Jackson Hewitt has been known for in-person tax preparation for more than 40 years. The company’s tax expertise doesn't translate well to its online tax software, however. Its price makes the service appealing and it has a terrific final check before filing, but it can’t compete with the best tax preparation services. This year, three online tax prep services are PCMag Editors’ Choice winners: Intuit TurboTax, which gives the best overall experience; H&R Block, which has excellent context-sensitive help; and FreeTaxUSA, which is our top choice for free filing (federal filing is free and state filing costs just $14.99).
How Much Does Jackson Hewitt Online Cost?
Jackson Hewitt used to offer three different versions of its online DIY tax preparation solutions at varying prices. There's now just one, at $25, which includes filing for both a federal and state return. That's a low price. Most other online tax services charge more just for filing a federal return. Jackson Hewitt supports all major IRS forms and schedules, so you should be able to complete complex returns, even those involving self-employment and investment income.
For comparison, H&R Block Self-Employed, which you would need if you wanted to access a similar set of forms and schedules, has a suggested retail price of $85, with state returns adding $37 each. TurboTax Self-Employed is $89 for federal and $39 per state, TaxSlayer Self-Employed is $52.95 plus $39.95 per state, and TaxAct Self-Employed is $69.99 for federal and $39.99 for state. We expect prices for some or all of these services to go up later in the filing season, as they do every year. All these services have a better user experience and more help than what you get from Jackson Hewitt's online DIY tax prep.
Filing Your Taxes Online: What You Need to Know
Is Jackson Hewitt Safe to Use?
Jackson Hewitt employs a layered defense strategy, as its competitors do. Multi-factor authentication is supported, though not required, and all data you transmit from your computer or phone is encrypted. In addition, the service notifies you about any account activity, like a password reset or e-file submission.
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Whenever you enter personal or financial information on a website, PCMag recommends you take other basic precautions to keep yourself safe, such as using a trusted network (like your home Wi-Fi).
How Does Jackson Hewitt Work?
All tax preparation websites work similarly, though their user experiences and guidance resources vary greatly. Jackson Hewitt “interviews” you like a human preparer would, asking questions about your income and expenses from the previous tax year. It does this using a wizard-like tool. You answer the questions on each page by entering data, clicking buttons, or selecting from lists, then advancing to the next. You never see official IRS forms and schedules.
Jackson Hewitt works in the background, doing all required calculations and depositing your answers on IRS documents. Numerous types of help are available along the way. When you complete all the tax situations (also called tax topics) that relate to you, the site reviews your answers and points out possible errors and omissions. The last step is to pay for the service as it helps you print or e-file your return.
How Do You Get Started With Jackson Hewitt?
First, you create an account and set up your security options, then Jackson Hewitt launches into its lengthy Q&A by asking for personal details like your family members' dates of birth and Social Security numbers, and your filing status. If you used Jackson Hewitt for your 2022 taxes, the site can import that information. Every other online tax prep site except for Jackson Hewitt and Liberty Tax lets you import data from a competing site you used last year to file your return.
Once you lay this groundwork for your tax return, you move on to income, deduction, and credit topics, using a combination of lists and Q&A walk-throughs.
Help and Support Need Improvement
Jackson Hewitt is behind the competition in terms of the guidance it offers. It does have a searchable knowledge base that does a great job of giving you links to forms on the site when you enter a word or phrase. It also links to articles when you select a topic area, but there are very few of these. You can chat with support representatives and send emails with technical questions, but you can’t connect with tax professionals to ask about tax law. TaxAct and FreeTaxUSA both offer professional help understanding the law for the specified fees.
Once you go to the support page, you have to return to the main navigation toolbar and find your way back to where you were. Other online tax sites do this better by showing you help content in vertical panes or overlapping windows so you don’t lose your place. They also provide more guidance and instructional content within the Q&As. H&R Block even offers always-on context-sensitive help and free tax help from professionals. Jackson Hewitt does include links on some pages that open brief explanations of tax concepts, but they are few and far between.
Competing tax prep services also help taxpayers by making navigation simple and confusion-free. Jackson Hewitt has some navigation quirks that can cost you time and create frustration. Every time you log in, for example, it takes you right back to the beginning instead of asking if you want to start where you left off. The site also does not autosave every page like most competitors do (Liberty Tax is another offender here). I lost some time and data while entering depreciation information because I took so long that Jackson Hewitt logged me out, even though I was actively entering information.
How Does Jackson Hewitt Deal With Self-Employment?
Jackson Hewitt covers all the tax topics addressed on Schedule C (the main self-employment form) in one continuous Q&A, including income (1099-K, 1099-NEC, 1099-MISC, and other income not reported on those forms), general expenses (like advertising and office supplies), vehicle expenses, and business use of the home. Gig workers who only make, say, roughly $5,000 driving for Uber but want to offset their income with expenses should go through every step since Jackson Hewitt is comprehensive here.
I thought two elements of the self-employment Q&A could have been handled much better. First, many pages only show you one or two questions, while some are quite lengthy. These questions could be better balanced across pages. And the guidance offered may not be enough for many new small business owners and gig workers, so I'd like to see more of it.
A Flawless Final Check
Before you file your taxes, Jackson Hewitt’s review tool finds topics you started but didn’t complete and prompts you to finish them. This final check performed flawlessly for me in testing, better than just about any other DIY tax service. The app goes further than some competing services that only look for errors and omissions. For example, a tool in the final review also helps you find specific forms. This is handy, although I wonder why it isn't available much sooner. The final check also lists all the forms and schedules you’ve completed, with links to their pages.
If you’re not getting a refund from the IRS and will instead have to pay, there are a couple of options. You can have the money withdrawn from your checking account through the Jackson Hewitt site. You can also submit your payment on the IRS’s Direct Pay site via credit card or bank account. For state taxes due, contact your state department of revenue.
No Mobile Apps, Just a Mobile Website
You can log onto the Jackson Hewitt website using your mobile phone’s browser, but there's no standalone app. I had no trouble accessing the mobile version of the site, though I ran into the same navigation quirks I encountered on the desktop version. The user interface and navigation tools mirror what I saw on the desktop. The content is comprehensive, though, and the help resources are the same.
Sufficient for Existing Jackson Hewitt Users
Taxpayers who used the Jackson Hewitt site last year may want to stick with what they know. But it’s hard to recommend Jackson Hewitt when FreeTaxUSA, one of this year’s Editors’ Choice winners, is available. It supports all major forms and schedules and is quite good for a free federal product (state filing costs just $14.99). If you want the best of everything and can fit it in your budget, try this year’s other Editors’ Choice winners, Intuit TurboTax for the best overall experience and H&R Block for its excellent context-sensitive help.
While you’re thinking about taxes, you can read up on seven ways to minimize your taxes and what to do if you can't pay your taxes.
While Jackson Hewitt has attractive pricing and the option to let pros prepare your return, the online service’s interface and help system can't match the competition.
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