Canopy
Cloud practice management for accounting firms with client management, document management, workflow, time and billing modules.
TurboTax
Website: turbotax.intuit.com
TurboTax at a glance
- Best for
- Self-filing individuals, not professional preparation
- Pricing model
- Per return, tiered by complexity
- Deployment
- Cloud and desktop editions
- Regions
- United States
- Key integrations
- QuickBooks Self-Employed, Payroll and brokerage data import
Last reviewed . Pricing and features change frequently — confirm current details with the vendor.
TurboTax is Intuit’s consumer tax preparation software for individuals and small business owners, using a guided interview format with automatic import from W-2s, 1099s, and financial institutions.
How accounting firms use it
It is not a professional tool and cannot be used to prepare client returns for a fee — Intuit’s terms restrict it to self-preparation, and it lacks the preparer identification and e-file provider functionality the IRS requires of paid preparers.
It appears in a firm context as a referral destination. Practices with limited capacity direct genuinely simple clients — a single W-2, standard deduction, no other activity — to self-file, reserving staff time for engagements where professional judgement is worth the fee. Done deliberately, this is capacity management rather than turning work away; the returns involved rarely cover their own administrative cost.
Key features
Individual returns are covered across tiers reflecting complexity, from simple W-2 filings through investment income and self-employment. Data import pulls W-2 and 1099 information from participating employers and financial institutions.
Guided interviews walk users through the return with error checking and audit risk flagging. Live assisted and full-service options connect users to a tax professional, which competes directly with the lower end of the professional market.
TurboTax Business covers partnership, corporate, estate, and trust returns as a separate desktop product, again aimed at self-preparers.
Who it’s best for
Individuals with straightforward returns preparing their own filings. For firms, it is a referral option rather than software they operate.
Firms preparing returns for clients use Intuit’s professional range — Lacerte, ProSeries, or ProConnect Tax Online — or competing products such as Drake Tax and UltraTax CS.
TurboTax FAQ
- Can accountants use TurboTax to prepare client returns?
- No. Intuit's licence terms restrict it to self-preparation, and it has no Preparer Tax Identification Number handling or e-file provider functionality. Paid preparers must use professional software — Lacerte, ProSeries, or ProConnect Tax Online within Intuit's range — which carries the preparer credentials the IRS requires.
- Why would a firm recommend it to a client?
- Capacity management. A client with a single W-2 and the standard deduction generates little fee but consumes onboarding, document collection, and review time. Directing those clients to self-file frees capacity for engagements where the firm's expertise is actually worth paying for, and avoids a relationship where the fee barely covers the work.
- What is TurboTax Business?
- A separate desktop product for partnership, corporate, S corporation, estate, and trust returns, distinct from the individual editions. It is still aimed at business owners preparing their own returns rather than at practitioners, and firms should not treat it as a professional alternative.
- When should a client stop self-filing?
- Typically at the first genuine complexity: rental property, self-employment with meaningful deductions, equity compensation, multi-state income, a business entity, or any life event with planning consequences. The risk of self-filing is rarely arithmetic — it is not knowing which questions should have been asked.
TurboTax Alternatives
Other tax tools for accounting firms, ordered by how much of TurboTax's functionality they cover.
ATX Professional
Forms-based tax preparation software from Wolters Kluwer for small US firms, with a large form library and straightforward e-filing.
Avalara
Automated sales tax compliance platform that calculates, collects, and remits transaction taxes for accounting firms.
CCH Axcess Tax
Wolters Kluwer's cloud-based tax preparation platform for accounting firms with real-time collaboration and analytics dashboards.
CCH ProSystem fx Tax
Comprehensive tax preparation and compliance solution helping accounting firms efficiently prepare and file accurate returns.
CrossLink Professional Tax
Professional tax software with high-speed e-filing, bank product integrations, and multi-office support for tax businesses.