How to Install Turbotax Software for Free?
TurboTax does offer one bargain. For a limited time, people with very simple taxes – using 1040A or 1040EZ forms – can file for free. That includes a state return, which competitors' "free" options charge for. This is an effort to grab more share in the slow-growing tax prep market, Oppenheimer & Co. analyst Scott Schneeberger says.
An in-person preparer, meanwhile, will cost $200 or more. Last year, the U.S. Government Accountability Office went incognito to 19 tax prep offices. In one scenario, a “waitress” was charged fees ranging from $160 to $408. A fictional “mechanic” was charged $300 to $587.
One more tip: File early. The earlier you file, the cheaper it tends to be. (The IRS started accepting returns Jan. 20.) Early filers tend to be lower-income Americans getting big refunds, and special offers aimed at them, like TurboTax's entirely free returns, often disappear by late February, Mr. Schneeberger says. Prices jump again in the last week of March. Procrastinators, don't say we didn't warn you.