Cash App Taxes Prep Review 2023
A Totally Free Tax Service

We all dread having to prepare our tax returns. The process is doable, but it can be tedious to sort through your papers and read all the instructions on the forms. And if you have a complicated situation, it can get confusing to make sure you’ve done all the right things when filing. Cash App Taxes aims to reduce the issues surrounding tax preparation… for free.
That’s right: Free tax preparation. Here’s what you need to know.
Cost - 10
Customer Service - 7
Ease of Use - 9
Tools & Resources - 9.5
Previous Year Importing - 10
Mobile App Usability - 9
What Is Cash App Taxes?
Many of us know Cash App for its peer-to-peer payment products, including the ability to send and receive money in an instant, buy crypto and invest in stocks. However, since it acquired Cred Karma, it also offers other services, including tax preparation—it’s now the fifth-largest tax preparer in the United States.
Cash App Taxes makes it easy to get started. You answer a few questions about your situation, and the app helps you figure out your filing status and decides which approach to take for your taxes. With tips available in each section to help you understand what’s going on, you can be reasonably sure that you’re on the right track with your tax preparation.
You can also prepare your state tax return using Cash App Taxes for free. This can be helpful since many other tax preparation providers charge extra to make your state return.
>>Further Reading: Credit Score Monitoring Sites
Who Is Cash App Taxes Good For?
Cash App Taxes tax preparation is ideal for those who want to quickly and easily complete and file their tax returns. It works well for those who have fairly straightforward situations involving W-2 and 1099 forms, as well as fairly standard deductions. For most tax situations, Cash App Taxes works well, and it’s a bonus that the service is free of charge.
Those with extremely complicated tax situations—such as those who have lived in multiple states during the tax year, have foreign income, or have income to report from trusts—won’t be able to use Cash App Taxes effectively.
For filers who want more attention or who prefer to use software offered by dedicated tax professionals, TurboTax, TaxAct, TaxSlayer, and H&R Block could be better choices. Additionally, if you want a more personal touch — or if you’re concerned about a complicated tax situation — hiring an independent tax professional or CPA could be a better choice.
Carefully consider your tax situation and what is likely to work best for you before deciding on using Cash App's tax preparation service.
Cash App Taxes Prep Features
Free Version For simple tax returns only | |
Import Function | |
Small Business Features | |
Investor Features | |
Audit Assistance Included | |
Refund Tracking | |
Accuracy Guarantee | Reimbursement up to $1,000 via gift cards |
Filing Support | Online help center, Email |
- Jumpstart — Skip onboarding steps by importing previous tax information. Cash App Taxes is compatible with TaxAct, H&R Block, and TurboTax, so you can just import your 1040 from those software applications to pre-populate your current tax return.
- Mobile Filing — It’s possible to complete your entire tax return using a mobile device. You can use your phone’s camera to snap pictures of essential documents, and everything can be handled in the palm of your hand.
- Tax Return Review — When you finish, Cash App Taxes will automatically send you back to sections you didn’t fill out properly or that present red flags. Cash App Taxes checks and re-checks the return before it’s filed, reducing the chances that you’ll end up with mistakes.
Cash App Taxes Plans and Pricing
Using Cash App's tax preparation service is entirely free. You do have to sign up for an account, but you don’t have to provide a credit card to do so. You will be subject to credit card, loan, and other offers (Cash App Taxes makes money off these referrals), but you don’t have to pay anything upfront.
Even the audit defense is free. You’ll be given a voucher code to use when you contact the third-party audit defense company. The voucher provides free access to the services.
Tax Refund Options
You can receive your tax refund in these ways:
- Direct deposit
- Paper check
- Prepaid American Express Serve Card
How to Sign Up
In order to access the tax preparation service, you need to be a Cash App member. Signing up is fairly straightforward. Using your email address as your sign-in, you’ll set up a password and then provide other information, including:
- Name
- Address
- Birthdate
- Last four digits of your Social Security number
You’ll also have to answer questions about loans or other items in order to confirm your identity. Once you have an account, you can start the process of filing your tax return by choosing the “Tax” option on the navigation menu.
Synchronization
While you don’t sync your bank accounts, it is possible to pull information into your tax form using other software. TurboTax, TaxAct, and H&R Block forms can be captured and the information imported into Cash App Taxes. Additionally, you can import salary information from ADP and Experian using an employer identification number.
You can provide your bank information on the tax form so that your tax refund is deposited directly into your account if that’s how you prefer to receive it.
Cash App Taxes Pros and Cons
pros
cons
Mobile Accessibility
It’s possible to complete the entire tax filing process using a dedicated mobile device.
Customer Service
Cash App Taxes has an online help center, including a section devoted to tax preparation. It’s searchable and can help you answer questions about the process. You can also get member support through email. Unfortunately, Cash App Taxes doesn’t offer phone support, so you need to be prepared to manage questions through email. Additionally, note that you might not get as much tax help as you would with a company that’s completely devoted to tax prep.
For those age 70 1/2 that take advntage of the opportunity to make Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCD) from their IRA, don’t use Credit Karma. Nowhere in their software is the ability to show this, Not only that, when I requested help, they had no one that knew what a QCD was. This fundamental tax law and shows a definite lack of knowledge on their part.
I have filled my taxes with credit karma the last three years. They are terrific! The process is so easy and quick. Also, it is really nice that everything is free. I do some small, fun investments with Robinhood and so I have small capital gains and losses. Turbo Tax and H&R block want to charge me like $40- $60 to file my taxes with them just because of $1,000 dollars in capital gains or loss. Credit Karma does this for free and they even import your W-2 so its less manually work. My Taxes have always been accepted within a day of submitting by the IRS and State. I am so thankful for Credit Karma and would highly recommend them!
I filed my taxes with credit karma and two days later they still have not been accepted by the IRS. Normally they are accepted within minutes, certainly within 24 hours. I would never use credit karma again. In the public forum on credit karma’s website you will see many other people are having the same issue.