Cryptocurrency Tax Software: Where to Get Crypto Tax Help in 2024

Settling up with the IRS at tax time can be complicated if you've been doing a lot of cryptocurrency trading. Unlike stockbrokers, crypto exchanges aren't always required to file tax forms summarizing your annual activity. It's on you to figure out what you netted last year and what that means for your taxes.

Several software companies have created products to help investors and traders get ready to file taxes for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in recent years.

Generally, these programs use data from your exchange to compile records of your profits and losses. Crypto tax software can help you generate an IRS Form 8949 based on your records.

This document is used to report sales of capital assets, and it is different from the form a stockbroker might send you cataloging your equities sales in the past year.

Crypto tax software providers also tend to offer a suite of other reports and services depending on your needs.

» Learn more about crypto taxes and current rates

Below are details on some of the leading crypto tax products, listed in alphabetical order:

Prices start at: Free. However, if you want to actually download your tax forms, you'll have to pay at least $49.

Tax software connections: TurboTax, TaxAct, H&R Block, TaxSlayer. CoinLedger states that other tax software connections exists, but doesn't list them specifically.

Summary: CoinLedger (formerly CryptoTrader.Tax) orients its pricing mostly around the number of transactions you plan to use it for. Full-service plans range from $49, for up to 100 trades, to $199, for users with more than 3,000 trades. Every paid plan offers several tax forms, support for DeFi income and live chat/email support. CoinLedger lists more than 200 exchanges, wallets and other crypto services that it can directly connect to.

Prices start at: Free, though plans with tax form downloads start at $49 per year.

Tax software connections: TurboTax, TaxAct, H&R Block.

Summary: Koinly offers a free trial for up to 10,000 transactions. The catch is that you'll have to pay $49 to download many types of reports. Plans range up to $179 (which gets you into a tier with priority customer support, among other benefits), and tiers are based on the number of transactions you want to include. Koinly offers support for staking and other types of crypto income and says it works with more than 400 exchanges and more than 100 wallets. Koinly supports tax reports in multiple countries aside from the U.S., including Canada, Australia, UK, Germany, Norway, Denmark and Sweden.

Prices start at: $65 per year.

Tax software connections: TurboTax.

Summary: TokenTax has some of the pricier options on the market, but it also offers some unique services for higher-paying customers. Plans begin at $65, and that tier offers up to 500 transactions but only supports automated connections with Coinbase. At $199, plans offer tax-loss harvesting and NFT and DeFi integration, with up to 5,000 transactions and support for all centralized exchanges. Offerings increase up to $2,999, which offers access to a tax expert to help you with your crypto taxes. All plans include live chat support.

Prices start at: Free

Tax software connections: TurboTax

Summary: TurboTax now has a year-round crypto accounting software that's separate from its traditional tax prep service. You'll need to set up a Intuit account if you don't already have one, but once you're in, you can sync the software to more than 20 of the largest exchanges and wallets. The software updates within 24 hours of crypto transactions performed on synced accounts, providing an overview of the tax impacts of your recent activity. The software also tracks cost basis values so users can easily report capital gains and losses. When it comes time to file, users can import their crypto data directly into TurboTax.

The downside here is that users may feel locked in to using TurboTax once they use the Investor Center for crypto. While it would be possible to manually fill out the necessary crypto forms using data organized by Investor Center, it wouldn't be very efficient. So if you're loyal to a CPA service or a different tax prep software, TurboTax Investor Center may not be for you.

Prices start at: Free, though plans for more than 25 transactions start at $49 per year.

Tax software connections: TurboTax.

Summary: ZenLedger's pricing structure turns heavily on the volume of transactions you intend to process. If you're just an occasional trader looking to process 25 or fewer transactions, ZenLedger's free version might meet your needs. Plans starting at $149 have support for NFTs, DeFi and staking. In a notable departure from many competitors, all of ZenLedger's plans offer premium support, including chat and phone. ZenLedger also offers professional tax preparation, with a $275 30-minute consultation to troubleshoot your return and complete preparation available for $3,500 a year or $6,500 for two years.

When choosing a crypto tax software, there are a few questions everyone should ask:

Does it connect directly with your crypto exchange?

Many providers generate reports by connecting directly to major exchanges and pulling the data for all your transactions. However, not every software connects to every exchange, and if yours doesn't match up, you may have to download data from your exchange, then upload it on your own.

Does it work with your tax preparation program?

Crypto tax software can often interface directly with the computer programs that help you file your tax returns. While connectivity with TurboTax is typical, other programs have more sporadic coverage.

How many trades did you make?

Some platforms offer tiered pricing based on how many transactions you’ve made in a year. A quick look at your trading history could help you figure out which is the most economical option.

Do you have income from decentralized finance (or DeFi) applications, staking or nonfungible tokens (or NFTs)?

Not all providers include these types of transactions in their basic service.

Do you need crypto tax software at all?

It's possible that you could get by with the offerings laid out by your existing tax software provider. TurboTax, for instance, says it can import data directly from some of the leading cryptocurrency services.