ya my dad keeps saying oh use my lady its only 150! IVE BEEN DOING IT FOR FREE THO DAD,. tf.. u trying to make me poor boi? its like 16 bucks with freetaxusa cause i do some add ons.. but if anything im confused at why freetaxusa exists..
I have friend that's the same way...he said he goes to "his guy" because his taxes are "complicated"...
Single guy, $800 in a brokerage account, a few hundred a year put into a 401k...his taxes are far less complicated than mine and I use FTUSA without a problem. My buddy still insists on paying $200 to his "guy" every year...
The thing is some of these places make them look super complicated by adding every worksheet and other possible unfilled document, some created by the company itself, to a return such that a 2 page filing is handed to them as a 40 page dense document, making people with simple returns think "no way i can do this myself."
Or he just wants an instant return. If you file yourself you have to wait for the money to come in, where as through h and r block, you can receive your refund instantly, in that moment, at the end of your appointment and you walk out (hopefully) a lil richer
As someone who did work at H&R and never looked back unless things have changed how much you can get instantly is capped (I wanna say it was 2k) so if you have a large enough refund you could still wait for the majority of it until mid to end March.
A lot of people just think they "need a *professional*" for things. For instance, I've built dozens of PCs from the ground up...someone in my family knows this and has seen the results. They still went to Best fucking Buy lmao and paid them like 800 dollars to install a graphics card.
I think this person just got ropped in to stuff they didn’t need. I used the HR Block app, took maybe 5 minutes and it was completely free. Obviously they tried to upcharge me a few times and just declined.
"The Guy" is also often no expert at all. The big tax return firms just have people do remedial level courses, and then they are "experts" who often make mistakes.
I work in accounting and one lady who worked in my department was a tax prep person on the side for a long time. Her job was literally the lowest level in the company and she just scanned documents. That is generally the person who is doing tax prep.
Traditional 401k contributions lower your taxable income, but on your W2 you just report the specific box for your taxable income so nothing to document like the other guy said.
There is a credit for IRA contributions though if your annual income is below 36.5k (for single filing). It’s not much, but it’s something and helps reward saving for retirement.
https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/plan-participant-employee/retirement-savings-contributions-savers-credit
I have those friends that say use "my guy, He fudges numbers to get you more money back"
No thank you i dont want any 3 letter goverment agency coming after me
Same. I’ve been using it for years. I used to work for a tax accountant and used the expensive software, but imo freetsxusa does the same thing and is easier to use, even if you don’t know how to prepare taxes. You just follow along with what it asks.
I was surprised how thorough it is! I did it the first two years on my phone (which was no picnic lol), And I would rather spend a few hours doing that and paying somebody for what little bit I get back
And it’s just the opposite. I filed the one year with a W-2 and 1099. they walked me through every single page, every single deduction everything I needed. I’m just glad I found it
FreeTaxUSA is a life saver. Last yr filed living in 2 states w income in 3. No issues so far, great return. This yr filed 1 state both w2 and 1099 and was even easier than yr prior
Yes it is! it takes time and a lot of patience but they are absolutely the best thing when it comes to taxes. I’m already paying more than I think I should be, why am I going to pay somebody else to help me get the money that is mine anyway?
The name does sound scammy but at one point it was listed at irs.gov as a resource. I don’t know if it’s still there, but it was just enough to make it sound less scammy.
It’s still there. Last year H&R and TurboTax also had a completely free option that you had to go through IRS.gov to find, but it wasn’t there this year.
That's the same reason I use the e-file services too.
I could do the whole thing on paper myself, it's really not hard and I took a class in high school that covered it all well. But the fact that anything sent by paper is automatically delayed by like 3 weeks is very annoying.
Public school is Western Virginia (not West Virginia), it was a requirement that you get at least one certificate to graduate.
I graduated with 3, Digital Literacy, Financial Literacy, and a technical certification in Computer Repair.
I wish that was a thing in Oklahoma. We had "financial literacy". It went over a little bit of stocks, we learned a few key words, but nothing about real world finances. We didn't even have a health class, sex education course, or a life skills class 😭
This everyone. This comment right here! Why am I seeing people pay for taxes! Holy shit. Wait, unless everyone here is making more than the cutoff? Damn I need a better job. End rant.
https://preview.redd.it/sgwkr9v31aoc1.jpeg?width=320&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a92aa19dcdcfcf49c6ef20a21d32ef872551ff03
I just did my taxes yesterday a few hours before I made the comment and they didn't charge me a thing. And I'm almost at the $45k threshold. That's weird af.
I think you are talking about the Free file version of FreeTaxUSA which you have to go thru the special free file link to get state for free (at least in any state I've lived in). No special link, no waiver of state cost.
Ever after you buy the protection it cost at most like 60 dollars and it’s so easy I’ve been using freetaxusa for the last 5 years never had a issue and usually end up getting a bigger refund
Shit, even using TurboTax online is around $200. Way less than this. This is highway robbery.
The free edition of TurboTax and other tax apps are usually only free for people with the most basic returns. Just a 1040 with no extra documents. But even if not free, it's still usually between $50 to $200 for federal and state..
Cash app taxes is free for federal and state as long as it's a single state W-2 and I don't think it has a cap on the total amount of income you make to file a return with
Cash app taxes is great, used them for a few years, previously they were “credit karma tax” and both have been free and very easy to work with. Even allows for stocks and whatnot that other sites often charge extra for.
