To choose professional tax software, decide five things in this order: which return types you actually prepare, whether pay-per-return or an unlimited package fits your volume, whether your team works on desktop installs or in a browser, which practice tools the software must connect to, and how it supports your data security obligations. Every serious program e-files federal and state returns. These five decisions are where they differ, and where firms overpay.
Inventory your return mix first
Start with last season’s numbers, not a vendor’s feature grid. Pull a count of returns by form and by state, and note how many needed heavy review.
- Individual returns: Form 1040 with the schedules you see most, plus any states and city returns.
- Business returns: Forms 1065, 1120-S, and 1120, and how many K-1s each produces.
- Fiduciary and exempt organization returns: Forms 1041 and 990, which some packages price separately or handle less deeply.
- Specialty work: multi-state allocations, depreciation-heavy clients, and amended returns.
A practice that files 400 individual returns and a handful of S corporations has very different needs from a CPA firm with partnerships, trusts, and nonprofits. Depth of forms coverage is where programs such as UltraTax CS and Lacerte earn their price. If your work is mostly 1040s, you may be paying for depth you never open.
Choose a pricing model that matches your volume
Professional tax software is sold in three main ways, and the right one depends almost entirely on how many returns you file.
Pay-per-return
You buy a base license and pay for each return you file. It suits newer practices and low-volume preparers. Lacerte lists a single-user pay-per-return license at $599 a year, with per-return fees on top. ProConnect Tax charges $93.46 per individual return and $110.46 per business return at current discounted rates, plus a $210 User Access license per user. Drake Tax Online starts at $299.99 on a pay-per-return model.
Unlimited packages
You pay one price for unlimited returns. Drake Tax Pro covers unlimited individual and business returns for $3,145 when bought before December 1, or $3,295 after. ATX publishes package prices from $1,149 for ATX 1040 up to $6,349 for ATX Advantage. Once volume passes a few dozen returns, an unlimited package usually costs less per return.
Quoted suites
UltraTax CS and CCH Axcess Tax price by the forms, states, modules, and licenses your firm needs. Ask for a written quote that lists every module and the renewal terms, since add-ons for states, entity types, and hosting change the total.
To compare fairly, price your actual return mix on each model. A firm with many business returns can find pay-per-return costs climbing faster than expected, because business returns cost more per return on most plans.
Decide between desktop, hosted, and cloud
Drake Tax, UltraTax CS, Lacerte, and ATX are desktop programs. They are fast, and many experienced preparers prefer them, but remote staff need a hosted setup or a remote desktop connection to your office server. Hosting is a real line item: Lacerte lists it as a paid add-on, and Thomson Reuters offers hosted UltraTax CS through Virtual Office CS.
ProConnect Tax and CCH Axcess Tax run in a browser, so there is nothing to install and no server to maintain. The tradeoff is less control over updates and a dependence on your internet connection during peak weeks.
- Choose desktop if most preparers work in the office and you have reliable IT support.
- Choose hosted desktop if you want a desktop program but have remote or seasonal staff.
- Choose cloud if your team is distributed and you would rather not manage servers or backups.
Check how it connects to the rest of your practice
Tax software sits in the middle of a busy season workflow: client documents come in, returns get prepared and reviewed, clients sign Form 8879, and invoices go out. The fewer manual handoffs, the fewer errors.
- Suite connections. UltraTax CS links with other CS Professional Suite products such as Practice CS and Fixed Assets CS. CCH Axcess Tax shares one client database with other CCH Axcess modules.
- Practice management. Platforms such as TaxDome list integrations with Drake, UltraTax CS, Lacerte, ProSeries, and CCH Axcess. Ask exactly what syncs, such as client records or return status.
- Document intake. Ask whether the program works with a source document automation service, such as SurePrep for UltraTax CS or GruntWorx for Drake Tax.
- Bookkeeping data. ProConnect Tax connects with QuickBooks Online, which helps firms that also keep books for their tax clients.
- E-signatures. Ask how the software or its portal handles remote signing of Form 8879, including identity verification.
Treat data security as a buying requirement
Paid preparers hold exactly the data identity thieves want. The FTC Safeguards Rule requires tax and accounting firms to maintain a written information security plan and to use multi-factor authentication for systems that hold client information. IRS Publication 5708 gives a template for that plan.
Your tax software choice affects how hard that is. Ask each vendor:
- Is multi-factor authentication available, and can you require it for every user?
