TaxSlayer’s affordability, combined with comprehensive coverage of tax topics, has kept it competitive with the best online tax preparation services. Since our last review, TaxSlayer has accelerated its response time, upgraded the always-on error check, and made other significant improvements. If you are a budget-conscious taxpayer and want an online DIY tax app that has a decent amount of help but doesn't cost too much, TaxSlayer is a good option. PCMag's Editors’ Choice winners for tax prep, however, are Intuit TurboTax, which gives you the best overall experience filing your taxes; H&R Block for its outstanding context-sensitive help; and FreeTaxUSA, which is our pick for best free tax preparation and filing for federal taxes (state filing costs $14.99).
How Much Does TaxSlayer Cost?
TaxSlayer is available in four different versions. What the company calls Simply Free is free for both federal and state returns for filers who claim W-2 income and the standard deduction and those who file as single or married filing jointly with no dependents. Education deductions and credits are included. The next tier of service, Classic (currently $22.95 for federal returns, though it will go up to $34.95 closer to the tax filing deadline), supports all major IRS forms and schedules and imports W-2 and 1099 data. Online tax services commonly have discounts for people who file early in the tax season, and their rates go up as the filing deadline of April 15 approaches.
TaxSlayer Premium (now $42.95 for federal, but it will go up to $54.95 as the filing deadline of April 15 nears) includes all Classic features and adds enhanced support options, including live chat and unlimited phone access to tax professionals. Self-Employed (currently $52.95 for federal, but eventually $64.95), the version I tested, adds extra guidance for self-employed filers—though Classic is a more affordable option if you're self-employed since there’s not a lot of additional help in Self-Employed. State returns for all versions except Simply Free are $39.95.
These are attractive prices, but competing on price alone in the tax field is tough. Cash App Taxes handles all major IRS forms and schedules—and state returns—for free, though its help system and options are far less developed than TaxSlayer's. FreeTaxUSA, mentioned above, also supports all major forms and schedules and provides good help tools on the cheap (free for federal and $14.99 for state). With FreeTaxUSA, $7.99 gets you expanded online help, and pro support is $39.99.
Similar Products
Intuit TurboTax 2024 (Tax Year 2023)
H&R Block 2024 (Tax Year 2023)
FreeTaxUSA 2024 (Tax Year 2023)
TaxAct 2024 (Tax Year 2023)
Cash App Taxes 2024 (Tax Year 2023)
Jackson Hewitt Online 2024 (Tax Year 2023)
Liberty Tax 2024 (Tax Year 2023)
Is TaxSlayer Safe to Use?
TaxSlayer's security is evident from the moment you create an account and log in. The site has complex password requirements and employs a single-use verification code that can be sent to your email address or mobile phone. Alternatively, you can use an authenticator app, such as Google Authenticator, to secure your account with a stronger multi-factor authentication method than an SMS one-time passcode. TaxSlayer also uses a wide range of security-related technologies, including SSL encryption, firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and physical security to protect its data center.
Filing Your Taxes Online: What You Need to Know
How Does TaxSlayer Work?
All tax preparation websites work similarly. The differences lie primarily in the amount and quality of help you can get and the overall user experience. You create an account and either start providing personal information like your family’s Social Security numbers and birthdates or import key data from your previous return if you used TaxSlayer or a competitor last year.
The site interviews you like a live tax professional would, asking you questions about your tax-related income and expenses. It puts your answers (which you provide by clicking buttons, choosing from lists, entering data, or importing from financial institutions) on official IRS forms and schedules in the background. TaxSlayer allows you to select the tax situations, also called tax topics, that you want to visit, or you can have TaxSlayer walk you through the entire site and all the tax topics if you prefer, where it breaks out especially complicated topics.
When you’ve visited all the federal and state tax topics that pertain to you, TaxSlayer looks for errors and omissions and helps you print or file your return.
What Kind of Help Does TaxSlayer Offer?
TaxSlayer is a mixed bag where support is concerned and is not as advanced as TurboTax or H&R Block (but they’re almost twice as expensive). Its help volume is good, but the quality could improve. If you have a technical question about entering your tax data on the TaxSlayer, you can get support via chat, phone, or email. As mentioned, Premium and Self-Employed users can submit tax law questions to tax pros online for free.