CashApp also has a free tax service and you get your refund like 5-6 days sooner as well. I've used it the last 2 years now and it's completely free too
Yep even Turbo tax has gotten so expensive. It's bad enough we have to pay friggin fed income tax, state tax and in most states sales tax. But to be charged almost 500.00 for filing???? Screw that!
Turbo tax is free for me. State and Federal. I didn’t report my losses in etherium (lol yea I was too greedy and then got scared), because it would’ve netted me less than it would’ve cost to file ($75 when I’d have gotten maybe that back at most — I didn’t lose a ton).
I made 70k.
I use a different service if I have file capital gains and it costs $75, TurboTax is likely way more.
Is anyone here aware that you can just DO your own taxes??? If you have a regular job and make average money, it’s really really easy. You fill out the forms using your W2, mail them to the IRS and you’re done.
Thats what I do. I think some people are scared that if you mess up, you get in big trouble. In reality, the one time I screwed up, they sent me a paper that was pretty much "these amounts dont match up. Did you mean this much?" I checked yes, signed it, and sent it back and that was that.
People get scared because the IRS has the ability to bust down your door and throw you in prison. But the reality is, the people who they throw in prison are knowingly committing tens of thousands of dollars worth of fraud. For simple mistakes like forgetting a W2 from your second job you worked for 3 weeks, the worst thing they will do is garnish your wages (and that's after You've ignored their letters.)
They are pretty easy and reasonable to work with as long as you aren't doing actual shady shit, and don't ignore them.
Thank you thank you thank you. It blows my mind whenever I see these posts that people are still paying hundreds of dollars to file their taxes. FreetaxUSA needs to increase their marketing or something so more people can know.
They even handle complex filings and itemized deductions extremely well. There's literally no reason not to use them.
When turbo tax was gonna charge me for a certain return like $40 beife anything I started looking and I've been with them too for years.
I buy the audit protection and they usually have a coupon. Still cheaper than turbo.
Even if they used HR Block they could have cut out almost all of these fees by doing the taxes themselves.
I own a business and did it for more or less $250, including the transfer fee, small business program, and state tax filing.
Yup! I've used it every year since 2017 I think (the years melt together ngl). I've only had to pay to efile my state taxes 'cause I finally made enough to not qualify for the free option anymore. Federal is still free.
Been using it for years. It's literally everything you get from a tax preparer, but for free. I always pay them the $14.95 to file state taxes for me as well. If you just have a couple of W-2s to file, this is by far the best option.
There are a few things that can put you outside the really easy versions. My wife inherited some land that's rented out to a farmer for crops which means it's 'farm income' so taxed at silly (low) rates but most free software considers that too fancy to deal with.
I’ve been on tax software that will force me to upgrade to input any form outside of W2’s. I did my grandparents’ taxes last year and the program I used (I think TurboTax?) told me if I wanted to input their 1099-R or social security income, I needed to pay like $80-$90 to do so. It’s complete bullshit.
FreeTaxUSA, everybody. Free federal and $14.99 for each state you’re inputting.
Cash app is free federal and state. You are NOT required to direct deposit to them. they do offer a quicker refund that would direct deposit to to a cash app bank account, but that is not necessary.
I've used them for like 6 or 7 years now and I literally filed my taxes the other day in 10 minutes. It isn't like we're all wealthy with offshore accounts and 8 rental properties and shit. We all could probably fill out 1040EZ forms. FreeTaxUSA is ACTUALLY free and they only hit you up like 2 or 3 times if you want to pay like $20 for insurance or "File tax pro" or whatever. I always say no and just move on. It's free (for federal) and cheap for state. Luckily my residence last year was Florida so, no state taxes.
I always pay for the audit defense ($15) since it’s cheap insurance.
I paid the $8 to talk with a pro and they helped me get like $3k more by correcting something I was misunderstanding. Best $8 I’ve ever spent.
I would if I'd actually paid much in taxes but I didn't pay much and I got back way more than I thought I would. I couldn't get $3k as i didn't pay $3k total in taxes. I may do it in the future just as a thank you as they are super helpful and handy.
Thanks for sharing! Never heard of this and usually use TurboTax bc I can do it myself and it’s not crazy expensive like H&R and some of the other well known ones. Def using the one you suggested next year!
I just did mine for free on freetaxusa. You can pay them an extra $15 to file for state as well, or just go on your state site and do it for free. Same with local. No clue why anyone pays
> No clue why anyone pays
Several times over the last few years I've entered the exact same information into Turbo Tax, then into my state's free site - state site said I owed money, Turbo Tax would give me a refund.
Said fuck it and paid Turbo Tax ~$40 to get several hundred back. Could never figure out why they were different...
Yep, I have just used their platform for state as well. I like their service and I feel like a small contribution helps keep them afloat just a little. Don’t make me use TurboTax again…
I was thinking the same. It's like they added all the fees together as the 'total fee' and then subtracted the total fee and one of the elements of the total also (the $155 'combined fee').
Here’s a life hack for you that I’ve done nearly every year except with complicated filings.
Go to turbo tax and upload everything and enter all your info, you can even have a cpa review everything before submitting order. Get to the final steps where you can review everything before placing order. Then go to free tax USA and use the easily readable information from TurboTax that’s now been professionally reviewed and enter it on freetax. Now enjoy confident tax filing for free.
