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2018 tax software survey: Individual product survey responses

By Paul Bonner

Please note: This item is from our archives and was published in 2018. It is provided for historical reference. The content may be out of date and links may no longer function.

2018 tax software survey
Image by hunkmax/iStock

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In this year’s survey by the JofA and The Tax Adviser, 3,583 CPAs assessed the software they used to prepare 2017 tax returns for a fee. The survey was conducted in May 2018. Overall, respondents rated their software an average of 4.4 out of 5. Users of three products, Lacerte, CCH ProSystem fx, and UltraTax CS, formed a majority of respondents. Their share of respondents, in total and by firm size, are shown below with others of the 13 products the survey asked about. Additional survey analysis, including charts of major likes and dislikes of users of the top seven products, are available in the August 2018 issue of The Tax Adviser.

What tax preparation software did you predominantly use to prepare 2017 tax returns for clients?

tss-product


Market share among firms with five or fewer preparers

tss-product-5-fewer


Market share among firms with six or more preparers

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Individual major product survey responses

Detailed survey responses for each product may be obtained by clicking on the product headings below. Contact information, basic packages and their features are shown below for selected products. More detailed product information is available at the software vendors’ websites at the addresses shown.

ATX

  • Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting
  • Packages: 1040 (individual returns, includes three states, 75 e-filed returns); 1040 Office (preceding features, plus all states, efiling included, tax research);  MAX (preceding features, plus federal and state business returns, sales and use forms, payroll compliance reporting, unlimited e-file returns); Total Tax Office (preceding features, plus integrated document management and expanded research capabilities); ATX Advantage (preceding features, plus six concurrent user licenses, enhanced asset management, practice management integration).
  • Per-return pricing available: Yes
  • Integrated tax research available: Yes
  • Integrated accounting software available: Yes

CCH Axcess Tax

  • Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting
  • Packages: Multiple bundles, with cloud-based suite modules including practice management, document management, project management, and client portal.
  • Per-return pricing available: Yes
  • Integrated tax research available: Yes
  • Integrated accounting software available: Yes

CCH ProSystem fx

  • Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting
  • Packages: Multiple bundles based on firm needs
  • Per-return pricing available: Yes
  • Integrated tax research available: Yes
  • Integrated accounting software available: Yes

Drake

  • Drake Software
  • Packages: DrakeZero (for standalone sites), Web1040 (for multiple sites)
  • Per-return pricing available: Yes
  • Integrated tax research available: Yes
  • Integrated accounting software available: Yes

Lacerte

  • Intuit Inc.
  • Packages: Lacerte Unlimited, Lacerte 200, Lacerte Pay-Per-Return (Fast Path)
  • Per-return pricing available: Yes
  • Integrated tax research available: No
  • Integrated accounting software available: Yes

ProSeries

  • Intuit Inc.
  • Packages: Basic (50 1040 returns + two states; Unlimited 1040 returns + four states;  Professional: Pay Per Return, Choice 200, 1040 Complete, PowerTax Library
  • Per-return pricing available: Yes
  • Integrated tax research available: No
  • Integrates with accounting software: Yes

UltraTax CS

  • Thomson Reuters
  • Packages: CS Professional Suite
  • Per-return pricing available: Yes
  • Integrated tax research available: Yes
  • Integrated accounting software available: Yes