Visibility in this ranking can be paid for. Payment gives a vendor more visibility, higher up on the review pages; it never adds a vendor, and it never changes a word of the review. The largest vendors in tax preparation software
cannot hold places 1 to 3. Places 1 to 3 go to challengers, vendors outside the best-known brands in a category,
wherever the category has them; the established names follow from place 4 in their ranked order. How it works: placement disclosure ·
editorial process.
The 12 tools, reviewed
#1 Wealthsimple Tax
Pay-what-you-want Canadian tax filing · Canada · wealthsimple.com
Canada Pay what you want NETFILE
Wealthsimple Tax asks the filer to name a price for Basic, zero included, and the tier still handles employment, investment and self-employed income plus medical, donation and childcare claims. The CRA and Revenu Quebec list it as NETFILE certified for 2023 to 2025, and Basic and Plus can be used in French and in Quebec.
- Pricing: Pay what you want / tiered. Basic is pay what you want including $0, Plus is $40 plus tax and Pro is $80 plus tax, per the 2025 tax year page. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Canadian filers with ordinary income
- Strengths: NETFILE certification; Employment income; Investment income.
Where it falls short
The returns-per-account allowance is low on Basic (two returns on the 2025 page), so a family filing for parents needs Plus or Pro. Pro is English only and not offered to Quebec residents.
Wrong for
Wrong for anyone outside Canada, and for filers who want the same person to prepare the return every year.
Visit Wealthsimple Tax →
#2 smartsteuer
Browser-based German income tax return, paid on submission · Germany · smartsteuer.de
Germany Pay on submission Browser
The smartsteuer model removes the usual fear of paying before you know the result: the return can be entered and previewed at no charge, and the €39.99 is due at submission. Its homepage lists income tax returns for the years 2022 to 2025, a separate product for the Grundsteuer declaration and, for self-employed users, VAT and trade tax returns.
- Pricing: Per return, on submission. €39.99 payable only when you submit; starting and testing are free, according to the homepage. Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: German employees and sole traders
- Strengths: Income tax return; Property tax return (Grundsteuer); VAT and trade tax for self-employed.
Where it falls short
The only price on the homepage is the single-return fee, and the page does not say how a second return or a late year is charged.
Wrong for
Wrong for filers outside Germany and for anyone who wants a tax advisor to sign off.
Visit smartsteuer →
#3 GoSimpleTax
UK Self Assessment for sole traders and landlords · United Kingdom · gosimpletax.com
UK Self Assessment Self-employed
GoSimpleTax is a Self Assessment tool built around the habit of recording income during the year rather than assembling it in January. The homepage describes a live view of income and expenses, automatic calculations and submission to HMRC, and the audience list is unusually wide: musicians, drivers, tutors, tradespeople, landlords and holiday-let owners, plus pensioners, directors and overseas taxpayers.
- Pricing: Per year. Plans start at £69.99 per year, with a free trial that needs no credit card. Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: UK self-employed and landlords
- Strengths: Self Assessment filing; Real-time income and expenses; Automatic tax calculation.
Where it falls short
An annual plan at £69.99 is a lot for a person who files one simple return, and the page points to a plan comparison without showing it.
Wrong for
Wrong for an employee whose only job is a P60 and a small tax code adjustment, who may not need Self Assessment at all.
Visit GoSimpleTax →
#4 TaxCalc
One-off UK Self Assessment software for families · United Kingdom · taxcalc.com
UK One-off purchase Multi-return
TaxCalc's personal line is priced like a product, not a subscription. TaxCalc 2026 Individual 6 costs £42.00, prepares up to six SA100 returns for you and your family for the 2025-26 tax year and includes non-resident and supplementary pages.
- Pricing: One-off per tax year. TaxCalc 2026 Individual 6 is £42.00 for up to six SA100 returns for 2025-26, with add-ons from £8.40. Free plan: none.
- Best for: UK families filing several returns
- Strengths: SA100 returns for up to six people; Non-resident pages; Trust and estate add-on (SA900).
Where it falls short
The homepage is aimed at accountancy practices, and personal products sit behind a separate shop page.
Wrong for
Wrong for self-employed people who want bookkeeping and tax in one place, who should look at GoSimpleTax.
Visit TaxCalc →
#5 Taxman
Local German tax return software with ELSTER filing · Germany · taxman.de
Germany Local data ELSTER
Taxman, sold under the Lexware brand, is for the German filer who prefers a program that keeps its files on the computer. The page lists an integrated checker, an ELSTER assistant for sending the return, dynamic filling help, an import assistant for the previous year's version and a receipt manager.