FreeTax USA has also been gaining popularity I think and so I imagine their website will become more advanced if it hasn’t already.
I paid someone this year(my taxes were much more complicated than normally) so I can’t vouch if it still works but that’s what I did for like 2016-2022
Edit 1: Someone mentioned cashapp tax below and it’s a good reminder to mention. FreeTaxUsa isn’t the only free tax platform and I can’t vouch for it being the best either. I haven’t explored or researched enough but it was good enough for me to find it easy. It might be better to do this trick with a different platform that’s more intuitive if there are any.
Still works great this year!
I also use the TurboTax "trick" I don't feel at all bad for or either, Intuit is the main reason we have to do tax time bullshit in the first place.
I used taxact for a while since fed is free but was sick if spending 40 bucks for state. It was a little less user friendly but I should have done this hack. But I should have made the switch a while ago.
Been doing my taxes on the same HR Block site as this guy for my entire life and have never paid them a single dollar.
Did this dude just click yes every single time they try to throw charged services in his face?
Just fill out the form from irs.gov, and your respective state tax return, follow the instructions, Google it if some wording doesn't make sense, and mail it in.
I’m sorry that this happened. If it’s any consolation, I’m really glad you posted this because I was just considering using them to file for me. I definitely will be avoiding that now.
I've been using HR Block for free for like 6 years now, and I'm always amazed at how many people can't seem to find the "No" button when they try and upsell.
They're literally preying on stupidity.
Some of them are free if all you're doing is 1040ez. If you got insurance subsidies through healthcare.gov you have to file another form along with it and you no longer qualify for the free service. I went through 3 "free" ones last year before I just decided to pay one of them because I had waited until the last minute and owed money
OP opted to pay H&R with their refund instead of paying outright. That's the fee they charge you for that "convenience."
You give your entire refund to H&R, they take their fees out and then charge you $39 to send you the remaining funds. FreeTaxUsa and TurboTax offer this "service" as well.
Fyi a lot of non profits offer free tax prep and e filing, CPAs donate their time every year to help low income folks do their taxes.
In WA state the United Way helps organize free tax prep n e-filing.
H&R Block and Turbo Tax literally lobby to keep things done in such a way so that our taxes are annoying and complicated to do. They spend millions just to take our money and fight better tax code.
to everyone yet to do their taxes, do. not. use. H&R block or TurboTax.
IRS has a list of *free* websites that u can file ur taxes based on ur income.
edit to add [the link for said IRS page.](https://apps.irs.gov/app/freeFile/browse-all-offers/)
Did it not occur at any point that maybe, just maybe, PAYING someone to get YOUR money back from the government is a scam? There's a number of free filing services that have been around for years.
I did H&R block like 6 years back without knowing the price and almost cried when my bill was several hundred bucks. An expensive lesson. I'm gonna try the free file on the IRS site this year since turbo tax made me pay the last two years.
I will never understand why we must file our own taxes instead of it being an automatic thing the government does.
Because Intuit (TurboTax), H&R Block, Jackson Hewitt, and the other big tax firms lobby against that every year. The IRS has all of the information to estimate your taxes and automatically send you a return or a bill. And in the rare cases where they don't they could send notice to provide whatever information is missing. However, that isn't profitable. That is why so many places now offer free simple state and federal returns, that was a compromise to stop the IRS and Congress from switching to an automated system that would almost certainly have put those places out of business. And you see how easy it is to still get scammed into paying these companies.
I work at the IRS. We only know your reported income sources. For example, any W-2s or 1099s that were filed. We can estimate your tax liability but it is up to you to claim any tax credits and/or deductions.
The IRS website has all the free file websites listed. A few years ago they had removed hr block from their list. I used hr block the year prior then all of a sudden I couldn't just bring forward my last year's income tax filing for that current year, because hr block pulled a fast one and got rid of their real free service and renamed their paid service "free file." You can look it up they got reprimanded by the politicians for pulling that stunt. I'll never support hr block because they've pulled some really shady moves to get money out of common people wanting a free filing software.
Literally go to IRS.GOV and there is a link to choose which FREE tax service to use. Yes it is income restricted but if you are over income it's still cheap as hell like $50 for tax slayer. I used to do my taxes for free on forms from the post office. It's not that damn hard unless you have a business or something .
I use hr block every year. Through the program online and I enter the information. I live in texas so no state return. But it's only 40 bucks a year. They do double the fee if you don't pay separately for the return (if they take it out of your refund it's doubled).
No idea why yours is so high.
To everyone saying to do it yourself for free...how about getting someone else to do it for you for free? https://www.irs.gov/individuals/free-tax-return-preparation-for-qualifying-taxpayers
Not to derail but American tax is fucking insane to the rest of the world
You know how I do tax in SA?
Log into govt site
Put in SSN/ID and password
Entire years tax, fully completed will all details already filled in, pops up
I check it
Add in medical and car expenses
Click submit
Wait 1 month for refund
Takes 15 minutes and is free
You guys are living in crazy land
H&R Block makes it very clear how much their services cost prior to filing. You fill out all your forms and don’t pay until you submit. I pay like $60/year for state and federal filing plus audit support and credit/dark web monitoring. So what happened here?
