eSmartTax Review

Good

Great on-screen guides and help text.

Bad

Less options overall compared to more expensive tax preparation software available. Some user interface issues persist.

Overall

With free option for simple tax returns and mid-range pricing structure for paid versions eSmartTax can be a really easy and affordable solution for anyone who need help with tax filling.

Editor's Ratings

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Introduction

eSmart Tax is the new name of CompleteTax, and it is backed up by a parent company CCH which has been in business since 1913 "C as long as the tax code has existed. That is quite impressive, and over that time they have built up a great deal of knowledge and resources for tax filers, which has now been extended further into online tax filers too where their expertise continues to grow.

Features

Due to the parent company's extensive background in all matters of taxation, the on-screen guides in eSmart Tax are extremely informative while also having been written to be understood by the the average tax filer who is not well versed in tax law. People who have been working with taxes for a long time tend to use a lot of jargon that most people don't understand, but here eSmart does a good job of breaking down each piece of required information into understandable chunks and providing other help to assist users still further.

User Interface

While it does a good job of providing help and useful guides throughout the tax form preparation process, the user interface is definitely not the best to have been seen on a tax preparation software, and that's putting it politely. For an example, when reviewing your prepared taxes for errors it is sometimes difficult to locate exactly where the reported errors are coming from, which can make it extremely challenging to fix these errors when they do occur. When you get stuck and are unable to fix the errors, you are then unable to complete your tax return in order to file it. Help is available, but it is always nice to be able to fix these things personally without relying on assistance.

Flexibility

eSmart Tax lets you skip around to the various sections of the software as you wish, such as deductions, personal, employment, etc., so you're not stuck filling out forms in a linear path. It is easier to miss parts if you skip back and forth though. The software will check for missing or invalid entries towards the end, but it doesn't hurt to double-check as you go.

Guides and OnScreen Help

The vast set of guides and onscreen help available in this software are probably the best part of eSmart Tax, so if you're a beginner and your tax situation isn't anything out of the ordinary then this might be good for you. If you know a bit more about tax already, or have complicated taxes, then you may need to look elsewhere for more options at a higher price.

Overall

With an impressive reputation and a long history in the business, eSmart Tax manages to combine high detail with low price. It may fall short in some areas of the user interface but you may find that the knowledge in the guides and help text makes up for it.

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