FreeTaxUSA Cost and Pricing with Deluxe and State Fees

FreeTaxUSA costs $0 for the federal return at every level, including self-employed returns with Schedule C, and $15.99 for each state return. The optional extras are Deluxe support at $7.99, Pro Support at $64.99 and Audit Defense at $19.99. A typical one-state return therefore costs $15.99, or $23.98 with Deluxe. The fee that catches people is $24.99 to have the charges taken out of your refund instead of paying by card.

How much does FreeTaxUSA cost?

We read the full price list on FreeTaxUSA's own pricing page in October 2026. These are the prices for the 2025 return, the one filed in 2026, and they are the same whether your return is a single W-2 or a full Schedule C business.

FreeTaxUSA says plainly that it makes its money on the state return and the optional services. The federal return really is free, and that includes the self-employed screens that TurboTax only unlocks at Premium for $139.

What does a FreeTaxUSA return really cost?

The list price is easy. What you pay depends on how many states you file in, whether you want someone to talk to, and how you pay. Here are six common returns priced out, next to what the same return costs with TaxFile, where the state return is included in the yearly plan.

On the sticker, FreeTaxUSA wins every row, and we would rather say so than pretend otherwise. If you already know which deductions apply to your work and you are happy working through the screens yourself, it is one of the cheapest ways to file a Schedule C in the country. The TaxAct vs FreeTaxUSA and FreeTaxUSA vs TurboTax comparisons show how far ahead it is on price.

Is FreeTaxUSA Deluxe worth it?

For most people, yes, and the reason is the amendment line rather than the chat. Deluxe costs $7.99 and includes unlimited amended returns for that year. A single amendment without it costs $16.98. Late 1099s, a corrected W-2 or a forgotten brokerage form are common enough that $7.99 is cheap insurance against paying $16.98 in May. Deluxe also moves you to the front of the support queue and adds live chat. It does not add a tax professional: that is Pro Support at $64.99, which includes the ProCheck review of your finished return. If your return is a single W-2 you have filed the same way for years, skip Deluxe.

Does FreeTaxUSA charge for self-employed returns?

No. The federal self-employed return is $0, including Schedule C, Schedule SE, the QBI deduction and self-employed retirement contributions. The only required cost is $15.99 for each state. FreeTaxUSA can also import a W-2, 1099-NEC, 1099-MISC or 1099-R from a PDF or a photo, according to its help center, though a 1099-K is not on the import list it publishes, so payment-app and marketplace totals are typed in.

If your 1099-K does not match what landed in your bank account, sort that out before you type the number in. A tool that matches payouts against your bank lines shows which refunds, fees and transfers make up the gap, and that gap is usually where the deductions are.

Where FreeTaxUSA stops and paying more makes sense

The low price buys you correct math and a form-shaped interview. It does not buy anyone looking for money you left out. On a Schedule C, that is where the real cost sits. A booth-renting hair stylist with $81,000 of income who records only her booth rent and none of her product, tools and card fees pays about $2,634 more federal tax than one who records them all, which is the worked example on our self employed hair stylist taxes page. A $73 difference in software price is small next to that.

That is the gap TaxFile's Schedule C software is built for. It reads your W-2s and 1099s, then asks about the expenses your kind of work usually carries, explains each figure in plain English, and files federal and state together after you approve every line. The Self-Employed plan at $89 also keeps a deduction log during the year and reminds you before each quarterly estimate is due. What it does not do: prior-year returns, amendments, rental property on Schedule E, or stock and crypto sales on Schedule D. For any of those, FreeTaxUSA covers more ground for less money.

Filing in two or more states is the other place the math changes. FreeTaxUSA adds $15.99 per state, which stays cheap. The harder part is the credit for tax paid to another state, which decides whether you pay twice on the same income. Our multi-state tax filing page walks through how that credit works.

FreeTaxUSA cost questions

Is FreeTaxUSA really free?

The federal return is. Every federal return FreeTaxUSA supports, including self-employment, rentals and investments, costs $0 to prepare and e-file. The state return is $15.99, so anyone in one of the 41 states with an individual income tax pays at least that. Support upgrades, audit defense and paying from your refund cost extra.

How much is the FreeTaxUSA state filing fee?

$15.99 per state for the 2025 return, with e-file included. Each additional state is another $15.99, so a three-state return costs $47.97. A prior-year state return is $17.99. If you live in a state without an income tax, such as Texas or Florida, you may owe nothing at all.

How much does FreeTaxUSA charge to amend a return?

$16.98 for a current-year amended return and $17.97 for a prior year. Amendments are free and unlimited if you bought Deluxe at $7.99 or Pro Support at $64.99 for that return, which is why Deluxe usually pays for itself if there is any chance a late form arrives.

Does FreeTaxUSA take its fee out of my refund?

Only if you choose that option, and it costs $24.99. Paying the $15.99 state fee by credit or debit card, including Apple Pay or Google Pay, adds nothing. Choosing refund payment more than doubles the cost of a typical one-state return.

Is FreeTaxUSA cheaper than TurboTax for self-employed filers?

By a wide margin. A one-state Schedule C return is $15.99 at FreeTaxUSA against $139 federal plus a state fee at TurboTax Premium, the tier that replaced TurboTax Self-Employed. Our TurboTax pricing breakdown lists every tier.