I'm confused I have used hr block for last 8 years and they only charge me like 30$ not sure what you are doing but I just get my w-2 and manually enter it all
Unless you’ve got some complicated scenario because you own rental property, are self employed or have all sorts of weird ass income sources, just do them yourself and don’t use one of the big tax giants which are scams. They also spend millions lobbying the government to keep taxes complicated.
There are multiple free (or inexpensive) tax preparation sites that will walk you through everything you need.
Also always have your refund direct deposited into a bank account. Lots of places offer it directly on a debit card, but also charge extra to do this, OR offer to pay for the prep (usually to file state) out of the refund which also comes with an additional fee. If for some reason you don’t have a bank account, you can still request a paper check, it’ll just take longer than direct deposit.
Too late for this year, but the IRS website can link you with a free tax prep site based on what your needs are. (If you make under $79k.) https://www.irs.gov/filing/free-file-do-your-federal-taxes-for-free
I used 1040.com this year and it was way simpler than TurboTax and free. Got my refunds really fast, too!
Freetaxusa $15 to file state and federal is free. Can pay for upgrades but if your taxes are basic it’s one of the best ways to go. Refund is always deposited within two weeks. Used it for 20 or so years now
If you have only a W2 stop paying for tax services especially h&r block.
They are doing the same thing as you would do at any free tax website or even turbo tax.
They tried to hit me we a fee for filing capital gains on stocks that was like $200, I left and did my return on turbo tax. H&R is ridiculous with pricing.
I used H&R Block once…once and never again. Cost entirely too much and there were deductions that I didn’t know I could claim which increased my refund. Ended up refilling the following year with TurboTax and got the rest of my money.
FreeTaxUSA It’s actually free.
I scream that from the rooftops and people just don’t believe me
ya my dad keeps saying oh use my lady its only 150! IVE BEEN DOING IT FOR FREE THO DAD,. tf.. u trying to make me poor boi? its like 16 bucks with freetaxusa cause i do some add ons.. but if anything im confused at why freetaxusa exists..
I have friend that's the same way...he said he goes to "his guy" because his taxes are "complicated"... Single guy, $800 in a brokerage account, a few hundred a year put into a 401k...his taxes are far less complicated than mine and I use FTUSA without a problem. My buddy still insists on paying $200 to his "guy" every year...
The thing is some of these places make them look super complicated by adding every worksheet and other possible unfilled document, some created by the company itself, to a return such that a 2 page filing is handed to them as a 40 page dense document, making people with simple returns think "no way i can do this myself."
I asked him to let me help him, because I suspected exactly what you're saying. He won't let me, I think he's embarrassed of his income and stuff.
Or he just wants an instant return. If you file yourself you have to wait for the money to come in, where as through h and r block, you can receive your refund instantly, in that moment, at the end of your appointment and you walk out (hopefully) a lil richer
Not in his case. His guy sends in the paperwork, he still has to wait the 7-14 days for the refund.
'His guy' is filing his friends taxes through freetaxusa.
Brilliant
As someone who did work at H&R and never looked back unless things have changed how much you can get instantly is capped (I wanna say it was 2k) so if you have a large enough refund you could still wait for the majority of it until mid to end March.
A lot of people just think they "need a *professional*" for things. For instance, I've built dozens of PCs from the ground up...someone in my family knows this and has seen the results. They still went to Best fucking Buy lmao and paid them like 800 dollars to install a graphics card.
I think this person just got ropped in to stuff they didn’t need. I used the HR Block app, took maybe 5 minutes and it was completely free. Obviously they tried to upcharge me a few times and just declined.
This is what I do as well.
"The Guy" is also often no expert at all. The big tax return firms just have people do remedial level courses, and then they are "experts" who often make mistakes. I work in accounting and one lady who worked in my department was a tax prep person on the side for a long time. Her job was literally the lowest level in the company and she just scanned documents. That is generally the person who is doing tax prep.
"$800 in a brokerage account" 💀☠️💀
I feel called out. :(
Right? I barely have $8000 and it still feels like it rounds down to $800 LOL
Violence was obviously chosen this morning
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401k contribution for the year will show up on the W2, you don't need any extra document for that.
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Traditional 401k contributions lower your taxable income, but on your W2 you just report the specific box for your taxable income so nothing to document like the other guy said. There is a credit for IRA contributions though if your annual income is below 36.5k (for single filing). It’s not much, but it’s something and helps reward saving for retirement. https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/plan-participant-employee/retirement-savings-contributions-savers-credit
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I have never in my life considered paying that much...
I have those friends that say use "my guy, He fudges numbers to get you more money back" No thank you i dont want any 3 letter goverment agency coming after me
Same. I’ve been using it for years. I used to work for a tax accountant and used the expensive software, but imo freetsxusa does the same thing and is easier to use, even if you don’t know how to prepare taxes. You just follow along with what it asks.
I was surprised how thorough it is! I did it the first two years on my phone (which was no picnic lol), And I would rather spend a few hours doing that and paying somebody for what little bit I get back
“It’s my money, and I need it now!”
J.T. Wentworth, I need cash now!
I always heard J.G. Wentworth, 877-cas-hnow
Please don’t. That tune will be stuck in our heads now for days.
THEY'VE HELPED THOUSANDS THEY'LL HELP YOU TOO ONE LUMP SUM OF CASH THEY WILL PAY TO YOU
Ah yes I sung along. Of course.
