Called in advance to get the price. Finished my very simple return (no itemized deductions or anything unusual) and had them e:filed. Then was told the price was almost 50% more than quoted. Called them and was connected to an individual who clearly did not know what he was doing (at least I hope their reps aren't trying to damage their reputation). When he was done, my charges had ballooned to over 300% of the quoted price. He claimed I would see a refund and I did see a monor rebate, but still made my return more normally charged for a much more elaborate return. Spoke with several of their agents the next day but received very little relief. Was told that it was somehow my fault for actually e:filing my returns. I had used TaxAct for well over a decade, but never again. read more

Extremely painful to navigate, I am unable to get as much as a print out of the extension form that was filed. I mean, it should be automatic, do you want to print a copy.. but no, you can struggle on the darned site for 30 minutes and never be able to get a copy of what you just filed. VERY FRUSTRATING and cumbersome. It took a lot of time just to find the extension form and then they take you through questions as to WHY you are extending? How is it any of their business why? UGRRRR, so irritating, I remember now why I am so irritated with this service, I forgot and returned to it this year. I will be sure to take note! Free extension but you can file that for free on hundreds of other sites. read more

Can't believe the IRS lists this organization a verifiable, recommended free tax service. TaxAct got top reviews on Google. So I spent hours (trying) to do my simple, single, 2021 return for FREE, but it would not let me state that N.H. has no income tax, so impossible to proceed to the 'submit Federal return' button. Then it 'changed' my $12,550 standard deduction - to itemized deductions that I could not uncheck, and instead of a refund, I now OWE $$. The 'Back' button is useless. You're stuck on a page that requires payment. NEVER USE TAXACT!! read more

I filed a tax 2020 refund with TaxAct January 30, 2021. Taxact charged me $124.00, and I thought I had chosen the free File", since I was laid off most of last year due to Pandemic, so I drew PEUC up til July 2020 and paid income tax on it, and got a 1099 G form from Mississippi Employment Security Commission, and filed and was supposed to get $936.00 back as a tax refund. After it was filed (through TaxAct), , I got an email confirmation from Taxact saying it had been filed, and was excepted by the IRS on February 12, 2021. I sent Taxact a message on taxacts Facebook page and explain to them the issue and taxact "representative" sent me a message back saying they would issue me a 30% refund check as soon as the refund was approved and sent by the IRS and processed. So it was processed March 31 2021. IT has been two weeks now, and taxact still has not honored it's agreement to refund me 30% as stated in their message to me (see screenshots). I ended up getting only $811.00 after they deducted their unreasonable fees. read more

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WHAT A MESS. The $0 pitch is a scam. Bait and switch. The program is super complicated. After filing, the program sends email saying the returns have been rejected because the number used instead of PIN for last years AGI was wrong. It was not! The it says the State return was also rejected. It offers an opportunity to amend, but no clear direction as how to do it. Then it tries to sell additional products and protections. So now I am filing paper returns to make sure IRS and State Dept of Revenue get them. Ugh! read more

Horrible. Was singlehandedly responsible for making me miss the fact that my 2022 return was rejected and having to pay hundreds of dollars of fees. read more

I filed a tax 2020 refund with TaxAct January 30, 2021. Taxact charged me $124.00, and I thought I had chosen the free File", since I was laid off most of last year due to Pandemic, so I drew PEUC up til July 2020 and paid income tax on it, and got a 1099 G form from Mississippi Employment Security Commission, and filed and was supposed to get $936.00 back as a tax refund. After it was filed (through TaxAct), , I got an email confirmation from Taxact saying it had been filed, and was excepted by the IRS on February 12, 2021. I sent Taxact a message on taxacts Facebook page and explain to them the issue and taxact "representative" sent me a message back saying they would issue me a 30% refund check as soon as the refund was approved and sent by the IRS and processed. So it was processed March 31 2021. IT has been two weeks now, and taxact still has not honored it's agreement to refund me 30% as stated in their message to me (see screenshots). I ended up getting only $811.00 after they deducted their unreasonable fees. read more