- Pricing: Per license. From €34.90 for a private single-workstation license that covers five tax returns. Free plan: none.
- Best for: German filers who want local data
- Strengths: Tax checker; ELSTER filing assistant; Dynamic filling help.
Where it falls short
The license is limited to one workstation, so moving between a laptop and a desktop needs care, and mobile use is not described.
Wrong for
Wrong for people who want to start on a phone and finish in a browser, who should try WISO Steuer or smartsteuer.
Visit Taxman →
#6 Taxfix
Phone-first tax return app with an expert tier · Germany · taxfix.de
Germany App-led Expert tier
Taxfix wraps the German return in a guided flow of roughly 70 questions on the Basic tier, with the wage statement photographed instead of typed.
- Pricing: Subscription, two tiers. Basic is free to see the estimated refund and from €39.99 as a subscription; Expert starts at €99.99. Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: Employees wanting a guided app
- Strengths: Guided questions (about 70 on Basic); Photographed wage statement; Refund estimate.
Where it falls short
The page does not say when payment is due, and a subscription label with a one-time need is easy to forget about.
Wrong for
Wrong for filers with many foreign income lines or a long business history, who may be better with a Steuerberater.
Visit Taxfix →
#7 UFile
Canadian tax filing with slip auto-fill · Canada · ufile.ca
Canada NETFILE Free eligibility
UFile pitches itself as the Canadian product with the most generous free filing, along with auto-fill of most CRA tax slips, NETFILE certification and support for self-employment, investment income, capital gains and rental properties. The homepage claims refunds in as few as 8 days and offers free telephone support. A French counterpart, ImpotExpert, is linked. Thomson Reuters Tax & Accounting publishes it.
- Pricing: Free tier, paid on terms not shown. The page advertises free filing and shows no price; the paid tier price could not be confirmed from the vendor page. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Canadians with slips and rentals
- Strengths: NETFILE certification; Auto-fill of CRA slips; Self-employment.
Where it falls short
The page lists no prices and does not explain who qualifies for the free filing, so the cost of a rental return cannot be known before you start. Supported provinces are not stated on the page.
Wrong for
Wrong for filers who want a visible flat price up front, who may prefer Wealthsimple Tax.
Visit UFile →
#8 Jackson Hewitt Online
US online tax filing with a flat headline price · United States · jacksonhewitt.com
US Flat headline price Tax office brand
Jackson Hewitt is a US tax-preparation brand, and its homepage sells online filing at $25, a figure that stands out next to the multi-tier ladders of TurboTax and TaxAct. The copyright line names Jackson Hewitt Inc., and a BBB link points to Jackson Hewitt Tax Services of America, Inc. in Jersey City.
- Pricing: Per return. The homepage says to file online for $25; tiers and state fees were not shown on the pages we could read. Free plan: none.
- Best for: US filers wanting a simple price
- Strengths: Online tax filing; Flat headline price; Linked online filing page.
Where it falls short
The $25 headline is a starting point and the page does not list what it includes: federal only, a state return or a particular income range.
Wrong for
Wrong for anyone who needs a full price table before choosing, and for filers outside the US.
Visit Jackson Hewitt Online →
#9 TaxAct
US federal ladder from $0 to $109.99 · United States · taxact.com
US Tiered Published prices
TaxAct's page reads like a menu. Free at $0 covers W-2, unemployment, student and Child Tax Credit situations; Deluxe at $59.99 adds home ownership, dependent care and HSA; Premier at $99.99 adds stock or crypto sales, home sales and rental income; Self-Employed at $109.99 adds contract and freelance income.
- Pricing: Per return, tiered. Free is $0, Deluxe $59.99, Premier $99.99 and Self-Employed $109.99 for federal, with state returns charged additionally. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: US filers with a mid-complexity return
- Strengths: Free tier for W-2 returns; Home and family (Deluxe); Investments and crypto (Premier).
Where it falls short
The state fee is not quantified on the page, so the true cost is unknown until checkout. The expert add-on appears at $45 in one section and $60 in the FAQ, an inconsistency we could not resolve.
Wrong for
Wrong for filers with several states to file or a complex business, where the per-state fee compounds.
Visit TaxAct →
#10 Cash App Taxes
Free US federal and state filing inside Cash App · United States · cash.app
US Free App-based
Cash App Taxes is the only product on the list whose page says federal and state returns are free for everyone, including filers with 1099 income, deductions, credits and stock or bitcoin sales.
