How to File Your Taxes for Free
Using a professional tax preparation and filing service.
Hiring a CPA or tax preparation service to file your taxes for you can get quite expensive. Unfortunately, trying to (accurately) fill out all of those complex IRS forms and calculate your refund on your own can be challenging and time-consuming.
However, if your taxes are fairly straight forward (you are a W-2 employee who doesn’t take a lot of deductions) AND you have a low-to-moderate income, you can actually file your taxes for free using a partnership between the IRS and one of eight approved free file online providers.
Here are the eight free file online providers that the IRS has partnered with for the 2021 tax filing season.
- IRS Free File Program delivered by ezTaxReturn.com
Eligibility Requirements: AGI under $73,000 — and you MUST live in one of the following states: AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, GA, IL, LA, MA, MD, MI, MO, MS, NC, NJ, NY, OH, PA, SC, VA, WI.
EITC (Earned Income Tax Credit) calculations included for eligible filers.
No free state preparation or filing options available.
2. IRS Free File Program delivered by TaxAct
Eligibility Requirements: AGI less than $65,000 — and you must be 56 or younger.
EITC calculations included for eligible filers.
Some free state preparation and filing options available.
3. IRS Free File Program delivered by 1040Now.Net
Eligibility Requirements: AGI of less than $73,000 — and you must NOT live in any of the following states: AK, FL, IN, NH, NV, TX, WA or WY.
EITC calculations included for eligible filers.
No free state preparation or filing options available.
4. IRS Free File Program delivered by TaxSlayer
Eligibility Requirements: AGI under $39,000.
EITC calculations included for eligible filers.
Some free state preparation and filing options available.
5. IRS Free File Program delivered by FreeTaxUSA
Eligibility Requirements: AGI less than $41,000.
EITC calculations included for eligible filers.
Free state preparation and filing if you qualify to file a free federal return.
6. IRS Free File Program delivered by FileYourTaxes.com
Eligibility Requirements: AGI falls between $9,500 and $73,000.
EITC calculations included for eligible filers.
Some free state preparation and filing options available.
7. IRS Free File Program delivered by Online Taxes at OLT.com
Eligibility Requirements: AGI falls between $16,000 and $73,000.
EITC calculations included for eligible filers.
Free state preparation and filing if you qualify to file a free federal return.
8. IRS Free File Program delivered by Free 1040 Tax Return
Eligibility Requirements: AGI under $73,000 — and you must not live in any of the following states: AL, DC, FL, IN, MT, NM, NV, SD, TN, TX, WA, WI, WV or WY.
EITC calculations included for eligible filers.
No free state preparation or filing options available.