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I have been using TaxAct for years, but I will NEVER use them again after my expereince this year filing 2019 returns. They have always made me purchase the paid version of $49 because I was self-employed as well as employed by a company. But this year, I earned only about $1000 in my freelancing. Still, I as forced to upgrade to their most expensive package at $110!!! But not only that, I then had to paid extra to add a State return. And then, I had to pay an additional $46 to print that state return. By the time I was done I paid nearly $200 to file my simple tax return with this service. That alone is enough for me to never use this company that is nickel and diming their customers. But add to it all the "ads" that were constantly trying to get me to to buy additional services throughout the process and I was about ready to drive down to Iowa myself and start bitching in person. Then, after finally getting my return completed, I switched to another computer to print the federal return because I didn't want to spend another $60 in "service fees" to pay with the credit card. I log into my account and NOTHING!!! My return is nowhere and it wants me to start from the beginning. It turns out that if I log in using my "username" it's different than logging in with my email, even though both accounts are the same damn thing. It's enough to say that the site is not great, the annoyance is huge, and the price is over-the-top ridiculous. Please DO NOT use TaxAct for your taxes. They do not deserve to get a single customer. I should add that I did try to speak to someone through their chat option which "timed out" after about a minute and then told me to go check out their support site where the "community" can offer a lot of help. Great support there. Send me to a bunch of other people who don't work for you to get help. This company needs to go away permanently. read more

A few years ago, this was a reputable company and they offered reasonable pricing for their products. That all changed a couple years ago and now they utilize bait-and-switch practices which might be considered fraud by some legal experts. At the time of this writing, they are advertising no-cost downloads of their Deluxe version on their website (a number of big-name tax software companies offer several tiers of their product for no cost so this is not an uncommon practice). When you click on the Deluxe version on their website and then view your "cart", the price majically becomes $84.90. After attempting to contact customer service (and navigating several automated prompts) you are told that all representatives are busy and they immediately end your call. There is no option of waiting for an available customer service member. Avoid this company at all costs unless you want to overpay for a commodity product and enjoy poor customer service. read more

Talk about bait and switch, they have it down to a science. I used the free federal version for the first time last year filing 2017 taxes, with a small charge for state. It was showing online free federal and state for 2018, so decided to use them again. I clicked on the free version, as all I needed again was simple 1040 (EZ is no longer available). I'm not a homeowner, standard deduction, no credits~easy peasy, right? Wrong. I had taken screenshots along the way, which was still showing "free".....Finished federal file info, then state. Lastly, I put in my checking account info. Uncle Sam wants more of my hard earned money (thanks for $#%! AFA fees not having health insurance), yet I would receive a nominal state refund. Just when I thought I could check filing taxes off my list~BA BAM!! AFTER they get my checking account info, and I had successfully dodged paying for the extra little add-on's they threw my way~I'm told it will be $47.95 for the Deluxe edition, as I no longer qualified for free. And another fee for state, in addition to the $14.95 to e-file. I should've taken a screenshot of it, but I quickly signed off in fear it was going to charge me somehow. It's utter bullshit, to bait and switch people like this. Shame on TaxAct. I found another IRS approved company, who had much better software, saving me money, and I was able to e-file federal and state at no cost. (Drop mic, exit stage) read more

1. They lie about their prices. I actually opted for the expensive version which was $57. In the end once finished they said my total to them was $122. 2. This was the first year using them, once finished my taxes they wanted a PIN number from last year. since it was my first year using them I had no such PIN. It did say when I finished that my documents were submitted atleast... but I do not know I will get my refund or not. NEVER using tax act again read more

