Reddit · r/tax · Mar 15, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit post
With W-2 and self-employment income, TurboTax was never actually free for seven years and the price became ridiculous, so they switched to FreeTaxUSA.
TurboTax Online Reviews
Tax software
Users value TurboTax Online for convenience, since it imports forms from banks and brokerages and handles quirky returns.
How the signal works
The signal score
A score out of 100 for how well reviewed a product is. It rises with positive reviews and with how many there are; negative and mixed reviews take points off.
So a handful of glowing reviews can’t beat a product lots of people like. No sponsored placements.
What people mention
Common concerns
Topics grouped from customer reviews, with how many mention each; read the originals below.
Real customer experiences (303)
Add your reviewShowing 105 reviews mentioning hidden fees Show all
Reddit · r/tax · Apr 9, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Declined every upgrade only to see Deluxe at the end; switching products returned it to free and they declined the paid fast-deposit options.
Reddit · r/personalfinance · Apr 7, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit post
A part-time student used TurboTax for years, but at the very end it demanded a Deluxe package with a large charge that would also be taken from the refund, with no way to back out.
Reddit · r/personalfinance · Apr 6, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Increasingly annoyed by TurboTax's business model, rising cost, backsliding quality, poor customer service and constant upselling.
Reddit · r/tax · Apr 1, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Told a small fee would be taken from the federal refund but a much larger amount was taken.
Reddit · r/tax · Mar 31, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
After eight years TurboTax moved them to an upgraded product they never selected, and refused to reimburse the difference.
Reddit · r/tax · Mar 21, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit post
Quoted $205 for federal and state on TurboTax's DIY Premium tier, versus a small fraction of that on FreeTaxUSA for the same return.
Reddit · r/tax · Mar 16, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Used TurboTax as in prior years but was charged about $100 in processing fees at the very end, which had not happened before and was not disclosed until filing was done.
Reddit · r/tax · Mar 16, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Used TurboTax for over a decade, always advertised as free yet never once able to file for free, and moved to FreeTaxUSA.
Reddit · r/tax · Mar 10, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
With a basic one-W-2 return and eight years with TurboTax, spent an hour and was then hit with a large bill and no free option.
Reddit · r/tax · Mar 9, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Their fee roughly doubled with the same tax scenario and no expert use, and customer service only offered a discount code.
Reddit · r/tax · Mar 7, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Third year with TurboTax was a disaster: glitches, shifting fee quotes, an overcharge that took weeks to refund, and experts giving conflicting answers.
Reddit · r/tax · Feb 27, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
TurboTax showed a discount for a low fee but the bill came to much more, and the refund request was denied after they paid.
Reddit · r/tax · Feb 25, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Thought they declined all the upgrade requests but TurboTax tricked them into paying an extra amount for federal; switching after many years.
Reddit · r/tax · Feb 18, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Says TurboTax charges for e-filing, direct deposit, federal and state, plus a new five-day-early deposit fee, ending with a large total.
Reddit · r/tax · Feb 17, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Long-time desktop TurboTax user could not run it without Windows 11, and TurboTax Online charged much more, so they moved to FreeTaxUSA.
Reddit · r/tax · Feb 13, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Feels price-gouged by TurboTax prices rising through the year after missing the sale.
Reddit · r/tax · Apr 19, 2025
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Says TurboTax makes the free option confusing so people accidentally pick the paid one, with no going back without a new account.
Reddit · r/tax · Apr 15, 2025
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
After ten years of filing free, TurboTax tried to charge a fee this year, offered only small voucher credits, and lost a long-time customer.
Reddit · r/personalfinance · Apr 8, 2025
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
TurboTax wanted a high price per family member; FreeTaxUSA was free in all those situations.
Reddit · r/personalfinance · Apr 5, 2025
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
A CPA says TurboTax wanted a fee for a Schedule D with a tiny loss and they never went back.
Reddit · r/personalfinance · Apr 5, 2025
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Paid extra for years for student loan forms that FreeTaxUSA said did not even affect their taxes.
Reddit · r/tax · Apr 1, 2025
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Found TurboTax had automatically applied a credit they did not qualify for, and that it would still have cost more than FreeTaxUSA after fees.
Reddit · r/personalfinance · Feb 28, 2025
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Dedicated TurboTax user for years, but this year it pushed Premier without reason and forced a data-sharing screen, so they mirrored with FreeTaxUSA and are leaving.
Reddit · r/personalfinance · Feb 27, 2025
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Everything was completed until the very end, then TurboTax demanded over a hundred to continue with no way out of premium.
Reddit · r/tax · Feb 24, 2025
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Used TaxAct and TurboTax free filing until they started charging for everything but the most basic return.
Reddit · r/tax · Feb 4, 2025
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Used TurboTax for four years with a simple return and felt it took far too much money, paying a hundred or two every year.
Reddit · r/tax · Jan 3, 2025
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
After 31 years, says TurboTax pricing is outrageous, the software gets worse every year, and it keeps pushing prompts to pay more.
Reddit · r/tax · Apr 28, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
TurboTax listed high filing fees plus extra fees to pay from the refund and for early deposit, totaling a very high price.
Reddit · r/tax · Apr 16, 2026
NegativeSummary of a Reddit comment
Thought they were in the free version but at the file step it was suddenly a high charge.
Common questions about TurboTax Online
What do customers say about TurboTax Online?
Users value TurboTax Online for convenience, since it imports forms from banks and brokerages and handles quirky returns. The main complaint is fees: many were pushed into paid tiers late in the process or hit an unclear extra charge for paying from the refund, and several left for free alternatives. A few got through free for years.
Is TurboTax Online worth it?
Of the 303 reviews with a clear verdict, 15% are positive, 4% mixed and 81% negative. The praise mentioned most is reliable. The most common complaint is hidden fees.
What do people like about TurboTax Online?
The praise reviewers mention most: reliable (10 reviews), helpful support (8 reviews) and easy to use (6 reviews). For example: Has used TurboTax since the mid-90s without problems, including 26 years of Home and Business for a sole proprietorship.
What are the most common complaints about TurboTax Online?
The complaints reviewers mention most: hidden fees (107 reviews), buggy app (77 reviews) and poor support (65 reviews). For example: TurboTax gave a smaller refund and wanted to charge on top; filing elsewhere gave about a hundred dollars more.
What does the signal score of 56 mean?
It's how well reviewed TurboTax Online is, out of 100. Negative and mixed reviews take points off, and so does having only a few reviews: a product needs plenty of them, compared with the most-reviewed products here, to reach the high 80s and 90s. It's worked out from reviews only, needs at least 5 of them, and updates as new ones come in.
What are the specs of TurboTax Online?
Category: Tax software. Type: Online tax software. Fees: Free Edition $0 federal + $0 state for simple Form 1040 returns only; paid editions for other returns.
Where do these TurboTax Online reviews come from?
303 are quotes from Reddit, each linked to the original. Customer reviews are checked for spam before they appear. Every review, written here or quoted, is read as positive, mixed or negative.