- Where is data stored for cloud or hosted editions, and how is it encrypted?
- How are user permissions set so seasonal staff see only what they need?
- What logs exist to show who opened or changed a return?
- How are backups handled for desktop installs, and who is responsible for them?
Desktop programs put more of this responsibility on your firm. Cloud programs shift some of it to the vendor, but you still own access control and staff training.
Time the switch and test before you commit
The worst time to change tax software is January. Make the decision in the fall, when vendors run early-purchase pricing and you have time to convert data and train staff. Drake’s early-purchase discount, for example, applies to orders before December 1.
- Ask each finalist how it converts prior-year client data from your current program, and which fields do not carry over.
- Use the trial or demo on real work. Drake offers a free trial with sample clients and test returns, Lacerte offers a free trial to new customers, ProConnect Tax has a trial without e-filing, and ATX offers a demo only.
- Prepare five returns you filed last season, including your most complex business return, and compare the results line by line.
- Time a reviewer working through diagnostics and review notes, since review speed matters more than entry speed at volume.
- Call support with a real question during the trial and note how long it takes to reach someone useful.
Weigh support as heavily as features
Support quality only shows up when you need it most, usually in the last two weeks before a deadline. Ask each vendor for its support hours during filing season, whether phone support is included or costs extra, and whether you can reach staff who understand the forms rather than general account questions. Ask other preparers in your area or professional groups how their vendor handled the last busy season.
Also ask how updates are delivered. Desktop programs push form updates and fixes throughout the season, and someone at your firm needs to install them on every workstation or host. Cloud programs update automatically, which removes a chore but also means changes arrive whether or not you are ready.
If you want a side-by-side view of pricing, ratings, and tradeoffs for six leading programs, see our ranked list of the best tax software for accountants.
Match the program to your firm
Independent preparers and small to mid-size firms that want published pricing and unlimited returns often land on Drake Tax. Large CPA firms with complex returns and many preparers tend to choose between UltraTax CS and CCH Axcess Tax for their suite connections. Firms with heavy partnership and trust work look closely at Lacerte, and small practices that want to pay only for what they file start with ProConnect Tax. Whatever you pick, decide early, convert carefully, and run a few real returns before the first client walks in.
Questions to ask in every demo
- Which return types and states are included at this price?
- What does a business return cost compared with an individual return?
- How do you convert our prior-year data, and what does not carry over?
- Do you offer hosting, and what does it cost per user?
- Can we require multi-factor authentication for every user?
- Which practice management and document intake tools do you integrate with?
- How do clients sign Form 8879 remotely?
- What are support hours and response times during filing season?
See the full ranking
Best Tax Software for Accountants in 2026
We compare six professional tax programs on forms, workflow, and price, and name the best fit for solo preparers, growing firms, and large CPA practices.
Frequently asked questions
When should you switch tax software?
Switch in the late summer or fall, well before filing season. That gives you time to convert prior-year data, train staff, and test real returns. Many vendors also run early-purchase pricing in the fall, such as Drake’s discount on orders placed before December 1. Switching in January leaves no room to fix conversion problems.
Will your prior-year client data carry over to a new program?
Usually most of it will. Most professional vendors offer conversion from the major competing programs, covering items such as client demographics and carryforwards. Coverage varies by source program and form, so ask which fields do not convert. Plan to review converted returns for a sample of clients, especially those with depreciation, passive losses, or multi-state history.
Do you need a written information security plan as a tax preparer?
Yes. The FTC Safeguards Rule requires paid tax preparers and accounting firms to keep a written information security plan and to protect client data with safeguards such as multi-factor authentication. IRS Publication 5708 provides a template. Your tax software and hosting choices should support the controls your plan describes.
How should you license seasonal preparers?
Check whether the vendor licenses by user, by workstation, or by firm. Cloud products such as ProConnect Tax charge per user, so each seasonal preparer adds cost. Desktop licensing terms differ by vendor, so read them closely. Ask how quickly you can add and remove users mid-season, and whether removed users still count toward renewal.
Should a small firm buy the same software as large CPA firms?
Not by default. Programs built for large firms, such as UltraTax CS and CCH Axcess Tax, shine when many preparers handle complex returns and the firm uses the wider suite. A small practice filing mostly individual returns often gets better value from Drake Tax or a pay-per-return product, and can switch later if the work changes.