What drives the price
Almost all of it comes down to how many hours the return takes and how much judgment it requires.
- Forms and schedules. A W-2 and a standard deduction is a different job from a Schedule C, a Schedule E with three rentals, and a Schedule D with a few hundred trades.
- Number of states. Each state return is real work, and part-year or nonresident allocations are more work than a resident return.
- Entity returns. Partnership and S corporation returns generate K-1s, basis tracking, and reasonable compensation questions that a 1040 does not.
- Condition of your records. Clean bookkeeping is cheap to work from. A shoebox, or a QuickBooks file nobody reconciled, is a bookkeeping engagement wearing a tax return costume.
- Complexity that requires research. Equity compensation, crypto, foreign accounts and FBAR, clergy, rental cost segregation, multi-entity structures, trusts. These take time and carry risk.
- When you show up. Late-season and post-deadline work costs more nearly everywhere, because it displaces other work.
- What is bundled in. Planning conversations, quarterly estimates, and notice handling are services. If they are included, the price reflects it.
The common fee structures
- Flat fee for the engagement. You know the number before work starts. Easiest to compare, and the one I use.
- Per form or per schedule. A base rate plus an amount for each additional form. Transparent, but the total is not known until the return is nearly done.
- Hourly. Common for cleanup work, representation, and unusual projects, where nobody can honestly quote a fixed number in advance.
- Subscription or advisory retainer. A monthly fee covering bookkeeping, the return, estimates, and access during the year. Good fit for a business that needs someone all year, not once in April.
A fee based on a percentage of your refund. It pays your preparer to make the refund bigger, and you are the one who signs the return. It is a red flag in every professional standard I know of.
What is usually included, and what usually is not
This is where two quotes stop being comparable. Ask specifically.
| Typically included | Often billed separately |
|---|---|
| Preparing and e-filing the federal return | Bookkeeping or cleanup to get to a starting point |
| The resident state return | Additional state, part-year, or nonresident returns |
| A review call to go over the result | Standalone planning sessions during the year |
| Answering a simple question after filing | Responding to an IRS or state notice, or an audit |
| Basic estimated payment vouchers | Recalculating estimates mid-year as income changes |
| Electronic copies of the filed return | Amending a prior-year return |
How to compare two quotes honestly
- List your actual forms. Send both preparers the same summary of your situation and last year's return.
- Ask what is not included. The answer is the difference between the quotes more often than the base rate is.
- Ask the notice question. "If the IRS writes to me about this return, do you handle it, and is it billed?" A cheaper return from someone who cannot represent you is not cheaper.
- Ask about the credential. See EA vs CPA vs unlicensed preparer.
- Ask about responsiveness. Turnaround time and availability in the off-season are part of what you are buying.
When paying more is genuinely worth it
Not always. If your return is a W-2 and a standard deduction, you do not need to spend much, and I will tell you so.
It is worth it when there is real money moving through decisions: a business, rental property, equity compensation, a retirement rollover, an entity choice, a big life change, or an IRS problem. In those cases the return is the smallest part of the value. The planning conversation, held before December 31 rather than in April, is where the outcome actually changes. A few hundred dollars of fee routinely moves several thousand dollars of tax in those situations, and it never moves anything if the conversation happens after the year closes.
How I price it
Flat fee, quoted before I start, based on your actual situation rather than a form count I keep discovering. Tax preparation starts at $350. Strategy sessions and business work are priced individually and listed on the services page. If your situation turns out to be simpler or more complicated than it looked, I say so before doing the work, not on the invoice.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to have an Enrolled Agent do my taxes?
It depends far more on the return than on the credential. Fees track the number of forms, states, and entities involved, the condition of your records, and whether planning and notice handling are included. At Y10 Tax Solutions, tax preparation starts at $350 with a flat fee quoted before work begins.
Is a CPA more expensive than an Enrolled Agent?
Sometimes, but the ranges overlap heavily and the driver is complexity, market, and service level rather than the letters. Compare on scope, responsiveness, and whether representation is included.
Why did my fee go up this year?
Usually because the return changed: a new business, a rental, an extra state, equity compensation, a retirement distribution, or messier records than last year. It can also reflect new reporting requirements. Ask your preparer to point to the specific change, and a good one will.
Can I deduct tax preparation fees?
For most individuals, no. Fees for preparing a personal return sat among miscellaneous itemized deductions, which are not currently deductible for individuals. Fees allocable to a business, a rental, or a farm remain deductible on the relevant schedule, so the portion of your fee tied to a Schedule C, E, or F generally is deductible there. Ask your preparer to allocate it.
Should I just use tax software instead?
If your return is a W-2, maybe some interest, and the standard deduction, software is a reasonable choice and I will say so. Once there is a business, rental property, equity compensation, multiple states, or an IRS issue in the picture, the questions software cannot ask you are usually where the money is.
Want a real number for your situation?
Send me a short description of your year and last year's return, and I will quote a flat fee before any work starts. No surprises on the invoice, and no percentage-of-refund nonsense.
Get started → See services & pricing