Most comparisons of tax software open with a brand list and a price column. That order is backwards. What actually decides your bill, your stress level and how long filing night takes is a short chain of decisions you should make before you open any product page. Work through the chain and the brand almost picks itself.
First decision: which return are you actually filing?
Everything downstream depends on this one. A single-member LLC taxed as a sole proprietorship, a freelancer and a gig worker all land on Schedule C, and any self-employed tier of the five products handles it correctly. Once the business is taxed as an S-corp, a partnership or a corporation, you need entity-return support and the price jumps: the entity tiers are where the gap between brands is widest.
The trap is buying the entity tier just in case. If your side hustle is a sole proprietorship, the cheaper self-employed tier files the same return with the same forms.
Second decision: how much of your income arrives on a 1099?
Import quality matters most when a large share of your revenue shows up on 1099-NEC or 1099-K forms. The more guided products pull that data in from employers and banks automatically, which is what turns an afternoon of typing into an hour of confirming. The leaner, cheaper products still import, but you will be checking more of the numbers yourself.
If nearly all of your income is W-2 wages, you do not need a business tier at all - the free editions cover that case.
Third decision: do you want a person to review the file?
This is the most expensive upgrade and the one most people buy too early. Paid tiers differ mainly in how far the human help goes: unlimited chat with a professional, a review before the return is filed, or handing the whole return to a preparer. Audit support and accuracy guarantees generally ride along with the paid tiers, not the free ones.
Buy the human when your year was unusual - a first year carrying inventory, a large one-off sale, a move across borders. If your books were clean and the year was ordinary, the extra fee buys reassurance rather than a different number.
Fourth decision: what happens to the return after it is filed?
Almost nobody asks this before paying, and it is the decision with the longest tail. A software subscription is rented by the month or the year, but the finished return, the worksheets behind it, the payment confirmations and the records you keep beside it are the evidence someone may ask for years later. US filers are generally expected to keep records for three to seven years; Vietnamese accounting rules keep books for ten.
When a subscription lapses, or the laptop holding the downloads gets replaced, the exports saved in storage you own are the only copies still readable. Whichever tool you pick, export the finished return and the supporting worksheets into a dated folder outside the software, and keep it somewhere that survives a hardware change.
Sorting the five options quickly
Price and fit, from the comparison checked in September 2026 - these are federal rates for the self-employed or business tier, and state returns usually cost extra:
| Tool | Federal | State | Fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| FreeTaxUSA | $0 | $14.99 | Budget sole proprietors |
| TaxSlayer SE | ~$57-75 | ~$39-45 | Lowest price with pro chat |
| TaxAct SE / Business | ~$70-85 / ~$160 | ~$45 | Cheapest entity returns |
| H&R Block SE | ~$115 | ~$49 | Value plus in-person offices |
| TurboTax SE | ~$129 | ~$59 | Most guided, first-time filers |
Two upgrades worth naming: a professional review before the return is filed, and the full-service option where a preparer takes the whole return over. Both sit well above the base tiers, and both are wasted money on a simple return.
If you live in Vietnam but file in the US
These products are built for the US system. If you are a Vietnamese resident filing a US return - a US LLC owned from here, for example - check three things before paying: whether the product accepts a foreign address and a non-US phone number for identity verification, whether you genuinely have US-source income that requires a return, and how you will pay, since the charge lands in USD on an international card.
None of this touches your Vietnamese obligations. VAT, personal income tax and e-invoicing under Decree 254/2026/NĐ-CP run through a certified local provider, and the e-invoice records belong in a separate set of books from your US filing.
FAQ
Is any of these actually free for a self-employed filer?
Yes. FreeTaxUSA charges nothing for a federal self-employed return, Schedule C included, and only a small state fee. TaxSlayer's free tier covers simple W-2 income but leaves Schedule C out, and the free editions from the other two brands stop at wage income as well.
Does a side hustle need the business version?
No, if the hustle is a sole proprietorship. The self-employed tier of any product above files Schedule C correctly. The business version only becomes necessary when you file a partnership, an S-corp or a corporation return.
What is the cheapest correct way to file a Schedule C?
FreeTaxUSA at zero federal plus a small state fee is the lowest total cost. If you want a professional reachable by chat or phone along with that filing, TaxSlayer's self-employed tier is the cheapest major option that includes one.
I run a Vietnamese company - does any of this apply?
Only for US-source income and US filings. Vietnamese VAT, personal income tax and e-invoicing are governed by Vietnamese law and must go through a certified local provider; keep those records apart from anything you file in the US.
The short version
Decide the return type, then how much of your income is 1099, then whether you want a human review, then how you will keep the finished file. Price matters, but it is the last question rather than the first - and the cheapest tool that files the right return beats the most polished tool that files the wrong one.
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