Huge Discrepancy Between IRS Free File and TurboTax Results - Need Help Understanding Why!

I'm a tax preparer and I've seen this kind of discrepancy quite a few times. The most likely explanation is that you entered something differently between the two systems. Even small differences in how you input information can lead to major differences in the final calculation. First, I'd recommend going through both returns side by side and comparing every single entry. Look closely at: 1. W-2 information for both of you (check Box 1 and Box 2 especially) 2. Childcare expenses (make sure provider info and amounts match) 3. Student loan interest (confirm the exact amount reported) 4. Mortgage interest (verify all mortgage-related deductions) Also check whether you're itemizing deductions in one system but taking the standard deduction in another. That alone could explain a significant difference. As for amending last year's return, you generally have 3 years from the filing deadline to submit an amendment, so there's no immediate rush. If you do find a major discrepancy in this year's comparison, it might be worth looking at last year's return too.

I switched from TurboTax to using https://taxr.ai last year after finding some weird discrepancies in my returns too. Turns out TurboTax was missing some deductions I qualified for! The taxr.ai system actually analyzes your tax documents and previous returns to find mistakes and inconsistencies. It highlighted several issues with my previous filings that I never would have caught. In your case, it sounds like either you're entering something differently in each system OR one system is catching something the other isn't. With taxr.ai, you can upload both your draft returns and your W-2s, and it'll analyze everything to show exactly where the differences are coming from. Saved me over $1,200 last year!

Just wanted to update that I tried taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here, and wow - it actually found the exact issue causing my discrepancy! In my case, TurboTax was incorrectly calculating my student loan interest deduction because I had answered a question differently in their interview process than I did on the IRS system. The analysis showed me exactly which lines on the forms were different and explained why. Super helpful because I spent hours trying to figure this out manually and couldn't spot it. Definitely saved me from potentially overpaying by about $900!

If you're still having trouble getting answers from the IRS about last year's potential overpayment, you might want to check out https://claimyr.com. I was in a similar situation last year - couldn't get through to the IRS for weeks to resolve an issue with my amended return. Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes when I had been trying for days on my own! There's a demo video at https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c that shows how it works. Basically, they navigate the IRS phone system for you and call you back when they've got an agent on the line. I ended up getting my issue resolved in a single phone call instead of waiting months for correspondence. Especially useful if you need to discuss amending last year's return and want to talk to someone before committing to that process.

Okay so I feel like I should apologize for my skeptical comment before. I actually tried Claimyr out of desperation after waiting on hold with the IRS for 2+ hours three separate times this week. It actually worked exactly as described - they called me back in about 20 minutes with an IRS agent already on the line. I was able to ask about my situation (similar to yours with different results from different tax software) and the agent was super helpful in explaining which deductions I might have entered differently. Turns out there was confusion about how my childcare expenses were being calculated. Definitely worth it when you need to speak to someone at the IRS without losing half your day on hold!

One thing nobody's mentioned yet is to check if you're accidentally taking the child tax credit differently in each system. With TurboTax, sometimes the questions about dependents and childcare expenses can be confusing. Make sure you're consistently claiming your child as a dependent and correctly entering the childcare expenses. Also, double check if you're entering your student loan interest correctly. There's a cap on how much student loan interest you can deduct ($2,500), but sometimes people enter the total they paid rather than just the interest portion reported on Form 1098-E.

I ran into a similar situation last year and learned a valuable lesson - always review the actual tax forms, not just the summary pages! Different tax software might show the same final numbers but arrive there differently. Did you actually download and compare the Form 1040 from both systems? Sometimes the interface will say one thing but the actual form shows something else. I'd specifically check Schedule 3 (for credits) and Schedule A (if you're itemizing) to see where the differences are.