Entered CNET Catalog: 12/07/2003
SKU: 280735
Manufacturer: Intuit Inc.
Manufacturer description
TurboTax Deluxe software guides you through your return step-by-step with more money-saving advice, improved help and tips. It includes everything in TurboTax Basic, plus official IRS publications, expert video tax advice, a complete tax handbook, and more. TurboTax Deluxe software: shows how changing tax laws will affect your taxes; reveals how major life changes can impact your tax situation; provides expert advice on minimizing and/or avoiding Alternative Minimum Tax; plans what-if scenarios and offers strategies for optimizing your tax situation in the future; prints out an action plan of tips and ways to save next year.User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77
User Rating: 
4/10
Last minute buyers beware.
Pros: relatively easy to use.
Cons: Be prepared to pay for everything: I paid a total of $150 with the basic version after the state and e-filing fees. Everything is extra, and you don't find out until you've committed to it.
User Rating: 
6/10
Buggy software, support SNAFUs
Pros: Easy to use. Better than doing by hand.
Cons: Bought the software straight from Turbotax. Ran into problems with the Update function and with e-filing. Remained stuck in update mode because of a program bug. Couldn't e-file because of another program bug. Waited to talk to someone via chat for 20
User Rating: 4/10
Check your state return manually
Pros: I have been using the product for the past few years and never have had a problem.
Cons: However, 2003 NYS tax rate was not coded correctly and the software indicated that I owe 2K in tax but I calculated that I should be entitled to 2K refund using the tax rate table! All NYS users beware of this bug!!! Now I'm waiting for them to fix the b
User Rating: 
7/10
Good Production, Lousy Support
Pros: Interview format is very helpful. Handles complex situations. Excellent feedback on most choices you make.
Cons: Terrible support through "Chat" IMs. It appears they use some kind of "bot", because its hard to believe any human could be that clueless and still get paid. For simple questions that should have been handled in their product interface or at least their
User Rating: 7/10
Great for average returns.
Pros: Clearly defined and supported inquiries for the most part. Navigation easy. Data import from prior years and other programs is a real timesaver!
Cons: K-1 and Schedule E entries are a bear especially if you plan electronic filing. Marketing efforts to trap folks into automatic renewal is worthy of used car sales tricks. Intuit should be more professional than that.
User Rating: 
8/10
Did what is was supposed to do.
Pros: No real complaints. Updates came thru quickly. Instructions re the font problem solved it. Did not have to try customer service.
Cons: Got into a loop over 2002 payment of additional state tax. Pulled up info OK, but wouldn't let me get past it, even when info was correct.
User Rating: 4/10
Waste of time, can't even print the filing forms.
Pros: I've used TTax for several years now and they have generally been fast and efficient.
Cons: This year's version was a struggle. It took over half an hour to download upgrades and about the same for the state. I sold a rental property and somehow missed entering in 1098 information. When I realized the form was not properly filled in, I spent
User Rating: 8/10
Will use it from now own.
Pros: Very thorough. Loved how it brought my info from 2002 to 2003 without having to re-enter it all.
Cons: Just take your time & get to know it & what it does, & it will be as easy as getting a drink of water.
User Rating: 6/10
Excellent except for support
Pros: 1st time user. I was very pleased with the ease of using the system.
Cons: Tedious job of listing all donations out. Trying to get the advertised "rebate" offers is nothing short of an "ironman" contest. No help from the on-line support other than to give out the 800 number. SAD.
User Rating: 
2/10
Why pay for tech support, when problem is due to TurboTax?
Pros: Carry over from one year to the next is nice.
Cons: I get an error message requiring me to update a specific form. The update doesn't download that form but continues to indicate an error. I've use TT the last time of five times.
User Rating: 
1/10
Good luck getting support
Pros: Somewhat easy menues.
Cons: could not print due to font error. No support from website, $19.95 to call for help. Last year I will use turbotax
User Rating: 
3/10
Good product gone bad
Pros: Eventually gets your taxes done
Cons: After last years registration fiasco, now there are problems with it not filling form correctly, it had trouble allowing you to do "what if" situations (it makes it very hard to go back and keep changing what you are evaluating), and printing is a nightma
User Rating: 8/10
been using it for years
Pros: effiecient effective and thorough
Cons: prior versions were better at directing to fed guidelines. also, becoming too user friendly at expense of flexability
User Rating: 8/10
Great product if you dont have to use tech help.
