H&R Block Online vs TurboTax – which one is better?

This blog post is part of a series sponsored by H&R Block. All opinions are 100% my own.

Are you wondering which company to use to file your taxes online? The two most popular online tax preparation websites are H&R Block Online and TurboTax. In this post I am going to talk about H&R Block Online vs. TurboTax and which one I recommend using.

If you missed my previous posts in my File your Taxes series, you can check out my other two posts below:

• How to Easily File your Taxes
• Tax Reform Changes

Today I am going to walk you through the main three differences between TurboTax and H&R block Online and which one I recommend. To see me walk through all the differences, check out my video below.

Here is a breakdown of all the differences:

1.) Are they really both free?

The Free Option with both H&R Block Online and TurboTax gets you both FREE State and Federal Returns. The free H&R Block Online option gives you more bang for your buck. H&R Block allows you to take deductions like student loan interest and still use the free product. Turbo charges a fee.

2.) Price Differences

Like I said above, both H&R Block Online and TurboTax have a free file option. They both give you a free federal and state return, plus free filing. They also both have Deluxe, Premium and Self Employment options.

• The Deluxe Program is best for homeowners, claiming donations & HSAs,
• The Premium Online is best for freelancers, contractors & investors.
• The Self Employed Best option is for self-employed & small business.

When comparing prices between the two, H&R Block is less expensive than TurboTax.

You can see the price comparison above. Not only is it less expensive to file your return with them, but if you need extra help, TurboTax will charge you almost double to share your screen with a tax expert.

3.) Time it takes to complete return

I did the same return with the same three simple W2’s. TurboTax took me 25 minutes to complete and H&R Block took me 12 minutes to complete.

One of the main issues I had when it came to timing is that TurboTax tried to get me to upgrade to their paid services multiple times. I would then have to scroll down and closeout of the prompt, which cost me valuable time.

H&R Block seemed to be more intuitive when asking questions, thus takingless time to complete.

Even though I preferred the look of the TurboTax interface better, H&R Block won on all three points. H&R Block was less expensive, took less time, and was more intuitive of a system. If you were wondering which one to use – H&R Block vs. Turbo Tax….H&R Block is a clear winner!