Start your tax filing online for free
TurboTax is a web app that allows U.S. wage earners fill out the proper fields to get their federal and state taxes filed.
A well-known name in online tax preparation, TurboTax lets you enter all of your basic tax information from your W-2 form online in preparation for federal filing. Similar to other online tax preparation services like TaxAct and H&R Block, TurboTax features all the tools you need to prepare your federal tax return.
There's also an option to fill out information for your state return after you're done with your federal one. Then you can choose to either e-file or print out the return and manually send it in.
Taxes can be complicated things, but TurboTax comes with a number of detailed tutorials, a FAQ section that changes depending on what part of the process you're on, and step-by-step directions for virtually any problem you might encounter.
While TurboTax lets you prepare different types of basic tax returns and includes a series of special tools to help you obtain the highest refund possible, there is a fee required to actually file. This applies to both federal and state returns separately, unfortunately. In addition, TurboTax only covers basic tax situations. If you did 1099 contract work or have other, more complicated forms to file, you'll either need to upgrade to TurboTax's Deluxe version or file that particular paperwork on your own.
For users who just have basic paperwork to file and want an easy interface on which to do it, give TurboTax a try.