Like any other online tax prep service, TaxSlayer has a searchable help database that shows you related forms and FAQs when you enter a word or phrase. It works alright most of the time, displaying multiple hits for keywords or phrases, but it often doesn’t prioritize the most common questions very well.
TaxSlayer’s help articles lay out the facts, but they read more like IRS instructions than plain language. TurboTax does a much better job of rewriting IRS instructions so you can understand them. TaxSlayer sometimes sends you to IRS pages—as does TaxAct. (This is not ideal, as one of the most compelling reasons to use tax software is to avoid having to read those very pages.) Furthermore, TaxSlayer doesn’t hyperlink many terms or provide much explanatory text as it introduces new topics as much as sites like TurboTax do. Its help would be more effective if it did more of this.
Overall, TaxSlayer’s online help is good if you have some knowledge of taxes, but you might need more for complex tax situations like self-employment or investment sales.
How Does TaxSlayer Deal With Self-Employment?
TaxSlayer has pages for entering information from 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC forms, which many self-employed individuals receive. But it’s the voluminous questions in Schedule C that take some time and knowledge. Even if you don't make much money from a side gig, if you want to claim expenses to offset your income, you need to complete this form. (It also helps you get the biggest refund possible if you're owed one.)
TaxSlayer is comprehensive where self-employment is concerned. It breaks out the related topics self-employed individuals might need to complete, like income and general expenses, vehicle expenses, and business use of your home. The Q&As here are thorough, and some online help is provided, though more would be welcome.
TaxSlayer also has a Schedule C Guide, which walks you through many related topics. It could be helpful if you're newly self-employed since you might not know all the types of income you must claim or what expenses you can deduct. But it doesn’t walk you through all the income possibilities (some are entered separately), and help within the Q&A could be better in this area, especially on the business expenses page (though I found keyword searches to be helpful here).
Does TaxSlayer Check Your Return?
TaxSlayer gives you a great wrap-up of your return. Besides checking for errors and helping you fix them, it shows you a comprehensive list of tax topics along with your total for each. Many of those line items are interactive, so you can click them and go directly to the related page on the site if you need to make changes or want to review the details. This is a great tool that I haven’t seen duplicated elsewhere. TaxAct has one of the best reviews I've seen in terms of finding errors and possible missed deductions.
Payments to the IRS and state departments of revenue can be made through TaxSlayer at the end of e-filing using electronic withdrawal, credit card, or you can send a check. TaxSlayer also lets you file now and schedule your payment for a later date (up until the tax filing deadline). You can also pay the IRS directly by credit/debit card or bank account at the Direct Pay site.
Can You Do Your Taxes on Your Phone With TaxSlayer?
TaxSlayer’s mobile apps for Android and iOS are comprehensive and easy to use. That is, you can do everything in the app you can do in the browser-based version. All forms and schedules are supported, so you can complete even a complex return on your phone, including all self-employment topics. The apps look and work like the browser-based version, down to the help links and the searchable database. Like every online tax service, TaxSlayer lets you start your return on one device and switch to another by logging in.
Good for the Self-Employed
TaxSlayer’s comprehensive coverage of tax situations starts at the Classic level, as mentioned, so it can be a good option for the self-employed on a budget. The best services cost more unless you go with Editors’ Choice winner FreeTaxUSA, which is surprisingly good for a free product. Our other Editors’ Choice winners are TurboTax, which gives you the best overall experience filing your taxes, and H&R Block, which has outstanding 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.
TaxSlayer is a well-priced online tax preparation service that gets better each year. It gives you a unique wrap-up of your return before you file that not only finds errors but also shows you exactly how much money you owe or are due for each tax topic in your filing.
Like What You're Reading?
Sign up for Lab Report to get the latest reviews and top product advice delivered right to your inbox.
This newsletter may contain advertising, deals, or affiliate links. Subscribing to a newsletter indicates your consent to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe from the newsletters at any time.
Thanks for signing up!
Your subscription has been confirmed. Keep an eye on your inbox!
Sign up for other newsletters