Pros: Easy and fun to use. Have used this product for years.
Cons: If problem with turbo tax comes up, tech help is horrible!!! May have to use several techs before getting one that can solve! Prepare to spend hours on a problem that should be fixed in 10 minutes.
User Rating: 8/10
10 years and no regrets
Pros: I've been using TurboTax for 10 years now and can't imagine using anything else. I've seen the others but have not been convinced to change yet.
Cons: User interface is getting out of date and should be updated
User Rating: 4/10
Pathetic Customer Service
Pros: If it works, it is great.
Cons: My girlfriend was charged $5.95 to electronically file her state tax return but Turbo Tax did not file the return. The chat-style service guy repeatedly asked questions she just answered. It cost $19.95 to talk to someone. She is contesting the charge wit
User Rating: 1/10
Fisrt time user, worked great!
Pros: Walked me through from start to end. Have had "life changing events" this year and found the software user friendly in that respect. Quick and thorough. Will recommend.
Cons:
User Rating: 3/10
Fair to good on ease of use Terrible support
Pros: Instructions easy to follow..if everything works.
Cons: Fonts didn't load. Took hours to correct. Forget tech support..They know less than you and take forever to impart their lack of knowledge to you.
User Rating: 4/10
Dont use this if you want to e-file
Pros: smooth and easy a child could file with it
Cons: to many bugs could'nt update needed files and could not e-file TRANSMISSION FAILURES finally got the bugs worked out but not from any help from intuit tech support does not even exhist as far as i'm concerned
User Rating: 3/10
20 minute wait for online chat from India!
Pros: decent price, but doesnt make up for below average product. I have used this product for past 5 years. No more.
Cons: I had an error and used the instant chat and 20 minutes later I was chatting with someone in India. Didnt solve the problem, but did convince me to buy Tax Cut or other next year.
User Rating: 3/10
Never received my rebate
Pros:
Cons: I mailed all the minutiae required for the rebate but received a form postcard claiming that required info was not sent. It was sent and I have copies to prove it. My attempts to follow-up were ignored. It's virtually impossible to communicate with Intuit
User Rating: 7/10
Less user friendly than previous years!
Pros:
Cons: Would not let me make changes to see how it affected my taxes or go right to the form and back to the interview
User Rating: 8/10
Efficient and easy!
Pros: I've used Turbo Tax for 3 years and I am so glad I don't have to file my taxes manually anymore. I file my taxes in about 2 hours and get my refund back in about 10 days.
Cons: This is the first year that I couldn't get any help. If I clicked on help, it didn't load anything. I just figured it was because I filed mine so early, but there were a few things I would have liked to have had clarified and I couldn't.
User Rating: 8/10
Try it! Good things far outweigh the bad.
Pros: Have used this for 7 years. CD broke trying to pull from mailing package, but Intuit replaced it within 10 days. Very thorough interview & attention to details. Prevented me from getting into trouble.
Cons: Chat help appeared to be understaffed (long wait)but very concerned that I was satisfied with their answers. Documentation on Health Care Tax Credit was weak and carry fwd of previous year amended return amounts was incorrect resulting in rejection by IRS
User Rating: 8/10
Easy to use, just follow prompts
Pros: Good interface to create return. Downloads data from last years returns and from bank and brokers. A real time saver. I will buy the 2004 version next year.
Cons: Moving around randomly within the program after you have filled out the forms a little clumsey.
User Rating: 
5/10
There is a *major* problem with the font installation.
Pros: I think overall the product does an excellent job in preparing basic tax returns and does it quite quickly.
Cons: There are two problems, by my experience with this package, and both critical. The font installation failed on my home computer, time after time, regardless of my having followed exactly their guide instructions on their help web site. I even temporaril
User Rating: 6/10
Mar 1st - still no final forms update
Pros: I've used TurboTax for 10 years. Each year it the program gets better.
Cons: but I've been waiting to file for over a month because they have not released the final state forms -- customer service? web support? forget it -- I've waited over forty minutes to get an online chat that ends with a promise that the update will be releas
User Rating: 2/10
Forms still not available/Lousy support
Pros: Easy to use.
Cons: Now closing in on the end of Feburary and there are still forms I need which are unavailable (Form 8814). Support has promised the update four times now and failed to deliver. I'll never go the Turbo Tax route again.
User Rating: 7/10
worked fine for me!
