@transmorphik wrote:
As of January 2021, the choice between Premier online and Deluxe on CD appears to a wash, financially speaking, since both cost $70. The motivation for purchasing either of the above two products is that both are able to automatically import investment data.
If this is incorrect, please respond and correct me.
Currently Online Premier is discounted at $70 for a Federal return (normally $90) and $40 for a state return (normally $50). The discount disappears in March for anyone who hasn't yet filed at that time or paid in advance to lock in the discount. So if you purchase it now and have both Fed and state returns, the total would be $110 plus tax if paid before March. NOTE: If you choose to pay the fees out of the Federal refund, there is an additional service fee of $40 ($45 for California filers.)
The price of Deluxe CD/download depends on "where" you purchase it. If purchasing directly from TurboTax, it is currently discounted to $70 (normally $80 in March). It includes the state program when purchased from TurboTax. So if you have both returns, the currently discounted Deluxe desktop $70 for Fed and state would be compared to Online Premier's current $110 for Fed and state. There is no efiling fee in an online product, but in the desktop Deluxe product, there is a $20 fee to efile each state return, except no fee to efile NY state. There is no fee to print and mail the state returns.
If you buy Deluxe outside of the TurboTax website, be aware it comes in 2 versions--one that is Federal-only, and one that is a combo Fed and State. So be sure you buy the correct one that you need. The FAQ below tells about being sure it is an authorized reputable dealer. Very few are authorized for TurboTax downloads, and they are generally well-known large retailers. At Amazon, for instance, be sure it is a legitimate authorized product from Intuit sold directly by Amazon itself, since there's no way to be sure all third-party sellers on Amazon are legitimate. Here's a list of authorized retailers:
https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/choosing-a-product/help/where-can-i-buy-the-turbotax-software/01/2...
Be aware there are "too-good-to-be true" Internet scam sites selling fake or pirated software. Only companies in the above FAQ are authorized for legit TurboTax downloads.
Online Premier and desktop Deluxe (CD/download) can both import financial forms such as 1099-DIV, 1099-INT, 1099-B, etc. IF your brokerage/financial institution is a participating partner in the TurboTax import feature. ONLINE Deluxe, however, cannot import a 1099-B since it cannot handle Schedule D capital gains/losses. But desktop Deluxe (CD/download) can import 1099-B since it can handle all forms, including investment sales and capital gains/losses.
There are some advantages to the desktop product that are not present in the online products. First of all, the CD/download version has the handy Forms Mode (which Online TurboTax does not), which allows one to view and even edit some forms during preparation. The desktop version can prepare multiple Federal returns with up to 5 free Federal efiles. As I mentioned above, there is a state efile fee in the desktop version except for New York, but no fee to print and mail a state return.
