Credit Karma Tax
Free federal filing for every form, $15 per state, powered by TurboTax. Needs a free Credit Karma account. Tax year 2025.
Prices checked October 14, 2026See current priceThe Bottom Line
- Federal filing
- Free plan available (tax year 2025 prices) (verified Oct 14, 2026). All rates and fees
Key facts
- Federal from: $0
- Free federal: Yes
- Self-employed: Free federal
- Prices for: Tax year 2025
Pros
- Federal is free for every situation, including self-employment and stock sales, with no income limit
- State returns are $15 each, well below most of the paid plans we compare
- Runs on TurboTax technology, with accuracy and refund guarantees on the Intuit terms
- Free early access to your refund (up to 5 days) in a Credit Karma Money account
Cons
- The state return is not free, and you need a Credit Karma account to start
- Audit defense and expert help are paid add-ons ($29 and $39)
- Getting the early refund into your own bank account costs $35
- Credit Karma's own page still shows placeholder text for next season's loan terms
At a glance
Prices checked October 14, 2026- Price basis
- Tax year 2025 prices, for returns filed in 2026
- Free federal return
- Yes: Everyone with a free Credit Karma account. No income limit and no form restrictions are stated: all IRS forms and schedules are included at no cost.
- State returns
- $15 per state return.
- Self-employed
- Federal for everyone, free federal
- Live expert help
- Expert Final Review from $39; PLUS bundle from $29
- Audit support
- Annual Audit Defense comes only in the optional $29 PLUS bundle. It is not part of the free federal filing.
- Guarantee
- 100% Accuracy Guarantee: pays an IRS or state penalty and interest caused by a Credit Karma Tax calculation error. Maximum Refund Guarantee: refunds the purchase price if another method, through an amended return, gets you a bigger refund; Credit Karma Tax customers are entitled to $30. Both are on the Intuit terms and good for seven years.
- Refund options
- Getting your refund up to 5 days early is free into a Credit Karma Money account and costs $35 into your own bank account; the program "may change or discontinue at any time". Paying the state fee out of your federal refund, or taking the Refund Advance loan, rules out the early deposit. The Refund Advance (advertised at 0% APR, up to $4,000, issued by WebBank) may not be available to everyone.
- Mobile app
- Yes, through the Credit Karma app: take a photo of your W-2 and upload it.
- Imports
- Photo of your W-2 uploaded in the Credit Karma app fills in some information. We did not find prior-year import on the pages we read.
- Forms supported
- Stated as all IRS forms and schedules for the federal return, including Schedule C, Schedule SE and Form 8949. No list of unsupported forms or states was found.
- IRS Free File
- No. Credit Karma Tax is not on the IRS's list of Free File partners.
Sources: creditkarma.com/tax, creditkarma.com/about/releases/free-credit-karm…, read October 14, 2026
Credit Karma Tax prices by plan
Tax year 2025 prices, for returns filed in 2026 · checked October 14, 2026Federal for everyone
Anyone comfortable preparing their own return, including freelancers and investors, who is happy to use a Credit Karma account.
Covers: All IRS forms and schedules for the federal return at no cost, including Schedule C and Schedule SE for self-employment and Form 8949 for investment sales. No list of unsupported forms was found.
Optional add-ons are priced separately. You can always file the federal return for $0 without them.
- Federal
- Free
- Each state
- $15
$15 per state, not free
“Federal” is your return to the IRS. “State” is a separate return to your state, priced per state. Vendors often show a “starting at” price and set the final one when you file, based on the forms your return needs.
What would you pay at Credit Karma Tax?
Employee with a W-2
$15
Federal for everyone: Free federal + $15 for one state
One job, standard deduction, no side income or investments, one state.
Freelancer or side income
$15
Federal for everyone: Free federal + $15 for one state
Self-employment income reported on Schedule C, one state.
Federal plus one state return at the cheapest plan that covers the situation, using the prices above (tax year 2025 prices, for returns filed in 2026). Optional extras (expert help, audit protection, refund-transfer fees) are not included.
Good to know before you file
- Federal is free for everyone, but a state return costs $15 for each state, and you need a Credit Karma account to start.
- The free early refund (up to 5 days) only goes into a Credit Karma Money account. Into your own bank account it costs $35, and the program may change or end at any time.
- Paying the state fee out of your federal refund, or taking the Refund Advance loan, rules out the early deposit. The loan's disclosure footnote for next season is still a placeholder, so the coming season's terms are not final.
- Audit defense is not free here: it comes only with the $29 PLUS bundle.
- It is made by Intuit and runs on TurboTax technology. It is not the old always-free Credit Karma Tax, which became Cash App Taxes in 2021.
What is Credit Karma Tax?
Credit Karma Tax is a tax filing service inside Credit Karma, the free credit-score site owned by Intuit. It is powered by TurboTax technology. Federal filing costs $0 for everyone, with all IRS forms and schedules included, including Schedule C for self-employment and Form 8949 for stock sales. A state return is $15 for each state. You need a free Credit Karma account to use it.
A note on the name, because it causes confusion: the original Credit Karma Tax, which was always free for federal and state, was sold to Square (now Block) in 2020 as a condition of Intuit buying Credit Karma, and renamed Cash App Taxes in 2021. It is still a separate, still-free product. The Credit Karma Tax you can use today is the Intuit one, and it charges $15 per state.
Optional extras are priced separately: an Expert Final Review at $39 and a PLUS bundle at $29 that adds product support and a year of audit defense. The prices on this page are what Credit Karma showed on October 14, 2026, for the 2025 filing season; the page still carries a placeholder footnote for next season's loan terms. We will re-check when the new season opens.
Key details
Free federal return with all IRS forms and schedulesState return $15 per statePowered by TurboTax technology, made by IntuitExpert Final Review $39 and PLUS bundle $29 (support and audit defense)Free early refund into a Credit Karma Money accountW-2 photo upload in the Credit Karma app
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Credit Karma Tax FAQ
Is Credit Karma Tax free?
Federal filing is $0 for everyone, with all IRS forms and schedules included and no income limit. A state return costs $15 per state. You need a free Credit Karma account. These are the prices Credit Karma showed on October 14, 2026, for the 2025 filing season.
How much does it cost to file federal plus one state with Credit Karma Tax?
$15: the federal return is free and one state return is $15, before any optional add-ons.
Is Credit Karma Tax the same as Cash App Taxes?
No. The original Credit Karma Tax, which was free for federal and state, was sold to Square (now Block) in 2020 and renamed Cash App Taxes in 2021. The Credit Karma Tax offered today is a separate Intuit product powered by TurboTax, and it charges $15 per state.
Can freelancers use Credit Karma Tax?
Yes. Credit Karma says all IRS forms and schedules are included at no cost for the federal return, including Schedule C and Schedule SE for self-employment. Each state return is $15.
What does the PLUS bundle include?
For $29 it includes access to product support specialists and one year of audit defense. Expert Final Review, a professional check of your finished return before you file, is $39.
Source: creditkarma.com