If you frequently trade in cryptocurrencies, it can be complicated to settle with the IRS at tax time. Unlike securities companies, cryptocurrency exchange It is not always necessary to submit a tax form summarizing your annual activities. It's up to you to understand last year's profits and what it means for your taxes.
Several software companies have developed products to help investors and traders prepare. declare bitcoin taxes Other cryptocurrencies in recent years.
These programs typically use data from exchanges to compile profit and loss records. Crypto tax software helps you generate IRS Form 8949 based on your records.
This document is used to report capital asset sales and is different from the format in which stockbrokers send catalogs of stock sales for the past year.
Crypto tax software providers also tend to offer a range of other reports and services depending on your needs.
Crypto tax software program overview
free. However, plans with form downloads start at $49 per year. |
TurboTax, TaxAct, H&R Block, TaxSlayer. |
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It's free, but plans with tax form downloads start at $49 per year. |
TurboTax, TaxAct, H&R Block. |
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It's free, but plans for more than 25 transactions start at $49 per year. |
Below are details of the major cryptocurrency tax products in alphabetical order.
Prices start from: free. However, if you want to actually download your tax forms, you'll have to pay at least $49.
Connect tax software: turbo tax, tax law, H&R Block, tax slayer. CoinLedger states that connections with other tax software exist, but does not list them specifically.
summary: CoinLedger (formerly CryptoTrader.Tax) bases its pricing primarily on the number of transactions you plan to use. Full-service plans range from $49 for up to 100 transactions to $199 for users making 3,000 or more transactions. All paid plans include several tax forms, DeFi income support, and live chat/email support. CoinLedger lists over 200 exchanges, wallets, and other crypto services that you can connect to directly.
Prices start from: It's free, but plans with tax form downloads start at $49 per year.
Connect tax software: TurboTax, TaxAct, H&R Block.
summary: Koinly offers a free trial for up to 10,000 transactions. The problem is that you have to pay $49 to download different types of reports. Plans range up to $179 (which puts you in a tier with benefits like priority customer support), and tiers are based on the number of transactions you include. Koinly offers support for staking and other types of crypto income, and says it works with over 400 exchanges and 100 wallets. In addition to the United States, Koinly supports tax filing in multiple countries including Canada, Australia, United Kingdom, Germany, Norway, Denmark, and Sweden.
Prices start from: $65 per year.
Connect tax software: Turbo tax.
summary: Although TokenTax has some of the more expensive options on the market, it also offers some unique services for customers who pay higher fees. Plans start at $65, and that tier offers up to 500 transactions, but only supports automatic connection with Coinbase. The plan costs $199 and offers loss recovery and NFT and DeFi integration, with up to 5,000 transactions and support for all centralized exchanges. The offer increases to up to $2,999 and provides access to a tax expert who can help you with your crypto taxes. All plans include live chat support.
Connect tax software: turbo tax
summary: TurboTax now offers crypto accounting software that is available year-round, apart from traditional tax preparation services. You'll need to set up an Intuit account if you don't already have one, but once you do, you can sync the software with over 20 of the largest exchanges and wallets. The software updates within 24 hours after a cryptocurrency transaction is performed on a synced account, providing an overview of the tax implications of recent activity. The software also tracks cost basis values, allowing users to easily report capital gains and losses. When it's time to file, the user can import the cryptographic data directly into his TurboTax.
The downside here is that users may feel locked into using TurboTax when using the Cryptocurrency Investor Center. It is also possible to manually fill out the required cryptographic forms using the data organized by the Investor Center, but this is not very efficient. So if you love CPA services or another tax preparation software, TurboTax Investor Center may not be for you.
Prices start from: It's free, but plans for more than 25 transactions start at $49 per year.
Connect tax software: Turbo tax.
summary: ZenLedger's pricing structure greatly impacts the amount of transactions it processes. If you are an occasional trader looking to process 25 or fewer trades, ZenLedger's free version may meet your needs. Plans starting at $149 support NFT, DeFi, and staking. Significantly different from many of its competitors, all of ZenLedger's plans offer premium support, including chat and phone. ZenLedger also provides professional tax preparation services. A 30-minute consultation to troubleshoot your return costs $275, and he can be fully prepared for $3,500 per year or $6,500 over two years.
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How to choose the best cryptocurrency tax software
There are several questions everyone should ask when choosing crypto tax software.
Are you directly connected to a cryptocurrency exchange?
Many providers generate reports by connecting directly to major exchanges and retrieving data for all trades. However, not all software can connect to all exchanges, so if your software doesn't match, you may need to download the data from the exchange and upload it yourself.
Will it work with your tax preparation program?
Crypto tax software can often connect directly with computer programs that help you file your tax returns. Connections with TurboTax are common but covered more sporadically by other programs.
How many trades did you make?
Some platforms offer tiered pricing based on the number of trades you make in a year. A quick review of your trading history will help you decide which is the most economical option.
Do you have income from decentralized finance (or DeFi) applications, staking or non-fungible tokens (or NFTs)?
Not all providers include these types of transactions in their basic services.
Do you need cryptocurrency tax software at all?
Your existing tax software provider may be able to accommodate your needs. For example, TurboTax says it can directly import data from several major cryptocurrency services.