Pros: Considering what my tax guy has been charging me, it's well worth the cost! Everything installed (from CD), ran, updated, and printed with zero problems. Not sure why so many people seem to be having problems. My returns are pretty straightforward and the
Cons: Maybe I was missing something but I felt like it was a pain to navigate back and forth through the program if I wanted to skip back to an earlier section. I was able to download my W2 info without a problem. My wife's had to be entered manually and at fi
User Rating: 
9/10
reduce the agony, go turbo
Pros: I love turbo tax. I've used it for the past 5 years and I am not going back to "doing it by hand" until Uncle Sam pulls his head out and adopts a flat tax (just imagine a single calculation!!!). I also like the running total for the amount refunded/due
Cons:
User Rating: 8/10
Worked for me!
Pros: Used TurboTax Deluxe Online and I finished my taxes in record time.
Cons: I went through the program twice and thought I entered everything the same both times. Somehow the second try gave me a better refund -It made me wonder if there's a glitch somewhere that could have cost me (or gained) me some cash.
User Rating: 5/10
No Support But Add-On Cost
Pros: Great interface and easy of operation
Cons: total installed cost is high when you figuer approx $30 for the software and if you have a bug in the program like I did the help cost $20..That is 66% on top if they solve your problem. T.T downloads & updates gave my PC a real head ache with the fon
User Rating: 2/10
glaring errors in basic program
Pros: Almost all forms available
Cons: Program misses 2 very basic, elementary tax elements. The program completely forgot about the advance child tax credit from last summer. It also will allow the tax payer to take an interest exclusion for EE savings bonds used for higher education AND a
User Rating: 6/10
Reliable year after year
Pros: I've used Turbo Tax for five years. It carries forward information from the prior year eliminating redundant re-keying. Good tax prep software for uncomplicated taxes. Program loaded easily on Windows XP and State download installed without a hitch. You c
Cons: Difficult to go back to prior years to make adjustments. The manual interface could be simpler. Does not handle complex taxes very well, but then you probably should be using a tax professional anyway.
User Rating: 9/10
works well for me
Pros: easy to use. transfers data from 2002 great.
Cons: still does not work well for stock transactions. Have to manually enter some items.
User Rating: 
10/10
An awesome product-used for many years.
Pros: You don't have to use a preparer and it is also a tax deduction.
Cons: I have yet to have any problems with it of any kind.
User Rating: 4/10
Policies and support are horrible
Pros: Good for basic quick filings
Cons: They have become very greedy as a corporation and instead of providing an included online filing, they make it almost impossible to get a refund for the federal filing which they falsely say is included. Support for the rebates is next to worthless. Don
User Rating: 2/10
Back to TaxCut next year!
Pros: Nothing in particular
Cons: Terrible handling of Schedule C. I almost gave up & did it by hand. Took me forever to figure out how to go back and change entries. Also says it will download from last year's TaxCut but it didn't. Had to re-enter all basic info by hand. I've gon
User Rating: 9/10
Greatest product ever!
Pros: Free state tax and free electronic federal filing(after rebate) Even can have the $14.95 rebate check as a direct deposit. Very user friendly and found me over $600 in refunds that I would have missed.
Cons: No online support.
User Rating: 1/10
Got a higher return
Pros: Very easy to use and easy to understand. Asked questions, taxcut did not. Allowed e-file check status. Can print all forms including verification IRS accepted or rejected return. So easy to use, my computer illerate father was able to fill out.
Cons: Prefer to file via CD then online, because of security risk. Did not like reentering information,which was available from previous years filing. If listing itemized deductions for non profit in large amounts, I was unable to locate understandable directio
User Rating: 7/10
very good overall
Pros: covers all the bases
Cons: a few glitches in interview mode when going back to complete previous items
User Rating: 5/10
Support service not very helpful.
Pros: Simple to operate, logical, accurate, easy to use.
Cons: Have happily used product for years. Several snags this year. TTax notified me by email that filings had been received and acted upon by IRS and advised me to access Turbo Tax for next steps. Hah! TT could not access the info it told me was available. T
User Rating: 2/10
Product good,Customer Service- Terrible
Pros: I was happy with the way it worked once I got it installed. I loaded the Federal from the cd & it worked fine but when I paid my money & tried to download the state,it won't install. Trying to use their customer service is so frustrating and point
Cons: Support is somewhere between useless & non-existant. Do not try to download it, buy the cd. If the prodduct doesn't download,fogettaboutit !