I've been using TaxACT for quite a few years and they get more money-hungry every year. If they were up-front about it, I'd be more OK with it. What they do is tell you that it's going to be a particular price, then when you're done and trying to submit, they start tagging on extra costs. Oh, want to file your state taxes instead of re-entering them on a different site? $40. Oh, you can't actually e-file with the information you've been entering for the past 3 hours. $5 extra to upgrade to TaxACT Premiere+. Doesn't matter that I don't fall into the categories they say require TaxACT plus. Want to take your TaxACT payment out of your refund? No problem. (Oh yeah, in the small print - there's a $45 processing fee for this.) I've seen less shady wire transfer scams. The thing that makes me most upset is that they wait to do all of this until you're done entering all the information up front. One of about five or six different fees is disclosed up front and they hook you with it because you've already done all this work. After you get done, they also tell you that you can't access any of the information you've entered unless you pay to have extended access. You can print a copy of your returns, but that's it. TAXACT IS A SCAM. read more

I've used taxact in the past with no problems. However, for 2013 they have changed some things and become sneaky, forcing you to pay when they advertise their federal return as being free. You can't view your 1040 in progress. If you want to do so, you click on a box that says to view it. It says you'll have to upgrade, so I click ok, because I want to view my forms. However it says it costs $ and I don't want to pay, so nevermind--I'll just stay with the free one. What you don't see until the end when you have entered all your info, is that you have to pay a $12.99 fee for clicking upgrade, even though you never viewed your 1040 since you never paid--I thought by not paying and not viewing my actual 1040 I was still using the free version. Nope. Now, I have to pay the $12.99 or start over and re-enter all my info in order to use the "free" version. I think filling in your own 1040 is a lot easier than following these programs. read more

I've been doing taxes with taxact from 2015 and 2020 software is not so good. The IT in house couldn't trouble shoot my problem then sent me to a different department called professional help and they said they don't deal with software problems and was on the phone for 3 hours. Well , when you do these service you want to e-file but I ended with mailing both Federal and state by mail and the professional service refund m $80 right a way. So I asked to a discount they said $80 But the manager had trouble giving the request and was told you may have to call back. I called back and talked to Chris and come to find he has no customer service and hung up on me. That's ok his manager is going to call me, I guess Chris didn't what me to do the survey at the end of the call??? read more

ABSOLUTE RIPOFF!!! They scam you to buy a bunch of add ons. AFTER they charged my card they tried to force me to buy some scammy ATM card. Serve card. Wouldn't let me file unless I bought their scammy crap. Never got my taxes filed but they kept my $35!!! How is this place still able to rip people off like this? Where is the freaking FBI? read more

I have used TaxAct for three years but this year their software didn't catch an error. The program made it difficult to understand / revise the child credit and I accidentally filled out the additional child portion-I have one child. There was only one SSN entered. The software review didn't catch it. So now my federal return is in review at the IRS and I have no recourse. There is no one I can speak to about this. When I called TaxAct the person on the phone was unhelpful and could provide no assistance. Now my return is in limbo for up to 11 months. I saw a commercial saying they 100% guarantee accurate returns, which is a lie. Next year I'm switching to TurboTax. read more

Really, this is a second-tier product, and would not be worth considering were not TurboTax also be so problematic. At the start of the 2017 filing season, TaxACT was unable to update a new return with information of a prior-year TurboTax filing. That was resolved. But be prepared for persistent server errors when the system reports that your return can not be found. Not sure how to protect yourself except. read more

TaxAct 2016 was missing Calif FTB form 3840 from the Calif. add on. When I asked for help, I was told that TaxAct does NOT support this form in that year, and in subsequent years and that I have to fill it out myself. How is this possible for TAXACT to omit a required state form????? When I tried to get in touch with their corporate office, my inquiry was ignored. I saw that H&R block had the schedule included in its software program. I AM VERY UNHAPPY with TaxAct. read more

THE WORST! They do not know how to properly calculcate federal income when 2 state w-2s are involved EVEN AFTER asking for ID from state of residence! Cost me $388!!! Awful product! Do not use! read more

