Okay, after writing the previous tax-related post, I got to thinking, and decided the situation I was in with TurboTax kind of made me mad. Or maybe irritated is a better word. Again, I don't blame them for wanting to get paid, but I felt like they'd suckered me out of more than I should have to pay. At first I didn't care, because it didn't seem like much money, but I was comparing the full-priced basic service to my discounted rate, through my Vanguard account, for the deluxe version. Comparing the discounted basic price to what I was paying, I was paying $15 extra for services I didn't need or want. Fortunately, TurboTax doesn't make you pay until you're ready to file, so there's no penalty for bailing out mid-stream. So I decided to give Tax Act a shot.

Overall, I was impressed, even though I had some problems. Their approach is much like the Tax Freedom Project's used to be. Instead of offering a crippled product to force you to upgrade if your tax filing is at all beyond the most basic (or if you want direct deposit of your refund), Tax Act offers a basic but fully-functional product, which actually feels a bit less bloated than TurboTax (though TurboTax easily has the superior navigation). They do charge for filing a state return, or for additional guidance in preparing your taxes, and they don't hold your hand at all if you don't pay. My tax return is pretty basic, but there was one little thing that required a bit of finesse. On TurboTax, I had a bit of trouble entering it, but in reviewing my return, I found the problem and easily fixed it. In Tax Act, the minor issue caused me a lot of grief, with the program asking me to enter line items from various IRS forms, with no explanation as to what these forms were. I had to go to the IRS web site and find the forms, which made it easier to understand what the software wanted. But I could see how this could throw off people used to TurboTax's ease of use.

My recommendation? I liked Tax Act, especially for free. But TurboTax is a good program, and if your taxes are on the complex side, the guidance and clarity is probably worth the price. However, the $25.00 extra fee TurboTax assesses to include state taxes is a bit much; Tax Act charges $15.95 total for the deluxe package and state taxes ($12.95 just to add state taxes). Reasonable price if you want the convenience, though California's free online tax filing option means I won't be paying to file my state taxes.

I've completed my taxes, but haven't filed yet (I'm waiting for one last form I should receive soon, to verify the information I entered for that account is correct). If I have any problems filing with Tax Act, or if it ends up costing me any money, I'll bring you an update.

Yesterday I mentioned Intuit's Tax Freedom Project. I was just looking at it again, and I noticed it doesn't even support free direct deposit of your refund check in the free software. Now, I really can't blame Intuit for wanting to be paid for their product, and TurboTax is a good program, but if you're going to offer a free tax program, and pat yourself on the back for your civic-mindedness, don't cripple the product. Perhaps Tax Freedom has outlived its usefulness: it was originally a public-private initiative to get more people to file electronically; now, most people don't need any incentive to do so.

I should note, if it sounds like I'm just needlessly whining about a free product, this free product did end up costing me money. I thought the free product was the same as TurboTax Basic, so I thought I had to pay for TurboTax Deluxe. I didn't realize that the free TurboTax is actually a stripped down version of TurboTax Basic. So I bought more services than I needed. Not the end of the world, but frustrating, none the less. Leaves just enough of a bad taste in my mouth, I might experiment with a free offering like Tax Act next year.

It's tax time again. I thought I would call your attention to the Intuit Tax Freedom Project, which offers free online federal tax preparation for those with an income under $28,500, or who are active duty military or qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit. Some states (not mine) also offer free state filing through the service (California offers free state filing directly through their web site). Unfortunately, they limit the service to those with fairly basic returns. I have some capital gains to report, so I can't use the free service. But I get a decent discount on the software through Vanguard. I was tempted to just prepare my taxes by hand, but for under $30, I decided it's worth the convenience to pay to file online.

I finished most of my return tonight, though I still need a few forms, including the big one, my 1099 from work. Hopefully, that should be waiting for me at work tomorrow. So I still don't know where I stand. I did notice a mistake on another tax form, so I'll have to wait for a corrected form before I can file, in any event. I expect to get a decent refund.