What Is The Best Tax Software For Small Businesses?

The law mandates that small business owners prepare correct annual tax returns. The National Society of Accountants estimates that the average cost to prepare taxes for a small business is between $184 and $826 annually for a Schedule C and a corporation.

While having an accountant handle your taxes may give you peace of mind, you can frequently save money by completing them yourself using small business accounting software.

The user experience and features of tax software packages can differ greatly, but the majority of them offer identical assurances for accuracy and a maximum refund. We evaluated 10 different software solutions based on product features, the convenience of use, accuracy, and other factors in order to choose the best tax software for small businesses. 

Here are the top tax software options for you if you need to file taxes for a small business this year. 

Overall best: H&R Block

Because it is a well-known company in tax preparation and because its tax software for small businesses and business owners provides an outstanding user experience and covers a wide range of tax scenarios, we selected H&R Block as the best overall option. It provides a simple user interface that makes it simple to complete your taxes correctly the first time.

Pros

• Self-employment and small company revenue are included in the online version of your personal tax returns.
• Possibility of upgrading to receive expert tax advice on demand
• You can follow the status of your tax file and add documents using a mobile app.

Cons

• Business editions cost more than equivalent competitors.
• On mobile, certain features might not be available.

Best for corporations and partnerships: TaxAct

TaxAct is our top pick for partnerships and corporations because it offers the ability to do partnership and corporate tax files entirely online and is the only location where you can prepare partnership or S corporation taxes online using either a PC or Mac.

Pros

• Federal and state taxes for partnerships, C-corporations, and S-corporations are entirely online.
• Unlimited free technical support through phone and email as well as tax experts’ assistance
• Select between versions available for download and online.
• discounts are offered when personal and business taxes are combined.

Cons 

• Fewer options available for audit support
• There may not be an electronic filing option for state forms.
• The version available for download only on Windows

Best for Self-employed: TaxSlayer

Because of its affordable pricing and well-regarded online user experience, TaxSlayer is ranked as the best option for self-employed tax filers who earn via a 1099 and must complete a Schedule C.

Pros

• Comparing federal tax return prices to those of larger competitors
• Access to a tax expert is included in the self-employed edition.
• Support is provided by phone, email, and chat.
• For families of active-duty military personnel, all federal filings are free.

Cons

• There is no download available.
• Forms 1065, 1120, or 1120S for partnerships and companies are not supported.

Best Virtual Assistant: TurboTax

TurboTax, a market leader, is our choice for the best virtual assistance since it offers the opportunity to receive on-demand advice from a tax expert at home and offers strong technical support for its online and downloadable solutions.

Pros 

• The downloadable version includes self-employed small businesses as well
• An upgrade to the online version’s user-friendly CPA or EA Online interface for live help is available.

Cons

• More pricey than some comparable tax software; only the desktop version for Windows is available for 1065 and 1120S forms.
• A little extra tax assistance without purchasing TurboTax Live

Best Value: FreeTaxUSA

The best option in our review for low cost is FreeTaxUSA because of its incredibly low price, which starts at $0 for federal returns and $14.99 for state taxes that include self-employment income.

Pros

• Federal filing for business taxes reported on Schedule C is free, while state filing is inexpensive.
• Priority assistance and live chat are included in the inexpensive Deluxe Edition upgrade.
• Deluxe Edition includes unlimited amendments and audit support.

Cons

• There is no download available.
• a less solid level of support with the free basic edition

If you are interested in more articles like this, here’s one about the advantages of software as a service.