Their customer service is awful. I'm trying to get a copy of my return, for some reason their internet validation doesn't work and has locked me out for a week apparently. It's the end of the year, I need my return for benefit purposes and now my tax preparer won't let me access my account (which I've had with them for nearly 20 years). Suffice to say, I'll never use TaxAct again as I'm switching tax preparers starting now. I will also be filing a compliant form 14157 with IRS as not only are they unwilling to get me into my account, but they are also refusing to provide a copy of my return. I can only imagine what would happen if I get audited, I'll tell the IRS, nope, can't access my information. Thanks TaxAct for nothing. read more

I could go on and on but suffice it to say that during these trying times and when most people are scrambling for money, TaxAct found it prudent to raise their (my) price for e-filing my tax return over 100% compared to last year... talk about predatory ruthless corporate monsters... read more

WORST Customer Service EVER!! Can't help with obvious technical issues with the product. Just kept repeating I should call ANOTHER phone number. That one disconnects after several minutes of automated prompts. When I tried the Pro desk of TaxAct in IOWA they kept saying they were not able to help with simple technical questions. THE FREE-LANCER version does not work any longer. I used to be able to enter my 1099-K and 1099-MISC income on seprate lines and all would be pulled into the one Schedule C, and TaxAct won't do that anymore. I have to arm-wrestle a hopefully adequate workaround to make this STUPID PRODUCT work. DON'T bother with TaxAct unless you are a simple 1040-EZ filer. NOT GOOD for us SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS any longer. Too bad; i used to recommend it highly at its ease of use and reliability. NO MORE FOR ME!!! read more

Do not use these guys!! I have been using TaxAct for over 10 years. I chose them originally because they were a little cheaper than the competitors, and once they have your profile set up the annual convenience keeps you coming back. As my finances have become more complex their services and convenience have eroded yet their price has kept going up. I used them for 2019, but it will be last year. I was audited for 2017 and 2018 by SC for taking too much of a tax credit for home solar installed in 2017. My bill after adjustments, penalties and interest for the combined years was about $3300. I sent everything to TaxAct and they said the mistakes were solely on me and so was the bill (yet they refunded me their state fee of $37 for 2017, not 2018). TaxAct insisted that I inputted the wrong numbers. I contend that my mistake in 2017 should have been caught by their professional software. I did not make the mistake in 2018, but I was dinged again because their system has the wrong value for the tax credit. They did not dispute this error but said I still put in the wrong numbers. Other than filing a civil suit in small claims court, I am not sure what recourse I have for their errors in my 2018 taxes. I was audited in January of 2020, paid the tax bill in May, and my final ask was that TaxAct cover the penalties and interest ($594). This was their response: "While we can understand your position, we are issuing only the refund of the state program for you as this does not fall under the Accuracy Guarantee.  Unfortunately, it is ultimately up to the taxpayer to enter the correct amounts, especially in this case where TaxAct does not support the associated for for this credit, TC-38.   Thank you for using TaxAct.  Please let us know if you have any further questions. Ann TaxAct TaxPayer Support Services" I will be using a similarly priced and more reputable service (or more expensive) going forward. I got this tax bill right after getting laid off due to the pandemic. Always fun to get kicked when you are down. I showed them loyalty for over a decade and they were not their for me even when I clearly showed they had a mistake in their system. I am happy to share the correspondences I have with them. Feel free to contact me at warren.gerhardt@gmail.com read more

My family had used taxact download for several years, and it seems like things started going south with them a couple years ago.The crap login procedure is very telling as to how bad things are. Customer service if you get lucky and get an answer, is a RECORDING TELLING YOU YOUR GOING TO BE HUNG UP ON, THEN IT DOES JUST THAT!! Ive never tried to leave a no star review, but if I have to leave 1star to get this warning out, you should know the one star was as b.s. as this company. In reality , if I could, ide leave a MINUS 18 STARS MINUS 18 STARS MINUS 18 STARS MINUS 18 STARS MINUS 18 STARS MINUS 18 STARS minus 1 for each time I tried to call this failed company read more