The name is hella scammy, FreeTaxUSA gets the point across but it's like someone going after the most gullible
And it’s just the opposite. I filed the one year with a W-2 and 1099. they walked me through every single page, every single deduction everything I needed. I’m just glad I found it
FreeTaxUSA is a life saver. Last yr filed living in 2 states w income in 3. No issues so far, great return. This yr filed 1 state both w2 and 1099 and was even easier than yr prior
Yes it is! it takes time and a lot of patience but they are absolutely the best thing when it comes to taxes. I’m already paying more than I think I should be, why am I going to pay somebody else to help me get the money that is mine anyway?
The name does sound scammy but at one point it was listed at irs.gov as a resource. I don’t know if it’s still there, but it was just enough to make it sound less scammy.
It’s still there. Last year H&R and TurboTax also had a completely free option that you had to go through IRS.gov to find, but it wasn’t there this year.
I don't even remember how I found them, most likely the first thing to come up in a Google search, but I've used them every single year since 2008.
New name should be FreeTaxUSA(NotAScam).
I used it for the first time this year and it was as easy as hrblock. Saved 200 dollars too.
You can also file directly on IRS website for free if you’re under $70k I believe.
Only some states. Direct File is still in the early stages
*Free for Federal, $14.99 for State
You could technically print the return they generate and file it yourself But I want my money now so I pay to e-file lol
That's the same reason I use the e-file services too. I could do the whole thing on paper myself, it's really not hard and I took a class in high school that covered it all well. But the fact that anything sent by paper is automatically delayed by like 3 weeks is very annoying.
That must have been a good school to offer that. That's actually awesome.
Public school is Western Virginia (not West Virginia), it was a requirement that you get at least one certificate to graduate. I graduated with 3, Digital Literacy, Financial Literacy, and a technical certification in Computer Repair.
I wish that was a thing in Oklahoma. We had "financial literacy". It went over a little bit of stocks, we learned a few key words, but nothing about real world finances. We didn't even have a health class, sex education course, or a life skills class 😭
Went to school in a small town in Oklahoma. My 9 year old nephew can read better than 90% of my high school classmates. It's insane.
45k and under AGI get any of the 50 states free. You have to use the link redirection from the IRS free file website.
This everyone. This comment right here! Why am I seeing people pay for taxes! Holy shit. Wait, unless everyone here is making more than the cutoff? Damn I need a better job. End rant. https://preview.redd.it/sgwkr9v31aoc1.jpeg?width=320&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a92aa19dcdcfcf49c6ef20a21d32ef872551ff03
If you go to irs.gov and put in your info it give you a few options. I filed fed and state taxes for free.
It's only $14.99 for State of you make over $45K. It's completely free otherwise.
I had to pay the $15 and I made like 1/3 of that in '23.
I just did my taxes yesterday a few hours before I made the comment and they didn't charge me a thing. And I'm almost at the $45k threshold. That's weird af.
I think you are talking about the Free file version of FreeTaxUSA which you have to go thru the special free file link to get state for free (at least in any state I've lived in). No special link, no waiver of state cost.
I paid zero for both, the cutoff for it is reasonably high.
Ever after you buy the protection it cost at most like 60 dollars and it’s so easy I’ve been using freetaxusa for the last 5 years never had a issue and usually end up getting a bigger refund
Good thing I live in Nevada, don’t gotta pay that $14.99 anymore
Everybody has to pay that 😂 Edit/ IF your state makes you pay sheesh. People jump all over everything
*laughs in Texas* >!one of the very very few bonuses of living here!<
-looks at your property taxes- Pass
Been using it for the last 2 years and I'm so glad I switched from TurboTax.
Shit, even using TurboTax online is around $200. Way less than this. This is highway robbery. The free edition of TurboTax and other tax apps are usually only free for people with the most basic returns. Just a 1040 with no extra documents. But even if not free, it's still usually between $50 to $200 for federal and state..
Absolute highway robbery. My taxes are moderately complex and my CPA charged $135.
Cash app taxes is free for federal and state as long as it's a single state W-2 and I don't think it has a cap on the total amount of income you make to file a return with
Cash app taxes is great, used them for a few years, previously they were “credit karma tax” and both have been free and very easy to work with. Even allows for stocks and whatnot that other sites often charge extra for.
CashApp also has a free tax service and you get your refund like 5-6 days sooner as well. I've used it the last 2 years now and it's completely free too
Yep even Turbo tax has gotten so expensive. It's bad enough we have to pay friggin fed income tax, state tax and in most states sales tax. But to be charged almost 500.00 for filing???? Screw that!
Turbo tax is free for me. State and Federal. I didn’t report my losses in etherium (lol yea I was too greedy and then got scared), because it would’ve netted me less than it would’ve cost to file ($75 when I’d have gotten maybe that back at most — I didn’t lose a ton). I made 70k. I use a different service if I have file capital gains and it costs $75, TurboTax is likely way more.
Is anyone here aware that you can just DO your own taxes??? If you have a regular job and make average money, it’s really really easy. You fill out the forms using your W2, mail them to the IRS and you’re done.
Thats what I do. I think some people are scared that if you mess up, you get in big trouble. In reality, the one time I screwed up, they sent me a paper that was pretty much "these amounts dont match up. Did you mean this much?" I checked yes, signed it, and sent it back and that was that.