- Pricing: Free. Free for federal and state returns, with no fee for deductions, credits, 1099 income or stock and bitcoin sales, per the vendor page. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Simple US returns, state included
- Strengths: Free federal return; Free state return; W-2 and 1099 income.
Where it falls short
You must install the Cash App and verify a phone number before filing, so the product is a doorway into a payments service.
Wrong for
Wrong for people who do not want a financial app on their phone, and for filers who want a licensed professional's review inside the product, who should price TurboTax Expert Assist or TaxAct Xpert Assist.
Visit Cash App Taxes →
#11 WISO Steuer
German tax software for browser, desktop and phone · Germany · buhl.de
Germany Multi-platform Buhl
WISO Steuer is the broadest of the German products: browser, Windows 10 or 11, macOS 12 or later, and apps for Google Play and the App Store, with work continuing across devices. The test version costs nothing and you pay when you submit.
- Pricing: Annual or single purchase. Test version at €0 with payment on submission, an annual subscription at €35.99 and a single purchase at €45.99. Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: German filers wanting every platform
- Strengths: Browser version; Windows program; macOS program.
Where it falls short
The page states that people with limited tax liability in Germany under section 1 paragraph 4 EStG cannot use it, which excludes some cross-border workers.
Wrong for
Wrong for filers who live or work across the border and fall under limited liability, and for anyone who wants a tax advisor involved. smartsteuer is a lighter browser product.
Visit WISO Steuer →
#12 TurboTax
US tax filing from free edition to full service · United States · turbotax.intuit.com
US Expert help Intuit
TurboTax is the most complete US product on the list. The page shows a Free Edition at $0 federal and $0 state for simple Form 1040 returns, a Do It Yourself range of $0 to $139, Expert Assist at $59 to $209 with unlimited on-demand help and a final review, and Expert Full Service from $129 for one W-2 and a 1040.
- Pricing: Per return, tiered. Do It Yourself $0 to $139 federal, Expert Assist $59 to $209, Expert Full Service from $129, state fees extra. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: US filers wanting expert help on tap
- Strengths: Free Edition; Do It Yourself tiers; Expert Assist.
Where it falls short
The ranges mean the price is known only at the end, and state fees are extra. The Free Edition excludes itemized deductions, unemployment income, self-employment, stock or crypto sales and rentals.
Wrong for
Wrong for filers with a straightforward return who resent paying for an upgrade at checkout, who should look at TaxAct or Cash App Taxes.
Visit TurboTax →
Questions and answers
What is the best tax preparation software in 2026?
Wealthsimple Tax ranks first of 12, best for canadian filers with ordinary income. smartsteuer is second (german employees and sole traders) and GoSimpleTax third (uK self-employed and landlords). Places 1 to 3 go to challengers, vendors outside the best-known brands, wherever the category has them.
Is free tax software really free?
Only for a narrow slice of filers. TaxAct's Free tier excludes investment income, home sales, rental property, business income and itemized deductions, and TurboTax's Free Edition leaves out stock or crypto sales, rental income and self-employment income.
Can I file taxes for another country with the same software?
Almost never. Each product is certified for one country's filing gateway: NETFILE in Canada, ELSTER or the Finanzamt in Germany, HMRC in the UK, the IRS in the US.
Do I need tax software if I only have one employer?
Often not for the calculation, but it still helps with the filing. In Germany, the standard employee return mostly exists to claim deductions, so software that asks about commuting, a home office and work equipment can raise a refund.
What does a human expert review actually include?
It varies, and the vendors say so on their own pages. TurboTax separates Expert Assist, with on-demand help and a final review, from Expert Full Service, where the return is prepared for you from $129.
How do I keep my return after I file?
Download the submitted PDF and the confirmation the same day, and save them to storage you control. Tax authorities keep their own records, but your own copy proves what you filed and gives you the figures for next year's carry-forwards.
Which tax software works for the self-employed?
It depends on the country. In the UK, GoSimpleTax lists sole traders, landlords, contractors and company directors as its audiences and shows income and expenses in real time.
Is it safe to give tax software my bank details and ID?
Treat it as you would any financial service. The tax return contains your identification number, income and bank account, so use a unique password and two-step sign-in where offered.
When does a tax software refund advance make sense?
Rarely, and only after you have read the terms.
Can I use last year's software for an old return?
Sometimes. TaxCalc sells separate yearly versions at £42.00 each, covering tax years back to 2019-20. smartsteuer lists income tax returns for 2022 through 2025, and Taxman's selector offers the same four years.
What should I do if my situation is too complex for tax software?
Use a licensed professional, and use the software afterwards as a filing and archive tool if the professional allows it.