The software mishandled an exemption to which I am entitled, and there is NO way to reach their customer service. They automatically hang up on the phone and do not respond to emails. Please, do yourself a service and pick a better tax service!! read more

Would never use taxact again. Had to pay before e-filing my 2 state and federal return. Then got in continual loop when trying to e-file SC state return. Called support and was told it was a tech issue. The taxact support dept. could not transfer my call to tech support dept. Called tech support who told me it was not a tech issue but a taxact support issue. Once again, the tech support could not transfer my call to the taxact support dept. Tried to recall taxact support dept. and was disconnected due to high call volume. Told me to call back later. I wasted nearly 3 hours of my time! read more

Terrible company. Used them for years because the software is simple and always paid extra for tax assistance should it be needed. This year, I needed help, still do. Have yet to recieve my refund, though I filed Jan 28th. I have made multiple attempts to contact TaxAct but to no avail. They will not accept calls and they do not return emails. Avoid them. ANY OTHER company can do better. C J Oakes read more

Buyer Beware. Lot's of server errors and It is Not Free! Nothing in this world is! My bill was close to $200 at the end and I backed out. At the end, you will be surprised with a whopping additional $49,95 or $50.00 service fee to transfer your money. What a scam Tax Act! Do Not Use SCAM ALERT read more

This service is very deceptive. I filled out the entirety of my taxes and reviewed them using the free option, but when I got to the final submission on the very final page, it stated that I needed to pay them in order to file. Again, this was using the free service, and they only mentioned it at the very end. So they intentionally get you to commit your time and lie about the service being free in order to pressure you to pay them at the very end. This wasn't the case last year, but it happened to everyone I know that used the service this year. This has become a bait and switch scam. And to top it off, it's been impossible for me to reach them with any questions. If you call customer service they just say there's a high call volume, try again later, and they disconnect you. No holding calls, no messages, nothing. Text to show how they force you to pay at the final step, since the screenshot isn't uploading: "Based on what you told us, you need TaxAct Deluxe+ to file an accurate tax return Current selection: TaxAct Free TaxAct Deluxe+ Additional Income and Adjustments to Income (Schedule 1) Upgrade for an additional $54.95 * State additional. Prices determined at filing and subject to change. Option 1: Review, then upgrade Option 2: Upgrade to TaxAct Deluxe+ Back" --- Update: this is how much the "free" service actually cost me, because they force you to upgrade to file: $120! "Review your products: TaxAct Online 2019 Deluxe+ Edition - Federal Return $54.95 File Later View More TaxAct Online 2019 Deluxe+ State - New York Return $54.95 File Later Subtotal $109.90 Sales Tax $9.75 Order Total (Prices are determined at time of filing and subject to change.) $119.65" read more

I used TaxACT for years and had 0 problems. It was free to file, and as a single person with no assets it was very easy and fast. UNTIL this year when they decided they were going to gouge every last penny out of you! $40 to file state, $30 to file federal, and God forbid you choose the option to just deduct it from your refund - $45 just to do that! Unbelievable and should be criminal. I will never use them again. read more

Will not be using tax act again!!! I have been using them for quite a few years, but now they are a rip off!!! They force you to use upgrades even if you know you DON'T need them. It used to cost me $20 - $30 to file both Fed and State Taxes, now it cost me $70, WTH!!!! Oh, then if you want to pay out of your refund its another $40. Tax Act you've gotten to big for your britches. I had already taken the time to do everything so I filed this year, but you bet your booty that next year I will be looking elsewhere. read more

TaxAct is an online tax preparation website. It works alright for the most part (really most tax preparation software works similarly). I would recommend using another website to prepare your taxes. My tax return was complex and it cost me $177 to prepare and file it. I didn't realize that Credit Karma will actually let you file your taxes for free (and not just claim to allow you to file your taxes for free - so in other words no *). If you go to file your taxes online don't use TaxAct - Unless you like spending money unnecessarily. read more