User Rating: 8/10
Easy to load works well
Pros: Does updates well. Figures flow where necessary. Notifies you of return status.
Cons:
User Rating: 9/10
Didn't catch my Advanced EIC
Pros: Easy to use and understand
Cons: This product got my refund rejected by the irs because i received the 400.00 advanced earned income credit after the first of this year and this software did not ask me the question about it and i had to re do it. it meant a delay on my refund just giving
User Rating: 5/10
WORKED GREAT THIS YEAR
Pros: AUTO UPDATES LAST YEARS INFO; PROMPTS ARE HELPFUL; AUTO CHECK WORKS WELL; ease of use
Cons: last year-ONLINE HELP USELESS; COULDN'T GET A HOLD OF A HUMAN BEING; LAST YEAR WAS HORRIBLE-COULDN'T E-FILE
User Rating: 6/10
Tax calculator only
Pros: Wonderful tool to calculate taxes
Cons: Expects broadband users to UNINSTALL firewalls to get product updates, e-file taxes or check-up on e-file. This makes this product useless to broadband users
User Rating: 7/10
Very worthwhile
Pros: My returns are somewhat complicated but the software was still quick and easy to use. Additional downloads and updates worked fine. E-filing was a breeze.
Cons: Thankfully, I have never needed tech support, it's not there!
User Rating: 9/10
No problems with fairly complex return.
Pros: Easy to load. Easy to do tax returns. Easy to do electronic filing.
Cons: none.
User Rating: 7/10
Much easier to use then TaxCut
Pros: Have used for last 5 years. Found it to be improved every year, reduces Taxes to a couple of hours of gathering info and data entry.
Cons: The late issue of some forms are annoying, but I suppose the IRS has a lot to do with that.
User Rating: 10/10
IT'S AWESOME!!!!
Pros: It's so easy to do. Had no problems with it. I did 3 tax returns in just 2 hours!! I truly feel sorry to those individuals that are having problems with it.
Cons: Have yet to find one.
User Rating: 7/10
great experience, no problems in 3 years
Pros: easy to use, comprehensive interview, great results
Cons: poor customer service options
User Rating: 4/10
Product good, Service TERRIBLE
Pros: Easy if structured "question and answer" format
Cons: NO SUPPORT!!! I had to purchase two copies to get one, with shipping delays, etc. First questions always asked is "what's your credit card number", even when it's the company's fault. As of today, Intuit has told me that I'll receive a refund check from t
User Rating: 6/10
better than taxes for dummies
Pros: Lots of questions that help you get all the deductions and forms you need.
Cons: Hard to correct some mistakes such as carry over from federal to state if you answer a question wrong
User Rating: 8/10
I enjoyed used it
Pros: It's fast, and easy to use
Cons: I wish I had the ability to ask a question about a couple of enteries.
User Rating: 8/10
Wow...didn't think it would be this easy.
Pros: This is way cool. I had used my grandmothers accountant for many years...often paying upward of $150 and I can't believe I wasted all that money when I could've used a product like this. Very easy. Did my taxes in like 2 hours.
Cons: Hmmm sometimes to much info overload. Seemed like there was an extra section for help around every corner. Good for some I suppose.
User Rating: 4/10
Overall Dissat.
Pros: I have used this product for 6 years and this was the first neg. time using.
Cons: No good help and want to long on phone line or computer.
User Rating: 6/10
Tech Support is horrible,non-existant
Pros: Ease of use, interview is very good,and quick.
Cons: Back file (previous page) function will sometimes not work.
User Rating: 5/10
Getting harder to use each year
Pros: Walks you through everything, pulls last years info into current very easily. Great for federal return!!!
Cons: Download of MI state return via internet took 4 tries with no success -online support understaffed - too long of a wait. No way to notify them of your dissatisfaction either!
User Rating: 5/10
Won't generate the tax forms!
Pros:
Cons: The product wouldn't install the correct fonts, and then wouldn't generate the pdf tax forms! What's the point of having a tax program that won't output tax forms? :(
User Rating: 9/10
The best I've ever used
Pros: Simple to setup and easy to use. Anyone can work with this software. I've tried others but once I found this I get it every year.
Cons: The sometime long download times for frequent updates.
User Rating: 5/10
Getting more and more difficult to use
Pros: Once the updates were installed, Tax prep was a breese.
