a great deal on turbotax

My wealthy friends with accountants and my organized friends who filed weeks ago should scroll to the bottom half of this post for some sites for finding deals. For the procrastinators like me who have not yet started their tax returns, read on.

TurboTax Deluxe with State, the default program for preparing your own taxes, is half price at Office Depot. The online cost still shows as $39.99, the same price as Staples and Fry’s, but when you purchase in-store it rings up as $19.99.

I’m not sure why it is $20 off. I didn’t see it advertised and I haven’t read about it on any of the deal sites (links below), so it was a pleasant surprise. Click here for a scan of my receipt and bring it with you in case your copy rings up differently. Office Depot has a price-matching policy.

Note: TurboTax is available for PC and Mac. The Deluxe with State edition contains Federal forms on a CD and a download for the state of your choice. Unlike last year, it installed for me without difficulty. There is one substantial negative, however. There are no rebates available when e-filing this year using TurboTax. To save the IRS the cost of data entry you must pay. Makes a lot of sense to me.

Sites for great deals

Pricewatch: The original price comparison engine. Great for online electronics purchases. Enter a model number and Pricewatch finds the best deals.

PriceGrabber: The most comprehensive comparison engine. Use it for all your online purchase. Their best feature is Bottom Line Price which calculates tax and shipping. Both Pricewatch and PriceGrabber are much better than Froogle

Slickdeals: Browse the homepage for great bargains (like Dell’s newest 19” LCD for $236) or search the forums if you know what you are looking for. Their links for free magazines have worked well for me

FatWallet: The largest deal site. Like Slickdeals, it is worth the effort to search if you know what you want