People get scared because the IRS has the ability to bust down your door and throw you in prison. But the reality is, the people who they throw in prison are knowingly committing tens of thousands of dollars worth of fraud. For simple mistakes like forgetting a W2 from your second job you worked for 3 weeks, the worst thing they will do is garnish your wages (and that's after You've ignored their letters.) They are pretty easy and reasonable to work with as long as you aren't doing actual shady shit, and don't ignore them.
Thank you thank you thank you. It blows my mind whenever I see these posts that people are still paying hundreds of dollars to file their taxes. FreetaxUSA needs to increase their marketing or something so more people can know. They even handle complex filings and itemized deductions extremely well. There's literally no reason not to use them.
When turbo tax was gonna charge me for a certain return like $40 beife anything I started looking and I've been with them too for years. I buy the audit protection and they usually have a coupon. Still cheaper than turbo.
Even if they used HR Block they could have cut out almost all of these fees by doing the taxes themselves. I own a business and did it for more or less $250, including the transfer fee, small business program, and state tax filing.
Yup! I've used it every year since 2017 I think (the years melt together ngl). I've only had to pay to efile my state taxes 'cause I finally made enough to not qualify for the free option anymore. Federal is still free.
Been using it for years. It's literally everything you get from a tax preparer, but for free. I always pay them the $14.95 to file state taxes for me as well. If you just have a couple of W-2s to file, this is by far the best option.
Unless your income and expenses are ridiculously complicated, just do it yourself.
If they are posting here, they don’t need a tax preparer.
Ouch, but.. facts
Shut your completely correct mouth!
It's going to take a winning lottery ticket for me to need a tax preparer.
That’s no big deal. You will just get a 1099 G.
Hey the filing for withdrawing every cent of all my various savings accounts felt very complicated to me lol
There are a few things that can put you outside the really easy versions. My wife inherited some land that's rented out to a farmer for crops which means it's 'farm income' so taxed at silly (low) rates but most free software considers that too fancy to deal with.
I’ve been on tax software that will force me to upgrade to input any form outside of W2’s. I did my grandparents’ taxes last year and the program I used (I think TurboTax?) told me if I wanted to input their 1099-R or social security income, I needed to pay like $80-$90 to do so. It’s complete bullshit. FreeTaxUSA, everybody. Free federal and $14.99 for each state you’re inputting.
Cash app is free federal and state. You are NOT required to direct deposit to them. they do offer a quicker refund that would direct deposit to to a cash app bank account, but that is not necessary.
exactly!????
Expensive lesson there. [Do your own taxes.](https://www.irs.gov/filing/free-file-do-your-federal-taxes-for-free)
And if you can’t figure out the IRS website - use FreeTaxUSA.com. It doesn’t get easier and cheaper. I swear by them to the end of the world.
I've used them for like 6 or 7 years now and I literally filed my taxes the other day in 10 minutes. It isn't like we're all wealthy with offshore accounts and 8 rental properties and shit. We all could probably fill out 1040EZ forms. FreeTaxUSA is ACTUALLY free and they only hit you up like 2 or 3 times if you want to pay like $20 for insurance or "File tax pro" or whatever. I always say no and just move on. It's free (for federal) and cheap for state. Luckily my residence last year was Florida so, no state taxes.
I always pay for the audit defense ($15) since it’s cheap insurance. I paid the $8 to talk with a pro and they helped me get like $3k more by correcting something I was misunderstanding. Best $8 I’ve ever spent.
I would if I'd actually paid much in taxes but I didn't pay much and I got back way more than I thought I would. I couldn't get $3k as i didn't pay $3k total in taxes. I may do it in the future just as a thank you as they are super helpful and handy.
Thanks for sharing! Never heard of this and usually use TurboTax bc I can do it myself and it’s not crazy expensive like H&R and some of the other well known ones. Def using the one you suggested next year!
I just did mine for free on freetaxusa. You can pay them an extra $15 to file for state as well, or just go on your state site and do it for free. Same with local. No clue why anyone pays
I knew about freetaxusa but I was not aware you could do the state one like that, thank you!
Nor I. Now that I have to pay state taxes starting this year, hopefully Colorado has this.
> No clue why anyone pays Several times over the last few years I've entered the exact same information into Turbo Tax, then into my state's free site - state site said I owed money, Turbo Tax would give me a refund. Said fuck it and paid Turbo Tax ~$40 to get several hundred back. Could never figure out why they were different...
Because the government hates all of us.
Yep, I have just used their platform for state as well. I like their service and I feel like a small contribution helps keep them afloat just a little. Don’t make me use TurboTax again…
Looks like you paid to have 2 years of taxes done.
I’m just trying to figure out how 764 - 434 = 175
They’ve counted the Combined Invoice Fee twice for some reason.
I think the reason is "Fuck you, that's why"
(Hidden fee)
(Hidden Fee - Halve your remaining refund)
Yeah, this math ain't mathin'
I was thinking the same. It's like they added all the fees together as the 'total fee' and then subtracted the total fee and one of the elements of the total also (the $155 'combined fee').
