offer tips, explainers and other resources. And help buttons can connect you to the searchable knowledge base, on-screen help and more.

TaxAct

TaxAct has a similar look and feel, with an interview process guiding you along. You can skip around easily, and a banner running down the side keeps track of how far along you are.

Embedded links throughout offer tips, explainers and other resources, and the help center links to a searchable knowledge base. Though in our testing, we found some information to be outdated.

Both TurboTax and TaxAct allow you to switch from a different software provider and have a mobile app. Starting at the Deluxe tier, TaxAct offers tools to help you calculate the deduction value of donated items — a feature TurboTax no longer offers.

» MORE: Try our federal tax calculator

What kind of tax support you get

TurboTax and TaxAct offer in-line help and searchable knowledge bases, and tech support is available as well. Both providers also offer paid upgrades for tax support from knowledgeable pros.

TurboTax

TurboTax Expert Assist offers a one-on-one review with a tax pro before you file, as well as unlimited live tax advice. You can make an appointment or talk on the fly to a tax pro via one-way video (you see them, but they see your screen only).

TurboTax Expert Full Service does away with tax software altogether. Instead, you upload your tax documents and a human puts together your tax return. Prices start at $89 for basic federal returns, but final pricing depends on complexity — plus there are additional costs per state return.

TaxAct

TaxAct offers affordable help through its Xpert Assist service. Xpert Assist is $45 and allows you to get help from a pro any time throughout the filing process. You can either chat with an expert or book a call with one. You can also share your screen to help the experts better understand your question. TaxAct says its tax pros are CPAs, enrolled agents or lawyers.

The provider also recently introduced a $149 Xpert Full Service option, which may be a good choice for taxpayers who prefer a more hands-off approach to filing. With this service, a tax pro will prepare, file and sign your return for you; all you need to do is review and sign your completed return. Xpert Full Service includes one state return in the price.

Transparency — what's clear and what's not

When choosing which products to use and pay for, transparency can make or break the experience. We evaluated how each provider handles product comparison upselling and the ease of upgrading or downgrading.

Product comparison

TurboTax makes it difficult to compare its suite of packages. We could not find a page on TurboTax’s website that lines up each DIY package tier, its price, and the tax forms and situations it can handle. This can make it difficult for filers to determine which package best suits their needs.

TaxAct makes it easy to determine which package best fits your needs. The homepage of TaxAct’s website lines up all of its offerings side-by-side, including details like which tax situation each package covers, pricing of the tiers and how much it costs to add on a state return.

Downgrading and upgrading

TurboTax allows users to upgrade and downgrade within the software without having to contact customer service. In most cases, you can switch tiers by clicking the “Switch Products” button on the side panel of the screen, and your information will carry over to the return in the new tier. If the package you’re using doesn’t support certain information you’ve entered, you’ll get a pop-up explaining why you need to upgrade.

TaxAct doesn’t offer users the same smooth downgrading process that TurboTax does. There is no real way to downgrade your package if you’ve selected a pricier tier than you end up needing. Instead, you have to clear your return and start from scratch. As for upgrading, however, the process is fairly straightforward and very similar to TurboTax — if you enter information that isn’t available in your tier, you’ll get a pop-up saying you’ll need to upgrade before filing.

Ways to receive your refund

Both TurboTax and TaxAct let you receive a federal refund via direct deposit to a bank account, which is the fastest option. Other options they both offer include applying the refund to next year’s taxes or directing the IRS to buy U.S. savings bonds with your refund.

Both providers also let you use your refund to pay for your tax-prep fees (but there is a separate fee for that).

As of Sept. 30, 2025, the IRS no longer sends refunds in the form of paper checks. The agency will instead use electronic methods to deliver refunds this filing season. While direct deposit is the most popular refund method, TaxAct’s and TurboTax’s alternative methods may be useful for taxpayers without access to a bank account.

» MORE: See how to track the status of your tax refund

Help if you get audited

If you are audited, it’s important to know what kind of support you’re getting from your tax software. First, be sure you know the difference between “support” and “defense.” With most providers, audit support (or “assistance”) typically means guidance about what to expect and how to prepare — that’s it. Audit defense, on the other hand, gets you full representation before the IRS from a tax professional.

TurboTax gives everyone free audit support from a tax pro to help you understand what’s going on if you get that dreaded letter about your tax return. If you want audit defense, that’s available as an add-on for an additional $49.99.

TaxAct encourages filers to reach out to its customer service team for free audit assistance. When it comes to audit defense, TaxAct partners with ProtectionPlus to offer customers the service as an add-on for $49.99.

Which one is right for you?

TurboTax stands out when it comes to tools and integrations. But that doesn’t mean the provider’s overall offerings are the perfect fit for every user.

TaxAct’s paid packages cost less, and they come with affordable upgrades for human tax help support if you need it. This makes TaxAct a great one-stop shop for both seasoned and beginner filers who might feel at ease knowing that help is available should they need it.

TurboTax, on the other hand, has a long-standing reputation for its ease of use, including plenty of its own human support options at a cost. This may make the provider a better choice for those who are willing to pay a little bit extra for white-glove tax prep.

» Want all the details? Read our reviews of TaxAct and TurboTax.

Federal: $52.99 to $104.99. Free version available for simple tax returns only.

State: $44.99 to $62.99 per state.

Add Xpert Assist for $45.

Promotion: NerdWallet users get 20% off federal and state filing costs.

Federal: $60 to $120. Free version available for simple tax returns only.

State: $0 to $49 per state.

Unlimited tax pro help included in paid packages.

Promotion: NerdWallet users receive 20% off federal filing costs.

Federal: $69 to $129. Free version available for a simple Form 1040 return only (no schedules, except for EITC, CTC, student loan interest, and Schedule 1-A). Roughly 37% of filers qualify.

State: $0 to $59 per state.

Tax pro help available by upgrading to Expert Assist.

Promotion: NerdWallet users can save up to an additional 10% on TurboTax.

Federal: $39.99 to $69.99. Free version available for simple tax returns only.

State: $0 to $45.99 per state.

On-demand tax help at Premium and Self-Employed tiers.

Promotion: NerdWallet users receive 20% off federal filing costs on Classic, Premium, and Self-Employed packages with the code "Nerd20".

These star ratings are based on a tax provider's free tier score. For more detailed scoring, see the full product details above. Providers frequently change pricing. You can verify the latest price by clicking through to each provider's site.

In this comparison

In this comparison

on Larson Tax Relief's website

Tax Levies & Liens Release, plus Wage Garnishment Relief;

End Penalties & Interest and Resolve Back Taxes;

IRS Audit Defense, Tax Negotiation, and Payroll Tax Support.

on Larson Tax Relief's website