# TurboTax review (2026): is the free plan enough? > US personal and business tax filing, self-serve or with an expert Checked Nov 13, 2026 ยท graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA. TurboTax is Intuit's US tax filing product, sold as guided do-it-yourself software, as software with on-demand expert help, and as a service where an expert prepares and files the return. Online editions price by how complex the return is, while the downloadable Desktop editions have set prices. Federal e-file is included with the product. - **Category:** Accounting & Invoicing - **Made by:** Intuit - **Website:** https://turbotax.intuit.com - **Runs on:** Web, iOS - **Who should skip it:** Tight if you itemize or sell stock, as Free Edition excludes that. - **Facts last checked:** Nov 13, 2026 ## Pricing As of Nov 13, 2026, TurboTax has a free plan, and paid plans start at $84 per tax year (TurboTax Desktop Deluxe, state e-file extra). - **Pricing model:** Free plan - **Free plan:** Free Edition: $0 federal, $0 state and $0 to file, for simple Form 1040 returns only (about 37% of filers qualify). - **Free trial:** None listed. | Plan | Price | What you get | | --- | --- | --- | | Free Edition | $0 | Simple Form 1040 returns only: W-2 income, standard deduction, EITC, child tax credit and student loan interest. | | Desktop Deluxe | $84 per tax year, downloaded software | Listed at $84, marked down from $94; covers one state download, with each extra state at $45. | | Desktop Premier | $119 per tax year, downloaded software | Listed at $119, marked down from $129; one state download included, each extra state $45. | | Desktop Home & Business | $134 per tax year, downloaded software | Listed at $134, marked down from $144; one state download included, each extra state $45. | | Desktop Business | $194 per tax year, downloaded software | Listed at $194, marked down from $204; state downloads are $55 each. | | Online paid tiers | Custom | Do It Yourself, Expert Assist and Expert Full Service; the price depends on return complexity and is shown while filing. | Read from https://turbotax.intuit.com/desktop-pricing/ on Nov 13, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with TurboTax before buying. ## Key features - **Three ways to file:** Do It Yourself uses guided software, Expert Assist adds on-demand experts, and Expert Full Service has an expert prepare and file. - **Free Edition:** Simple Form 1040 returns file at $0 federal, $0 state and $0 to file; the page says roughly 37% of taxpayers qualify. - **Expert help:** Experts answer by phone, chat or one-way video and can see a read-only copy of the return, with SSNs masked. - **Document import:** Tax documents can be imported from employers and financial institutions, or photographed and uploaded. - **Guarantees:** The site lists a 100% accurate calculations guarantee, a maximum refund guarantee and audit support guidance. - **Refund options:** Refund Advance offers up to $4,000 as a loan at 0% APR and $0 loan fees, subject to approval; paid early deposit is also offered. ## Good for - Filers with simple returns who want a free federal and state return - Self-employed, investors and landlords who want guided software - People who want an expert to do the whole return ## Worth knowing - Online prices are not published on the pages read; they depend on the forms and the service level, and are shown while filing. - Free Edition excludes itemized deductions, 1099-NEC income, stock and crypto sales and rental income. - Desktop state e-file costs $25 per personal state return, except New York and Washington, and Live Tax Advice is $60. - Paying fees out of the refund, early deposit and Audit Defense ($45 to $60) cost extra. ## ToolGPA grades **GPA: 2.8 out of 4**, graded Nov 13, 2026. TurboTax files US taxes as guided software or with an expert, and the Free Edition is $0 for simple Form 1040 returns. Online prices aren't published, depend on your forms, and state filing, early deposit and Audit Defense cost extra. - **Value for money: B.** Desktop Deluxe is $84 a tax year, under a year of the $20 middle, but it's a yearly price and states cost extra. Online prices aren't published. - **Free plan and trial: B.** Free Edition is $0 to file federal and state, and about 37% of filers qualify. Itemizing, 1099-NEC, stocks, crypto and rentals are out. - **Features: B.** Guided filing, document import, expert help and refund options. Nothing in the core job of filing is missing. - **Ease of use: C.** No rating read. Guided, but you gather forms and documents first. - **Platforms and integrations: B.** Web and iOS, plus downloadable desktop editions. No Android app listed. These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from TurboTax's own pages on 13 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. ## Where it stands among accounting and invoicing tools - TurboTax's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 109 of the 127 other accounting and invoicing tools we grade, and level with 8. - It stands best on free plan and trial (B, above 93 of 127) and worst on ease of use (C, above 6). - Its paid plans start at $7 a month when paid by the year, against a middle price of $18.09 for the category: 16 of the 90 others that charge start lower. - On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 2 tools score higher and cost less. The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/accounting ## Keep it, or make your own? **Keep it.** The plain part of TurboTax you could make: calculator. What surrounds it you could not. The 3 things listed below take a company, not a weekend. It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 2.8 is higher than 109 of the 127 other accounting and invoicing tools we grade. It costs $84 a year. - You could make: Calculator: an app builder makes this well. - You could not: A real app for iOS. Something home-made would be a web page. - You could not: AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself. - You could not: The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job. A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it. ## What people say - **App Store rating of the iPhone and iPad app:** 4.8 out of 5 from 937,850 ratings in the United States, read Nov 13, 2026. This is the store's rating of the app, not a score from ToolGPA. Source: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id940247939 ## Works with Credit Karma **Tags:** AI features, Calculator ## Alternatives - [TaxAct](https://toolgpa.com/tools/taxact): Online and downloadable tax filing for individuals and businesses. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/taxact-vs-turbotax) - [Cash App Taxes](https://toolgpa.com/tools/cash-app-taxes): Free federal and state tax filing inside Cash App. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/cash-app-taxes-vs-turbotax) ## Sources The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 13, 2026: - https://turbotax.intuit.com - https://turbotax.intuit.com/personal-taxes/online/ - https://turbotax.intuit.com/desktop-pricing/ Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/turbotax Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).