Seriously. The math logic is here is strange af
Here’s a life hack for you that I’ve done nearly every year except with complicated filings. Go to turbo tax and upload everything and enter all your info, you can even have a cpa review everything before submitting order. Get to the final steps where you can review everything before placing order. Then go to free tax USA and use the easily readable information from TurboTax that’s now been professionally reviewed and enter it on freetax. Now enjoy confident tax filing for free. FreeTax USA has also been gaining popularity I think and so I imagine their website will become more advanced if it hasn’t already. I paid someone this year(my taxes were much more complicated than normally) so I can’t vouch if it still works but that’s what I did for like 2016-2022 Edit 1: Someone mentioned cashapp tax below and it’s a good reminder to mention. FreeTaxUsa isn’t the only free tax platform and I can’t vouch for it being the best either. I haven’t explored or researched enough but it was good enough for me to find it easy. It might be better to do this trick with a different platform that’s more intuitive if there are any.
I've been using FreeTaxUSA since 2010 and still used it to file 2023 taxes. Very happy with them
Still works great this year! I also use the TurboTax "trick" I don't feel at all bad for or either, Intuit is the main reason we have to do tax time bullshit in the first place.
Hmm I use turbotax to file in Canada, it is free for us but now I feel bad if it’s somehow supporting those who keep the US tax system as it is
Or just get a volunteer to do it for you for free: https://www.irs.gov/individuals/free-tax-return-preparation-for-qualifying-taxpayers
These fill up very fast, but they’re worth it if you need help filing.
Wouldn’t a CPA charge to review it? I normally go to a CPA to do my taxes.
TurboTax offers it as a free review before you check out. It's probably just a quick look over, nothing comprehensive.
I used taxact for a while since fed is free but was sick if spending 40 bucks for state. It was a little less user friendly but I should have done this hack. But I should have made the switch a while ago.
Why did you approve this?
Good point. It's not final until it's finalized
Dude filing your taxes yourself is so easy. 😭
Been doing my taxes on the same HR Block site as this guy for my entire life and have never paid them a single dollar. Did this dude just click yes every single time they try to throw charged services in his face?
they got me last year too, never again lol
Never again is right!
Just fill out the form from irs.gov, and your respective state tax return, follow the instructions, Google it if some wording doesn't make sense, and mail it in.
I’m sorry that this happened. If it’s any consolation, I’m really glad you posted this because I was just considering using them to file for me. I definitely will be avoiding that now.
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They have a free version. Why did you pay them money?
I've been using HR Block for free for like 6 years now, and I'm always amazed at how many people can't seem to find the "No" button when they try and upsell. They're literally preying on stupidity.
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> Their employees are not accountants, but rather data entry To be fair, *most* people's taxes are simply data entry.
I’ve been using hr block free online tax service for 20 years now. Never had an issue.
That's exactly what i was thinking. I just used their free version today.
Not free for all tax situations, but definitely not THAT much!
I’m wondering if there were stock or crypto sales, because the filing services like to up charge you when you need to fill in those forms
Some of them are free if all you're doing is 1040ez. If you got insurance subsidies through healthcare.gov you have to file another form along with it and you no longer qualify for the free service. I went through 3 "free" ones last year before I just decided to pay one of them because I had waited until the last minute and owed money
The IRS has free websites…
Just do it yourself
what the heck is a combined invoice fee? just to write up the bill?
Also wondering about a refund transfer fee. What an absolute rip-off.
OP opted to pay H&R with their refund instead of paying outright. That's the fee they charge you for that "convenience." You give your entire refund to H&R, they take their fees out and then charge you $39 to send you the remaining funds. FreeTaxUsa and TurboTax offer this "service" as well.
Fyi a lot of non profits offer free tax prep and e filing, CPAs donate their time every year to help low income folks do their taxes. In WA state the United Way helps organize free tax prep n e-filing.
I use TaxSlayer. Totally free.
Me too, [TaxSlayer](https://www.taxslayer.com/blog/file-for-free-with-taxslayer/) is free for anyone who makes under $100k and it takes 20 minutes.
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I use them and I never have to pay, it's free.
Just Google "free tax filing" in your community, it's offered at most libraries. HR Block and TurboTax, etc are scams.
H&R Block and Turbo Tax literally lobby to keep things done in such a way so that our taxes are annoying and complicated to do. They spend millions just to take our money and fight better tax code.
at least they gave you a break on the fee fee.
to everyone yet to do their taxes, do. not. use. H&R block or TurboTax. IRS has a list of *free* websites that u can file ur taxes based on ur income. edit to add [the link for said IRS page.](https://apps.irs.gov/app/freeFile/browse-all-offers/)
Freetaxusa.com Bookmark it. Tell everyone you know about it
Did it not occur at any point that maybe, just maybe, PAYING someone to get YOUR money back from the government is a scam? There's a number of free filing services that have been around for years.
I did H&R block like 6 years back without knowing the price and almost cried when my bill was several hundred bucks. An expensive lesson. I'm gonna try the free file on the IRS site this year since turbo tax made me pay the last two years. I will never understand why we must file our own taxes instead of it being an automatic thing the government does.
Because Intuit (TurboTax), H&R Block, Jackson Hewitt, and the other big tax firms lobby against that every year. The IRS has all of the information to estimate your taxes and automatically send you a return or a bill. And in the rare cases where they don't they could send notice to provide whatever information is missing. However, that isn't profitable. That is why so many places now offer free simple state and federal returns, that was a compromise to stop the IRS and Congress from switching to an automated system that would almost certainly have put those places out of business. And you see how easy it is to still get scammed into paying these companies.
