Tool profile
Drake Tax: cost, fit and limits
Drake Tax is professional tax preparation software made by Drake Software that prepares and e-files individual and business returns for tax firms, offered as an online service and as desktop packages, with AI extraction and an AI assistant named on the vendor's homepage.
What to know first
Drake Tax is sold by tax year, and the pricing page shows Tax year 2026 figures. The entry point is Drake Tax Online Pay-Per-Return at $299.99 with the first user included, then a fee for each return filed. Desktop tiers run to $3,295 for Drake Tax Pro. The homepage names Drake Intelligence and SmartExtract as its AI features, and all states are included in e-file. The pages checked state no API.
Drake Tax at a glance
| Maker | Drake Software, United States |
|---|---|
| Free plan | No |
| Entry price | $299.99 per Tax year 2026 (Drake Tax Online Pay-Per-Return) |
| API access | No |
| Category | Best AI Tax Preparation Software in 2026, rank 1 of 10 |
| Website | drakesoftware.com |
Who Drake Tax is best for
Small tax practices starting a season
The online pay-per-return plan includes the first user and charges $49.99 for each individual return, so a firm can scale cost with volume instead of buying a full license.
Firms drowning in manual data entry
SmartExtract is described as an AI-powered extraction tool that reduces manual entry, aimed at the hours spent keying client documents into return screens.
Practices that want portals and e-signature from one vendor
The Practice Essentials Bundle, from $599, adds Drake Portals, Drake Workflow and Drake E-Sign to Drake Tax Pro, 1040 or Drake Tax Online.
Drake Tax plans and pricing
| Plan | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Drake Tax Online Pay-Per-Return | $299.99 per Tax year 2026 | Includes the first user. Extra users cost $99 each, individual returns $49.99 and business returns $74.99 each. |
| Pay-Per-Return (desktop) | $379.99 per Tax year 2026 (multi-user) | Covers 10 individual returns. Further individual returns cost $49.99 each and business returns $74.99 each. |
| Drake Tax 1040 | $2,445, shown beside a footnoted $2,325 | Individual returns on multi-user pricing for Tax year 2026. The page offers the Practice Essentials Bundle with it. |
| Drake Tax Pro | $3,295, shown beside a footnoted $3,145 | Business and individual returns, multi-user, with a 250 total returns row listed on the pricing page. |
| Practice Essentials Bundle | From $599 | Drake Portals, Drake Workflow and Drake E-Sign, available with Pro, 1040 or Drake Tax Online at 25 pre-purchased returns or more. |
Checked November 2026.
What Drake Tax does
- Drake Intelligence
- The homepage labels this integrated AI. The pages checked do not spell out what it does, so a buyer should ask for a demonstration of its functions before counting on it.
- SmartExtract
- An AI-powered data extraction tool that the vendor says reduces manual entry. It is aimed at the step where client documents are turned into figures on the return.
- All-state e-file
- The pricing page states federal and state e-file with all states included, so there is no per-state fee to add up in a multi-state practice.
- Prior-year editions
- Editions for 2023 and 2024 are included and 2025 is available, which helps a firm that amends returns or reviews earlier years. The pricing page notes this in the same table as the Tax year 2026 prices.
- Drake Pay
- Accepts credit, debit, ACH and contactless payments, so a firm can collect preparation fees through the same vendor. Drake Pay sits next to Drake Portals, Workflow and E-Sign in the vendor's list of connected tools.
- Drake Audit Defense
- Listed as a new add-on on the pricing page. The pages checked do not detail coverage terms. It appears beside the Practice Essentials Bundle items and carries no price in the text read.
How Drake Tax handles your data
The Drake Tax pages do not state whether customer data trains AI models. The 1040.com privacy notice, written by the same owner, says it does not use personal information to train large language models, and keeps personal information as long as needed for business, tax or legal purposes. That notice says data is transferred to and stored in the United States. The pricing page lists a SOC2 compliant secure cloud hosting option from Rightworks, shown as an option rather than the default. No dedicated Drake Tax trust page was read.
Where Drake Tax falls short in practice
- Multi-user pricing dominates. The pricing table shows multi-user prices, and the top Drake Tax Pro tier is $3,295 per Tax year 2026. A solo preparer should read the single-user figures on the same page before comparing.
- Desktop plan caps returns. Desktop Pay-Per-Return at $379.99 includes only 10 individual returns, after which each costs $49.99, so a busy season changes the real cost quickly. A firm expecting more than a dozen clients should model the per-return fees against the larger multi-user tiers.
- AI functions are thinly described. Drake Intelligence is named on the homepage without a feature list in the pages read, so its scope, limits and data handling are not checkable from the vendor pages.
Works with
Alternatives to Drake Tax
Drake Tax: common questions
What does Drake Intelligence do in Drake Tax?
The vendor homepage labels Drake Intelligence as integrated AI but the pages we read do not list its functions. SmartExtract is described separately as AI data extraction that reduces manual entry. Ask Drake for a walkthrough of both before you rely on either during a filing season, and confirm which features come with your tier.
Is Drake Tax Online cheaper than the desktop version?
On the Tax year 2026 pricing page, Drake Tax Online Pay-Per-Return is $299.99 with the first user included, while desktop Pay-Per-Return is $379.99 and includes 10 individual returns. Per-return fees match at $49.99 for individuals and $74.99 for business returns, so the gap is the base fee.
Does Drake Tax include state e-file?
Yes. The pricing page states that federal and state e-file with all states is included, so a preparer does not add a per-state charge. This is a difference from consumer products such as TaxAct, where each state return costs extra. Confirm the inclusion for your tier on the live pricing page.
Does Drake use my clients' data to train AI?
The Drake Tax pages do not say. The privacy notice on 1040.com, run by the same company, states it does not use personal information to train large language models. Because that notice covers a different product, ask Drake for written confirmation that it applies to Drake Tax before uploading client documents.
What does the Practice Essentials Bundle add?
It adds Drake Portals, Drake Workflow and Drake E-Sign, starting from $599, and is available with Drake Tax Pro, Drake Tax 1040 or Drake Tax Online when you pre-purchase 25 or more returns. It covers client document exchange, task tracking and signatures, not extra tax forms.