Depending on how you file your taxes every year, a recent J.D. Power study might shake up your tax prep plans.
The firm’s first-ever U.S. Tax Preparation Satisfaction Study measures overall customer satisfaction with major tax preparation brands, covering both do-it-yourself platforms and professional services.
The ranking, which was based on responses from nearly 2,000 customers who filed returns in the prior nine months, evaluated services across seven dimensions:
- Digital channels
- Trust levels
- Ease of preparation and filing
- Meeting tax needs
- Customer service quality
- Problem resolution
- Value for price
The average score across all brands was 705 out of 1,000.
Here are all the tax preparation services included in J.D. Power’s study, along with their customer satisfaction scores:
- TaxSlayer: 712 out of 1,000 points
- Intuit TurboTax: 708
- H&R Block: 706
- TaxAct: 692
- Jackson Hewitt: 681
TaxSlayer — a “cloud-based DIY tax software” company — clinched the top spot, beating out household names Intuit TurboTax and H&R Block. But in comparison to the overall industry average of 705, these top performers are only marginally ahead of the bottom-scoring brands.
According to the study, perceived value for price was the distinguishing factor between the best- and worst-performing brands. While 81% of respondents felt their chosen service’s price met expectations, customers struggle to see much difference between DIY tax software and professional preparers.
Mike Foy, managing director of the wealth management practice at J.D. Power, says in a summary of the findings:
“[A]s do-it-yourself platforms continue to get more intuitive, easier and make switching platforms more seamless — professional services are going to have to do something beyond providing filing advice to close the value perception gap.”
In other words, the DIY trend in tax preparation could spell trouble for traditional tax pros down the line, as they’ll need to find the means to justify their typically higher fees.
Meanwhile, for budget-conscious filers, these findings may highlight an opportunity to pick a service that better meets specific needs and budget expectations.
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