Cons: It took 4 hours to finally get the updates I needed. (Including State). It seemed the Turbo Tax CD was missing a lot more than just the updated tax forms. Such as personal engines and software just to run the Tax programs. I have used Turbo Tax many times
User Rating: 8/10
VERY slow with providing updates.
Pros: The program interface is wonderful. It guides you through your tax filing with easy questions.
Cons: It is late February and TurboTax STILL hasn't completed it's forms updates. Therefore if you need one of those forms, you are out of luck until they provide it. Another BIG issue, downloading the updates takes 27 to 40 minutes.
User Rating: 9/10
Love this product, use it year after year
Pros: Ease of use; prompts remind me of things I forgot - no need to re-enter as it fills in from previous year
Cons: Not fond of the online support - but lucky for me I haven't had to use it.
User Rating: 3/10
NO-THANKS INTUIT
Pros: Easy to use for basic items.
Cons: MArketing efforts rate annoying after receiving 8 pieces of literature in the mail as I'm a past user. Foubd that the on-line purchases to be more expensive than store bought.
User Rating: 8/10
Better, faster, stronger than the 1040 by paper and pencil!
Pros: Extremely easy to use and I was amazed at how much I had been missing over the years. Best if used with a DSL or cable hook up. Easy access to supplemental forms or progarsm (for example the program to determine how much donated goods are worth).
Cons: Norton thinks it is a virus. Be careful to tell Norton it is OK to allow Turbo Tax to access the internet. Almost too easy -- left me with a nagging feeling i had forgotten something.
User Rating: 4/10
NJ State Tax Form is terrible!!!
Pros: Great for Federal Tax Reporting
Cons: Terrible for NJ State Tax Return! ! ! And...NO SUPPORT ! ! !
User Rating: 7/10
Makes Filing Much Less Stressful & Time Consuming
Pros: Very easy to use. Had no problems loading software or e-filing. Interview format is very user friendly.
Cons: Some tech support & online support not much help, but did not take away from my positive experience in using this product.
User Rating: 10/10
Greatest
Pros: I have used this product for several years with great results.
Cons: Updates can be hard if you are not connect to the internet
User Rating: 2/10
RELEASED BEFORE DONE REQUIRING UPDATES. FOR NON-INTERNET USERS ITS A PAIN IN THE A&^%$S
Pros:
Cons: CUSTOMER SERVICE IS SLOW AND FULL OF UNKEPT PROMISES
User Rating: 5/10
WON'T GO THIS WAY AGAIN
Pros: Takes you step by step through your basic taxes. Asks you questions... stimulates your memory. I liked being able to go back and change values... no erasures... nice, clean copies. Walks you through E-file.
Cons: I purchased the Deluxe version for our basic taxes. I don't believe it is worthwhile for anything more than basic. On my TurboTax State it did not prompt me for a common deduction (school tax credit) and when I tried to include it errors came up. It to
User Rating: 2/10
Must nstall in Windows Safe Mod
Pros:
Cons: Tried to safe my return as PDF (so I can still print it next year). Get an error, and Chat support tells me to re-install in windows safe mode (press F8 when booting!)
User Rating: 4/10
does not allow safe computing
Pros: My significant other does the actual taxes, she seems happy with the results (though annoyed when trying to switch between interview/form modes).
Cons: On WindowsXP it requires you be logged on as an Administrator. There is no reason an application requires write permissions to the OS and Program directories. I could not even give it permissions to needed files, there was no FileMon or RegMon activity
User Rating: 7/10
all forms not ready
Pros: walks you through the program and and I am happy with that part.
Cons: Not all Forms are included in the program. I could not e-file because the updates was not available. I did not even need the from but I still could not file. I was abel to do my taxes in about 1 hour but had to wait another 3 weeks before the form was ab
User Rating: 1/10
unable to load-froze up
Pros:
Cons: Unable to install-froze computer at"adding fonts" Online support had various fixs for known problem-none would allow normal install- Will get refund-
User Rating: 2/10
Unacceptable if you're reporting worthless securities.
Pros: Fast and easy for very simple tax returns with no worthless securities to report.
Cons: Will not handle the reporting of "worthless securities". IRS rules, as quoted in TTAX Deluxe's Help section, require that worthless securities be listed on line 1 or 8 (as appropriate considering whether the holdings are short term or long term) of 1040-S
User Rating: 1/10
Connectivity errors, no support
Pros: If it works it's great.
Cons: I can't get the software to connect to the internet, the web solutions do nothing and the chat help just sends you to the web pages. I'm returning the product.
