9 Best Tax Software for Accountants of 2026

Drake Tax ranks first because it pairs wide return coverage with prices that sit well below the large firm suites. Every package includes all states, federal and state e-file and a library of more than 4,300 forms, and Drake Tax Pro adds unlimited individual and business returns for a single price. Smaller offices can start lower: Drake Tax 1040 covers individual returns with business returns added at $74.99 each, the desktop Pay-Per-Return package includes 10 individual returns for $379.99, and Drake Tax Online starts at $299.99 with returns bought as you go. Review tools are practical, with hundreds of diagnostics, DoubleCheck, LookBack and LinkBacks that jump from a diagnostic to its source. The software also includes a client status manager, scheduler, organizers and client billing. The gaps are client-facing tools, since portals, workflow and e-signatures come in a paid bundle, and the per-return fees on the smaller tiers can climb quickly in a busy season.

ProSeries is Intuit's desktop tax program for small and midsize firms, and its strength is choice. A pay-per-return license starts at $539 a year with returns bought as filed, ProSeries Basic 1040 sells bundles of 20, 50 or unlimited individual returns from $729 a year, and ProSeries Professional adds business and specialty returns from $2,605 a year for unlimited 1040s. Intuit Sign digital signatures and knowledge-based authentication are included for every tax client, which saves a separate e-signature subscription. Review and planning tools are useful: the Missing Client Information utility flags gaps during prep, Client Analyzer finds groups of clients affected by tax changes, K-1 data import moves business return data into owner 1040s, and batch tools run repeat tasks across files. The Intuit Link portal and Client Checklist help collect documents. The trade-offs are price at the Professional level and add-ons for hosting and bulk 1099 and W-2 filing.

Lacerte is Intuit's tax program for firms whose work is complex rather than high in simple volume. It lists more than 7,200 forms and 25,000 diagnostics, the largest documented coverage here, and it has tools built for business and partnership work: automated K-1 delivery sends every partner's K-1 through secure email links, Schedule D import pulls transactions from a spreadsheet, and financial institution download imports data from more than 275 banks. Specialized calculations such as oil and gas depletion serve niche clients, and Intuit Tax Advisor turns return data into custom tax plans for advisory work. Intuit Sign digital signatures are included. Pricing starts with a $599 annual pay-per-return license for a single user, and firms that want bundles of returns or unlimited filing work with Intuit to build a custom plan. That makes budgeting harder than with Drake's published packages, and the interface depth takes training, but for complex returns it is the most complete tool in the list.

ATX is Wolters Kluwer's tax program for CPAs and small firms, and it is built around a forms-based interface that mirrors the paper forms. The library has over 6,000 compliance forms, covering 1040, 1120, 1120-S, 1065 and 1041 returns, specialty returns such as 706, 709, 990 and 5500, payroll compliance reporting and sales and use tax. Check Return Track flags e-file errors, omissions and overrides, and Refund Meter shows the refund or balance due as you enter data. Every package includes CCH AnswerConnect research with the U.S. Master Tax Guide, which smaller firms would otherwise buy separately. Prices are published: the Pay-Per-Return System costs $939 with 6 individual returns, the 1040 Package $1,249 and ATX MAX, which adds business returns and unlimited e-filing, $2,829. The limits are the 3-state cap on lower packages, paid add-ons for advanced calculations and asset management, and the lack of a cloud version.

ProConnect Tax is Intuit's cloud tax program, and it suits firms that want to prepare returns in a browser without managing installs or hosting. Pricing has two parts: a User Access license at $210 per user, or $2,100 flat for 10 or more users, and returns bought as you go or in bundles. Individual returns cost $93.46 each below 50 and fall to $36.51 at 200 or more, while bundles start at $2,478 a year for 50 individual returns. The product supports more than 5,700 forms, SmartReturn builds simpler 1040s from imported data, and Easy Start onboarding moves prior-year data in. Its tie to the Intuit Accountant Suite and QuickBooks data is the main draw for firms that also do bookkeeping, and Intuit Tax Advisor creates plans from return and ledger data. Unlimited e-signatures are included. The downside is cost at low volume, where per-return fees are steep compared with a Drake or ATX package.

TaxSlayer Pro is built for offices that file mainly individual returns and earn part of their revenue from bank products. Every package includes unlimited 1040 returns, free unlimited federal and state e-filing, all states and unlimited support in English and Spanish, so the price is the price. Pro Classic is the desktop package at $1,395, Pro Web moves 1040 preparation to the cloud for $1,595 and adds the TaxesToGo mobile app and a client portal, and Pro Premium at $1,695 adds a full corporate business suite covering 1065, 1120, 1120-S, 1041, 990 and more, plus a paperless office and digital signature support. A Pro Web + Corporate package combines cloud 1040s with desktop business returns. The interface and support model are aimed at fast seasonal work. For CPA firms with complex business, multi-entity or planning work, the review and advisory tools are thinner than Intuit or Thomson Reuters products, and business returns cost more.

UltraTax CS is the tax engine of Thomson Reuters' CS Professional Suite, and it is aimed at firms that run more than tax prep on one vendor. It covers 1040, 1041, 1120, 1120S, 706, 709, 990 and 5500 returns, with more than 371 state and local e-file returns, and data entered once in a client's return flows to every related return. Its real advantage is the suite: UltraTax CS shares data with Accounting CS, Accounting Payroll CS and Practice CS, and Thomson Reuters says users report over 50% time savings from that integration. Add-on products extend it, such as 1040SCAN for scan-and-populate and SPbinder for digital workpapers. Thomson Reuters prices UltraTax CS by the number of users, returns and jurisdictions, so firms need a quote. That flexibility suits midsize firms, but the cost is harder to compare and the value drops if you do not use the rest of the suite.

CCH Axcess Tax is Wolters Kluwer's cloud tax platform and the choice of most of the largest US firms: the company says 95 of Accounting Today's Top 100 Firms use CCH Axcess. It covers the full federal, state and local form library with built-in calculations, and it is built to connect the whole tax workflow, from document collection through preparation, review and filing. The newest addition is agentic return preparation, which uses client documents, prior-year information and firm workflows to hand reviewers a prepared return while staff stay in control. Because CCH Axcess Tax sits on a common platform with workflow, firm data and authoritative content, firms that adopt more modules get more from it. Pricing is not published on the product page; new customers can buy packages through the Wolters Kluwer eStore, and others request a quote. The breadth comes with a steeper learning curve and a cost that is hard to justify for small offices.

CrossLink is aimed at tax offices that run several preparers in season and at service bureaus that resell software to other offices. CrossLink 1040 costs $1,795 and includes unlimited preparers, unlimited 1040 series and state returns, an unlimited document archive, free data conversion and personalized onboarding, in either desktop or online versions. Business returns, including 1120, 1120-S, 1065, 1041 and 990, need CrossLink Business at $999, which requires the 1040 license, so a full-service office pays $2,794. Client tools are practical for a storefront practice: Remote Signature lets clients sign from home, TextLink Plus keeps unlimited text conversations attached to the client's return, and a TaxPass mobile site helps clients send information. Franchise and service bureau versions add a management dashboard and co-branding. CrossLink notes that additional fees apply when using the software, and it publishes fewer planning, review and advisory features than Intuit or Thomson Reuters products.