Welcome to my FreeTaxUSA Review for 2020!
FreeTaxUSA has been my go-to tax filing service for years. It is actually the only online platform I’ve ever used to file my taxes because it is so easy! I first found it when I was trying to do my taxes by myself in college and it was recommended by the IRS’s website.
Here is a quick review of why I use FreeTaxUSA and my experiences with this easy to use filing platform.
FreeTaxUSA is Recommended by the IRS
FreeTaxUSA is a part of the IRS’s Free File program. This means that they offer free state and federal filing if you hit certain income requirements. In my experience, even if you make more than these amounts you will likely be able to file your federal taxes for free.
Every year I save hundreds of dollars by filing my taxes myself, which is why I am excited to partner with FreeTaxUSA to save you money! I’ve always been able to qualify for free federal filing and have enjoyed how fast I get my refund back.
Online filers tend to get their refund back within 2 weeks. My refund has almost always gotten back to me within this time frame as well! And it is directly deposited into my bank account, which is always a nice thing to wake up to.
FreeTaxUSA Auto-fills Everything
Once you’ve used FreeTaxUSA once, you will never want to use another platform. That is because it auto-fills your information from last year! This means that you can file this year’s taxes in less than an hour unless you have significant changes to your tax situation.
They save more than just your name, address, and other basic information. FreeTaxUSA also saves your school forms (like your 1098-T/loan statements), workplaces, brokerage, etc.
This makes for even faster filing because you also remember that you have to find those forms! You are less likely to make a filing mistake because FreeTaxUSA reminds you of everything. And even if you haven’t used these forms in the past, they will double-check as you go through their refund maximizer tool.
FreeTaxUSA gives You Real-Time Updates on Your Expected Refund Amounts!
When you first log in and as you go through the refund process, the site clearly displays your expected federal AND state refund.
This is particularly useful if you are trying to increase your refund last minute by qualifying for deductions or credits. I always use this to see how my refund will change based on any additional IRA contributions I might try to make for last year.
If you are being really savvy, you can get your AGI low enough to qualify for the saver credit or some other income-based deductions.
If you are interested in saving more, I have an article on the Easiest Tax Credits and Deductions.
FreeTaxUSA Makes Filing Your State Taxes Easy
Every single year it takes me less than 30-minutes to file my state taxes with FreeTaxUSA. And I am the kind of person that triple and quadruple checks things! Once you’ve done your federal taxes, everything auto-fills for your state taxes.
So none of the 30-minutes I spend filing is even spent inputting information! It is all the time that I spend doublechecking things for no reason and running things through the refund optimizer.
One year I somehow qualified for California’s renter tax credit thanks to FreeTaxUSA! I didn’t even know what that was, but they helped me to receive an extra $60 back on my refund!
The One Downside to FreeTaxUSA
There is only one downer to FreeTaxUSA offering free federal filing. That is because they make most of their money off of filing state refunds. You will still save a ton of money because many platforms make federal filing so expensive. FreeTaxUSA is one of the most affordable options I’ve seen.
The good news is that if your AGI is below 36,000 in 2020, you likely qualify for frees state filing with FreeTaxUSA. The other good news is that it only costs $14.99 to file your state taxes with FreeTaxUSA. And they always have discounts! Their current discount makes it only $12.95 to file your state taxes!
They also have a nice little option that I found out about when I was a cheap college student. They allow you to defer receiving your state refund until next year! Since my state refund was only a couple hundred dollars one year, I decided to defer my refund until the next year.
At the time, I enjoyed this option because it was a bit like saving the money from myself. It also meant I could save some money by only paying to file my state taxes every other year.
FreeTaxUSA Review Summary
Overall, I love FreeTaxUSA. It is easy, it helps you find more credits/deductions and you get more refund back quickly. What more could you be looking for in tax software?
At almost no cost to you, you can get your state and federal taxes filed. And they are recommended by the IRS itself!
If you enjoyed this FreeTaxUSA Review and are interested in other ways to use your refunds responsibly, check out my article on 10 Resonsible Ways to Spend Your Tax Return.
Disclosures and Disclaimers: The above references an opinion and is for entertainment purposes only. It is not intended to be investment or insurance advice. Seek a duly licensed professional for your financial planning. Bear in mind that some of the links in this post are ads/affiliate links and if you go through them to make a purchase I will earn a commission (thanks!). Keep in mind that I link these companies and their products because of their quality and not because of the commission I receive from your purchases. The decision is yours, and whether or not you decide to buy something is completely up to you.
Kathryn Rucker is a sales consultant and content writer. With 7+ years of sales experience, she is passionate about helping businesses and individuals grow their sales pipelines by improving their online presence.
She has been traveling full-time since 2018 thanks to the location and financial independence she has gained from her business, Kat Rucker Consulting Group. You can connect with her on LinkedIn.
Kathryn Rucker is a sales consultant and content writer. With 7+ years of sales experience, she is passionate about helping businesses and individuals grow their sales pipelines by improving their online presence.
She has been traveling full-time since 2018 thanks to the location and financial independence she has gained from her business, Kat Rucker Consulting Group. You can connect with her on LinkedIn.
