TurboTax

In short

TurboTax Online costs nothing until you pay, print or e-file. After that its fees are non-refundable, so remove add-ons, downgrade, or use Clear & Start Over before you pay. TurboTax Desktop has a 60-day money-back guarantee through the Intuit Refund Request form, and app-store purchases are refunded by Apple or Google. The FTC's 2024 order against "free" TurboTax advertising was vacated by the Fifth Circuit on March 20, 2026. Restitution from the 2022 multistate settlement was paid automatically, so no claim was needed.

How complaints actually go

• TurboTax support is at 1-800-4-INTUIT (1-800-446-8848). The contact page lists no hours and no chat. TurboTax: contact us
• Refund requests go through the Intuit Account: Products & billing > Your products > Request or track a refund. This opens the Intuit Refund Request form. For TurboTax Online bought from Intuit, "Submitting payment reflects your satisfaction with TurboTax Online preparation of your taxes, and is non-refundable." TurboTax: request a refund
• Guarantee claims (100% Accurate Calculations, Maximum Refund, Audit Support) do not go through the refund form. They follow the Terms of Service: Audit Support claims go to 1-800-624-9066 within 60 days of the audit letter, and Maximum Refund claims go by tracked mail within 60 days. Intuit Terms, TurboTax Online
• Reported by customers in a TurboTax Community thread from 2020 to 2025, Online buyers who paid but did not file say support sent them the Desktop refund form or closed the case without an update. Another poster says a refund was refused because the return counted as "filed". TurboTax Community thread
• Disputes under the Intuit Terms go to "binding arbitration or small claims court," and claims can be brought only individually, not as a class. Intuit Terms, TurboTax Online
• FTC v. Intuit (Docket No. 9408): the FTC sued in March 2022, and a federal court denied a preliminary injunction on April 26, 2022. The FTC then continued the case before its own administrative law judge, who issued an initial decision in September 2023. On February 29, 2024, the Commission denied Intuit's request to stay its order while the Fifth Circuit reviewed it. FTC case page
• On January 22, 2024, the Commission voted 3-0 that Intuit "engaged in deceptive advertising" of "free" TurboTax. The Final Order bars "free" claims unless the product is free for all consumers or the share of taxpayers who qualify is disclosed. The press release describes no money for consumers. FTC press release, January 22, 2024
• The Fifth Circuit described the order as barring Intuit "for the next twenty years" from advertising "any goods or services" as free unless the order's conditions are met. Fifth Circuit opinion, No. 24-60040
• Current status: on March 20, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held that deciding the deceptive-advertising claim before an administrative law judge violated the separation of powers. It ruled: "Intuit's petition for review is GRANTED; the FTC's order is VACATED; and the case is REMANDED to the agency for further proceedings." Fifth Circuit opinion, No. 24-60040
• No later ruling or new FTC filing was found on 2026-10-13. The FTC case page shows the matter as "Closed" and was last updated June 14, 2024. FTC case page
• On May 4, 2022, a coalition of 51 attorneys general announced a $141 million settlement with Intuit. California's share was $11.4 million for about 370,000 Californians, and the settlement also resolved suits by the Los Angeles City Attorney and Santa Clara County Counsel. California Attorney General, May 4, 2022
• Restitution was for people who filed with TurboTax in 2016 through 2018 after they started in TurboTax Free Edition and were told to pay, although they were eligible for the IRS Free File version. No claim was needed: eligible people were to receive a notice and a payment automatically, expected to be about $30. North Carolina DOJ, May 4, 2022
• The 2022 settlement also requires Intuit to suspend its "free, free, free" ad campaign, to improve disclosures in "free" marketing, and to stop making consumers restart their filing when they switch from a paid product to a free one. North Carolina DOJ, May 4, 2022

What tends to work

• Before you pay, remove add-ons you do not need (PLUS Help & Support, Pay With Your Refund, Premium Services, MAX, a state return, Fast Deposit), or downgrade to a lower TurboTax Online product. TurboTax: reduce fees
• Clear & Start Over removes all fees, but only "as long as you haven't submitted payment, deducted the TurboTax fee from your refund, or registered your product." The path is Tax Tools > Tools > Clear & Start Over. TurboTax: clear and start over
• For TurboTax Desktop, ask for a refund within 60 days with your license code or order number and a dated receipt. TurboTax guarantees
• If you missed the TurboTax Advantage auto-renewal deadline, wait for the software download, request a refund "within 60 days of receiving your product," and then cancel the membership. TurboTax: cancel Advantage
• If you bought through the Apple App Store or Google Play, ask that app store for the refund. TurboTax: request a refund
• To avoid a Pay With My Refund bank debit, pay through the email link by 12:00 PM PT on the Thursday before the debit date. You can also ask for a one-time 21-day deferral at 1-800-446-8848. TurboTax: auto-debited fees
• Reported by customers a TurboTax Community helper advises using the words "billing issues", not "refund", when you contact support about fees, so the request is not sent to tax-refund help. TurboTax Community thread

Traps and fine print

• Printing or e-filing "reflects (a) your satisfaction with Services," and the user therefore waives the right to a refund unless a guarantee applies (section B 5.4). Intuit Terms, TurboTax Online
• "Intuit may increase the price of any paid version of the Services as the respective tax filing deadline approaches." You pay the published price at the time you pay (sections B 3.1 and 3.2). Intuit Terms, TurboTax Online
• Subscriptions renew automatically. A cancellation takes effect "the day after the last day of the current subscription period," and Intuit gives no refunds or credits for cancellations or partial periods (Section A). Intuit Terms, TurboTax Online
• With Pay With My Refund, you authorize a bank debit if your tax refund does not cover the fees, or if the IRS still holds the refund 36 days after the original estimated date. TurboTax: auto-debited fees
• Free Edition is limited to "simple tax returns," and the Fifth Circuit noted: "Most American taxpayers do not have 'simple tax returns.'" Fifth Circuit opinion, No. 24-60040
• Under the Maximum Refund Guarantee, Free Edition users get $30 instead of a purchase-price refund. TurboTax guarantees

By the numbers

• California's Attorney General said that "70% of taxpayers qualify for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Free File Program," but "less than 3% of taxpayers used it to file their returns in 2020." Users who qualified for Free File were told to upgrade "for fees starting at $59.99." California Attorney General, May 4, 2022
• About 139,000 North Carolinians who filed with TurboTax in 2016 to 2018 were eligible for restitution, more than $4 million in total. North Carolina DOJ, May 4, 2022

Scams that target customers

• TurboTax says "Phishing and identity theft are the most common tax scams." Scammers send fake emails that impersonate tax preparers or the IRS, and they "often pretend to be IRS agents." TurboTax: tax time scams
• Forward suspicious emails that claim to be from TurboTax to security@intuit.com, and fake IRS emails to phishing@irs.gov. If you think you are a victim of tax identity theft, call the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 1-800-908-4490. TurboTax: tax time scams
• TurboTax also warns about "ghost" tax preparers who charge a fee based on a percentage of your refund. TurboTax: tax time scams
• Do not use a phone number from an unexpected email. Use the number on the TurboTax contact page, 1-800-446-8848. TurboTax: contact us