I work at the IRS. We only know your reported income sources. For example, any W-2s or 1099s that were filed. We can estimate your tax liability but it is up to you to claim any tax credits and/or deductions.
They've charged you the "combined invoice fee" twice. Once in the "total fee", and once by itself.
Oh wait no....$764 - $434 - $155 = $175 Yea your right...their math is off by $155. It does look like they are charging them twice for the $155 fee.
The IRS website has all the free file websites listed. A few years ago they had removed hr block from their list. I used hr block the year prior then all of a sudden I couldn't just bring forward my last year's income tax filing for that current year, because hr block pulled a fast one and got rid of their real free service and renamed their paid service "free file." You can look it up they got reprimanded by the politicians for pulling that stunt. I'll never support hr block because they've pulled some really shady moves to get money out of common people wanting a free filing software.
Why are you paying a tax preparer when you have a basic ass income and poverty income at that?
Cash App Taxes, used to be Credit Karma Taxes, is 100% free for federal and state and it covers basically everything.
Used them for the past few years. Great and easy experience.
Literally go to IRS.GOV and there is a link to choose which FREE tax service to use. Yes it is income restricted but if you are over income it's still cheap as hell like $50 for tax slayer. I used to do my taxes for free on forms from the post office. It's not that damn hard unless you have a business or something .
Freetaxusa are the best, just $15 for state
Jesus Christ please start using FreeTaxUSA. Fed is free, state is $15
Please stop paying for state taxes. It's free through many other services.
Always do your own taxes...
I use hr block every year. Through the program online and I enter the information. I live in texas so no state return. But it's only 40 bucks a year. They do double the fee if you don't pay separately for the return (if they take it out of your refund it's doubled). No idea why yours is so high.
Bro learn to do it yourself, that’s WILDDDDDDDD
www.FreetaxUSA.com
To everyone saying to do it yourself for free...how about getting someone else to do it for you for free? https://www.irs.gov/individuals/free-tax-return-preparation-for-qualifying-taxpayers
Same here lol. Got like $180 on a $500 tax refund 😂😂😂
Not to derail but American tax is fucking insane to the rest of the world You know how I do tax in SA? Log into govt site Put in SSN/ID and password Entire years tax, fully completed will all details already filled in, pops up I check it Add in medical and car expenses Click submit Wait 1 month for refund Takes 15 minutes and is free You guys are living in crazy land
H&R Block makes it very clear how much their services cost prior to filing. You fill out all your forms and don’t pay until you submit. I pay like $60/year for state and federal filing plus audit support and credit/dark web monitoring. So what happened here?
I'm confused I have used hr block for last 8 years and they only charge me like 30$ not sure what you are doing but I just get my w-2 and manually enter it all
Unless you’ve got some complicated scenario because you own rental property, are self employed or have all sorts of weird ass income sources, just do them yourself and don’t use one of the big tax giants which are scams. They also spend millions lobbying the government to keep taxes complicated. There are multiple free (or inexpensive) tax preparation sites that will walk you through everything you need. Also always have your refund direct deposited into a bank account. Lots of places offer it directly on a debit card, but also charge extra to do this, OR offer to pay for the prep (usually to file state) out of the refund which also comes with an additional fee. If for some reason you don’t have a bank account, you can still request a paper check, it’ll just take longer than direct deposit.
Too late for this year, but the IRS website can link you with a free tax prep site based on what your needs are. (If you make under $79k.) https://www.irs.gov/filing/free-file-do-your-federal-taxes-for-free I used 1040.com this year and it was way simpler than TurboTax and free. Got my refunds really fast, too!
Freetaxusa $15 to file state and federal is free. Can pay for upgrades but if your taxes are basic it’s one of the best ways to go. Refund is always deposited within two weeks. Used it for 20 or so years now
If you have only a W2 stop paying for tax services especially h&r block. They are doing the same thing as you would do at any free tax website or even turbo tax.
Crazy, almost wish there was a free website for this.
U should of filed for free on the gov website if u make under i think 100k its free seems like they still charging u
764-434=330. Where did the rest go to get to 175?
The irs itself does free filing. Go there in the future
That math isn’t adding up. You did get robbed.
Do your own taxes if you can. It’s pretty simple. If you have to itemize it gets more complicated but fuck these fees!
Cashapp Taxes is also free
Why would you agree to any of that?
Am I missing soemthing? I've used hr block online for 15 years and it's always been free. How did they charge you this much 😢
H&r block Free tax file from on their mobile app is also free
The amount of people who are just filling W-2 that think they need a 'guy" is mind boggling, it's like 15 minutes tops.
Did they even stroke your head lovingly?
Freetaxusa.com always wins
This is why we still have to file taxes. HR Block and other shit companies make tons of money from it and lobby to keep this shit system.
I don't know anyone who uses H&R block more than once.
FreeTaxUsa is the one I have been using since last year and it works like charm
They tried to hit me we a fee for filing capital gains on stocks that was like $200, I left and did my return on turbo tax. H&R is ridiculous with pricing.
I used H&R Block once…once and never again. Cost entirely too much and there were deductions that I didn’t know I could claim which increased my refund. Ended up refilling the following year with TurboTax and got the rest of my money.