Just a quick note of warning- Turbo Tax is NOT FREE despite what they say in all their advertisements. If your family makes more than $31,000 a year you will not qualify for the Intuit Tax Freedom Project. When you go to the TurboTax website, they will make you think you are getting it for free until you spend hours putting in all your info, and then they will charge you $29.95, even if you don't file your state return with them.
I figured out how they can say it's "Free E-File": the fine print from their website says "Free Efile Included — Free efile is included with your purchase of TurboTax Online federal and state products."
It is really NOT FREE if you have to buy their package to get the "free" service. Ugh. Just trying to save you all some time and money. I ended up paying it because I didn't want to spend hours entering all my info elsewhere.
It is free if you don't add on any extras (like state filing, which is free in Kansas anyway when you use the State's system). We make way over 31,000/year and filed with them for free for the past three years. You just have to decline the offers to upgrade when they appear.
ReplyDeleteThanks for writing- have you filed yet this year? I also was able to do it for free the last several years but this year was different. I believe I declined all the "extras", but maybe I missed something.
ReplyDeleteI think it's not your gross income, but rather your adjusted gross income that matters. I make more than 31,000 per year, but my AGI is below that, and I was able to use TurboTax Freedom Edition to file my federal return without paying. You have to access the Freedom Edition from the IRS website, rather than going through the TurboTax website--that's essential. And you have to remember to delete your state return, because if you don't they will try to charge you for it at the end.
ReplyDeleteAlso, it is a good idea to read current year customer reviews on the TurboTax site before filing, and check out the site's FAQ and help sections before trying to file your return, because that way you can see what kind of problems people are having this year, and avoid them or learn what to do about them. You can search the site for specific help topics like deleting state returns, or what to do if your return gets rejected by the IRS.