It's not free for the basic tax return as advertised. I have one W2, that's it. It starts as free then right before filing, it makes you pay a high fee compared to other services. Also the amount of federal and state return estimated ALOT less than other filing services. SCAM. read more

Unbelievable, advertised free filing of federal and state and now try to charge me right at the very end when i'm ready to file. Very deceptive, won't use them again. Like other reviewers said, these are bait and switch tactics. I'll be looking elsewhere for online tax filing as this company has lost my business and trust. Would give 0 stars if i could read more

If I could put no stars I would do so. There is absolutely no support at all. I sent 15 emails and finally got a response which was worthless. I called 9 times and the lines were always too busy to pick up. Once I selected a different option and actually got a person. They refused to help me. I cannot use their electronic filing for which I have paid since I cannot edit my return and the address line is wrong for last yeat's import. They are a total scam! read more

I have been using this software for many years and been very happy. I don't have a complex situation, but do have some mutual funds. I can't use the basic, but normally need the next level up, which is fine. This year when they told me I would have to upgrade they took me all the way up to the highest level, which of course, cost more than the level that would have been right for me. There was probably a way to get around this, but I was doing my taxes, not looking for scams, so they got me. That said, you have to be on constant look out for scams, because they are around every corner. I usually pay to file state taxes, but the $40 (I think) they are charging this year seemed a bit much. Turns out I can e-file for free in my state. Really, people? Plus, the interface has gotten rather more difficult than it has been in the past. Let's just say this. I am filing on paper next year. Previous years I have zipped through this process and been willing to pay some for the convenience. This year I didn't zip through it and I had to pay a ridiculous amount for something I can do for free. Bye, TaxACT. You overstepped. read more

I have use taxact for years and never had a problem until now. My taxes was the same as last year and it was free, this year it made me use the deluxe package. I paid 70.90 to file and print my federal and my state, only my federal printed. I have tried to call the 319-373-3600 and it said that there was a long wait and hung up on me. I won't use them again. Now how can I get my money back for my state or get a copy of my state. read more

I've used TaxAct desktop software for over a decade; it's easy to use. Last year, it was $11, but I paid anyway since it was familiar and I was happy with it. For the 2018 year, I prepaid $15 during Cyber Monday for Basic which I used last year. When I prepared my federal return in Jan 2019, it wouldn't let me file or print without paying an extra $57; they moved the savings account interest form to Deluxe and higher. That was unacceptable, so I went to IRS.gov and found a free program to use. I e-filed my state return directly with my state for free as usual. TaxAct is likely to lose a lot of long-term customers for betraying their trust. To their credit, when I contacted Support about not being able to use the software, they credited me the $14.96 I paid. For that reason, I'll consider their software in the future, but not without reading the fine print first. read more

Tax Act is expensive and rigid. I wanted to file with a standard deduction. But it will not let me. Last year with this service.

I was amazed at what a horrible experience this was. I do my taxes by hand, the old fashioned way. I have an adding machine, an eraser, some forms and an instruction booklet. I work it out both ways, determined to find the most beneficial way to file. But I prefer to submit them electronically and save the time it takes to receive my refund. Tax act is all over the television this tax season talking about how it's free to file a federal return. My ass it's free. I expected to have to pay for the state and I did. But I was told $8. By the time I finished the bill was $17.95. Now that's not a lot but I was led to believe the federal was free, which it wasn't. Well, I'd put in so much time (because this service doesn't just let you fill out the form) that I wasn't really willing to bail. So I paid. Each time I filed my returns the federal bounced back with the reason that I filed the state with it. Well, I didn't do that, TaxAct did. And there doesn't seem to be any way around it. I even tried to tell it to file only the federal but I was caught in this endless loop with the system wanting me to file the state. Of course, I wanted to file it too but they were sending my state return to the IRS, which isn't where I wanted it to go. I just tried one more time so we'll see... This sucker has bounced back four times and I'm bailing on this absolutely shitty service. Take my advice, file your return somewhere else. read more