About · Contact · Top Personal Finance Blogs
Featured In:

I Filed My Taxes With TaxAct Online

Erik Folgate


As you might already know, we’re giving away 3 FREE iPads to three random winners who file their taxes through us using one of three great online tax filing services: Turbo Tax, TaxAct Online, or H&R Block. I was really glad to see that TaxAct was included in the “Big 3,” because I’ve been using them for the past 5 years to file my taxes, and I’ve never had a bad experience using their online product. One of our staff writers, Joanna, did a really good, in-depth review of TaxAct that you can read about before you use them.

It Took Me An Hour To Do My Taxes

This is partly because I was organized and partly because of TaxAct. I had all of my tax documents already sitting in a folder. I knew exactly which deductions and credits I was going to claim, and my faithfulness to a particular online tax filer helped speed up the process. If you’ve used TaxAct in the previous year to file your taxes, it automatically retrieves the information from the previous year and pre-fills it for you. Since I didn’t move and my wife didn’t change jobs since last tax season, I didn’t have to fill out any of our contact information, and I didn’t have to fill out any contact information on my wife’s W-2. All I had to fill in were the salary and tax withholding boxes. TaxAct also knew which deductions and credits I took last year, so it reminded me of the ones that I might be eligible for again this year, but it was very easy to delete the information for the ones that I would not be claiming this year. I breezed through their entire online platform, because it’s just so easy to use.

I paid the $9.95 for the Deluxe Version

I don’t have extremely complicated taxes for 2009, but I will in 2010 since I started a business this year. Even so, I paid the $10 to have the Deluxe version, because I would be itemizing my deductions this year, and paying the extra money gives you access to a wealth of information about deductions and credits and if I’m eligible for them or not.

Our House Saved Us From Owing Taxes

Even though I hated seeing the actual dollar amount we paid to the bank in interest on our home in 2009, it was 100% deductible, and it was the turning point that took my return from owing money to getting a refund. The student loan interest, contributions to my IRA, and contributions to my HSA were more great deductions that I claimed and reduced our taxable income by quite a bit.

Choose Where Your Money Goes

I recommend direct depositing your tax refund. If you get it in check form, you might be tempted to cash it and spend the money on crap you don’t need. If you’re worried about it going into your checking account, TaxAct has a feature where you can choose multiple accounts to send the money to. You can make it so that half of it goes to your savings account and the other half go to your checking account.

What lessons, tips, and tricks did you learn while filing your taxes this year? If you haven’t filed yet, make sure you file through us to get entered into our iPad Giveaway!

(photo credit: Salen Public Library )

Categories: Taxes

Erik Folgate
Erik and his wife, Lindzee, live in Orlando, Florida with a baby boy on the way. Erik works as an account manager for a marketing company, and considers counseling friends, family and the readers of Money Crashers his personal ministry to others. Erik became passionate about personal finance and helping others make wise financial decisions after racking up over $20k in credit card and student loan debt within the first two years of college. Another one of Erik's projects is the site, Stuff We Google.

Learn more - including co-founders Andrew Schrage and Gyutae Park.

Related Articles

Comments

  • http://madsaver.com Mac

    I don’t know if I’ve ever used TaxAct, and I’ve used several tax software packages in the past. For the last few years I’ve stuck with TurboTax and much like TaxAct, it saves your information year-to-year, so it does make it easy to be loyal. However, it did take me a lot longer than 1 hour this year!
    Next year I’ll have to take a closer look @ TaxAct and see how it fares head to head with the others.

    • Daniel W Oliver

      Tax Act for 2011 is the worst user unfrendily program yet. I AM A SIX YEAR USER of Tax Act! TOO MANY ERROR REPORTS and flags. NO 1-800 SUPPORT NUMBER. Hung up on Roth IRA completion on a distribution. Flagged and would not help find easy solution. Finished on Turbo Tax in a just a few minuets with the help in the program without any hassel and good explanation of what to do. No comparison hear ! Played with Tax Act For hours but could not complete!!! Don’t waste time and money on Tact Act

    • Dano88881

      Waste your time with Tax Act next year if you don’t mind, but remember I told you so, when you can’t get info to complete anything but the most basic forms. I had used it for years when they offered an 800 number for help, but even thats gone now!

  • Lori A.

    I use TaxAct, too..have for a few years now. It is so easy and I love it. We usually have our refund deposited into our account within a couple of weeks.

  • Marla Davis

    I definitely used TaxAct and I had about 8 hours of experience with a few free financial online filing software in the last few days. And the experience was very unpleasant. I say that because of the advertising claims versus the real story. Turbo tax advertises every hour or so on TV and online about free, free, free filing. After hours of filing with them and entering many, many numbers etc. at the end they started adding up the charge. Believe me, I stayed on the free links all the way. After another hour of going through understanding these new charges and finding their phone number, holding and talking on the phone for another hour, they charge for Federal after all. They also file for state and even though they state that, the cost about doubles if you get a refund. They charge extra for that, and extra if you want it on a card or subtracted from your return. Long story. But, $60 was for the simplest return of one person, single, no deductions. It’s misleading however you see it. There are many complaints on their site and online. Free is free. However, I ended up using TaxAct, who did exactly as they claimed. It WAS free and they sent an email saying the state price was just $8.00. So, if this saves anyone all the hours and frustration it cost me, my experience was GREAT with TaxAct. Oh, TaxAct also has many phone numbers whereas the online chat with Turbotax wouldn’t give me a number until about 40 minutes of not answering my chat questions. These questions were never tax questions since I already knew how to file, it was questions about their software! And TaxAct got the exact same result that Turbotax gave. Good Luck and I know who I’m using next year—TaxAct who are a class act! :)

  • Chris

    I use taxACT as well – easy to use, good tutorial, and cheap!

  • Oscar

    i used taxact for 7years. now the IRS is auditing me for not filing taxes during the years i used their services.

    dont use this product. they dont keep your records

  • Mildredpooh

    I always used Turbo Tax and so pleased with it. Got my return in my bank account within 10 days. This year I decided to use Tax Act. Why? That is what I am asking myself. I saved a few dollars and now I am paying the price. Upon checking my status from taxact it was stated that I would have it by 2/15/2012. Checking with the Irs, they could not give me information at this time’ I go back to taxact and it states for me to finish my return. I am so confused and there is no one to contact. Just machines.

  • Leslie

    I think taxact is terrible. I needed to talk to support when there appeared to be a discrepancy between the state and federal dependent information. I also had to file an amended return and paid additional money for that but was never able to get the info to go through the website. I had to go print the forms from the IRS site and complete and mail the old fashion way. I can’t get my money back because there’s nobody to talk to about it. THIS IS TERRIBLE!!!!!

  • Dano88881

    Seems to fit their mold alright! Waste on time and money in my opinion.

  • Dtroller

    TaxAct sucks. I e-filed my returns to Fed and State of GA weeks ago. I have not received the email confirmations, neither the IRS or GA recognizes me on their respective “Where’s my refund?” sections and there is no way to contact TaxAct by phone. I have no idea where my returns are or whether they have been received. Eric should do more research before his articles…he’s an authority on nothing!!

Links monetized by VigLink
Close