How to Estimate Taxes Online

You can submit your federal income tax return by filing on paper or electronic forms. Before filing, you can estimate your taxes online so you can get an approximation of how much federal tax you'll owe or the amount of money you'll be refunded. A few independent companies provide the means for you to estimate your taxes online for free.

Things You'll Need

• Income documentation (e.g., W-2, 1099 forms)

Instructions

Use TurboTax

1. Go to Intuit's TurboTax website (see Resources). Click on "Tax Calculators and Tips."

2. Click the "TaxCaster" tax calculator option.

3. Choose your filing status and enter the relevant ages for you and spouse, if applicable, in the boxes provided.

4. Click the "Your Income" box. Click and drag the slider bars with your mouse to select the appropriate level of income, federal and state withholding, and unemployment income. Click "Done" and repeat the process for the "Spouse's Income" section if you're married filing jointly. Click "Done."

5. Click each of the "Other Income" and "Business Income" boxes. Move the slider bars or type an appropriate number in the box to reflect your income situation. Click "Done" when finished.

6. Click each of the boxes in the "Deductions, Payments and Credits" section. Move the slider bars or type a number into the boxes provided to reflect your financial situation and the deductions and credits for which you're eligible. Click "Done" after each section.

7. Review the "Calculation Results" section on the right and see if you have a "Balance Due" or "Refund." Look at the breakdown of results, including the total deductions, exemptions and credits, as well as taxes that TurboTax estimates you're responsible for.

Use 1040.com

1. Go to the 1040.com website provided by Drake Software (see Resources).

2. Click on "Tax Tools" and then "Federal Tax Estimator."

3. Select your filing status from the drop-down menu. Type the number of dependents that you're claiming exemptions for and earned income credit purposes.

4. Click one of the radio buttons to indicate whether you or your spouse are being claimed on another person's tax return.

5. Type the personal, financial and income information into the boxes on the screen from employer W-2 forms, 1099 forms and other income documentation. Type the information about your spouse in the boxes if you're married filing jointly.

6. Click the "Calculate" button. Review the results in the "Federal Tax Estimator" section concerning your estimated adjusted gross income, earned income credit, tax liability or federal refund.

Use eFile

1. Go to the eFile website (see Resources).

2. Click "Tax Return Calculator" in the right column.

3. Select a filing status and enter the number of exemptions you're claiming. Click "Next."

4. Click and drag the slider bars in the "Income" section to specify your wages or salary for the tax year, capital gains and losses, business income and loss and other taxable income you're claiming. Click "Next."

5. Click and drag the slider bars in the "Deductions" section to specify the deduction levels for which you're eligible. Click "Next" and repeat the process for the "Payments and Credits" section. Click "Next."

6. Review your tax information on the summary screen. Look to see what the tax calculator states is your total taxable income, tax liability owed or total estimated payments from the federal government that you'll receive.

References

• eFile: Estimate Your Taxes for the 2010 Tax Year
• Intuit: TurboTax
• 1040.com

Resources

• TheTopTens: Top Ten Best Tax Software Programs