App Aims: Gauging Your Federal Refund

Reviewer’s Comments
There are often times when you wonder how much of a tax refund you’ll be getting back, or worse, how much you’ll owe! Enter the Income Tax Estimator ’08 app for the United States. This app allows you to enter your taxable income, taxes withheld, several different types of deductions and credits along with your filing status and dependent information. It then generates a mini report detailing the total gross income, taxable income, tax due, income withheld, tax bracket and how much you will get back or owe. You can save this report with all of the accompanying details for review later. This saved report’s details can also be modified later to reflect a change in income or deductions.

From a visual standpoint, there’s not much here—it’s strictly business. You can choose either a black or grey background with white or black text. The interface is somewhat confusing. It takes a while to familiarize yourself with the different screens and since the in-app support is fairly minimal as is the developer’s web site support, you’re on your own. The formulas are as accurate as the information that is entered. There is a field for adding self-employment income but the deductions that come along with working for yourself have to be figured out and entered as a lump sum which cuts down on the usefulness for the independent business person.

One of the more useless features is the Notifications screen which basically tells you that your taxes are due on Wednesday, April 15, 2008. If 2008’s tax day fell on a different day, such as the 16th because the 15th was a Sunday, the Notifications screen would make more sense. As it is now, it just takes up space on the main menu screen.

This app is only an estimator and won’t take the place of a good tax advisor. It’s great to play “what if” with but the provided information isn’t something you should bank on buying that cruise with.

Check out our iPhone 3G review, music and movie download reviews as well as our other iPhone App reviews to help you get the most out of your iPhone. If you’re ready to get serious about filing your taxes, be sure to read our Online Tax Software reviews to help you choose a software product that best suits your needs.