
The cutoff is $72,000 in Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) for the 2020 tax year, which covers 70% of all taxpayers.

Through a partnership with tax software companies, the IRS offers Free File to people with income below a threshold. However, if you have a Windows or Mac computer, installing and updating software only requires a few clicks. Online software clearly has an advantage here. The online software is updated automatically in the cloud. The installed software usually requires several updates before it’s finalized. When you use the software online, you don’t have to worry about installing the software. Sometimes the software also requires a more recent version of the operating system.
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You can use it with Linux, Chromebook, or tablets, whereas the software download typically only works with Windows or Mac. Online software is compatible with a wider variety of devices. When you have a choice between buying the software you install on your computer and paying to use the service online, you are better off buying the software download. TurboTax reported that 80% of the returns it handled came from its online products. Most people choose to use the online service. Others such as TurboTax and H&R Block offer both an online service and software for download, which you install on your computer.

Some software products such as FreeTaxUSA are purely online. When you are part of the 41% who do your own taxes, using software makes it a lot easier than doing it directly on the forms. That 59% number is still surprisingly high to me, but today we focus on the 41% self-prepared returns.

The latest statistics from the IRS show that of all the e-filed individual tax returns for a recent tax year, 59% were done by tax professionals and 41% were self-prepared.
