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The holiday season is in full swing, but as the year comes to a close, another season that’s far less cheerful looms: tax season. Although the filing deadline for the 2024 tax year is months away, CivicScience data reveal 62% of U.S. adults say they are already thinking about and preparing for their tax returns, including 15% who are thinking about it ‘a lot.’
With this in mind, what insights does CivicScience data have to offer as Americans look ahead to preparing their taxes in 2025? See below for five insights previewing the upcoming tax season:
1. The majority plan to file their taxes before the end of February.
- Filing Timelines: Over half of tax filers plan to file their taxes by the end of February, including 23% filing as soon as they are able. Only 6% plan to wait until the last minute before the April deadline.
- Timelines Increase With Age: Gen Z aged 18-24 lead the way in earliest possible filing plans. Gen Xers are the most likely to file by the end of February, while adults 55+ lead in last-minute and extension intent.
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2. Tax filers are equally as likely to use paid and free software/services to prepare their taxes this year.
- Self-Tax Prep: 49% of Americans plan to do their own taxes (up from 48% last year), with an equal percentage using either paid tax software/online services or free tax software/online services (21%), and 7% doing them by hand.
- Other Filing Options: 28% plan to hire a personal accountant and 7% will use an online tax preparation service to do it for them. Six percent have an ‘other’ method in mind, while 11% aren’t sure how they’ll handle tax preparation yet.1
3. The Tax Prep Industry’s Two Titans Continue To Command Demand
- TurboTax Maintains its Lead: A total of 55% of filers plan to use either Intuit TurboTax (36%) or H&R Block (19%) – up one point YoY (54%).
- Other Services Are Much Less Popular: TaxAct (7%) trails significantly with TaxSlayer, Cash App Taxes, and Jackson Hewitt each at 4%. An additional 27% of respondents chose ‘other’ methods as their likely plan.2
4. Americans are slightly more likely to expect they’ll receive a tax refund this year.
- Majority Expect Refunds: 59% of Americans expect to receive money back on their 2024 taxes, a two-point increase over the past two years (57%).
- Splits By Age & Politics: Roughly two-thirds of each age group expect a refund, except for those 55+, who are split (49% expect a refund). Democrats are most likely to expect a refund, with 72% anticipating money back – 18 points higher than Republicans.
5. Spending plans are largely consistent with last year, with one noteworthy shift.
- Setting It Aside: Refund spending plans largely mirror 2023 trends, though plans to ‘put it aside’ have risen from 21% to 24% YoY.
- Republicans Eye Tackling Debt: While Democrats are most likely to plan to use refunds for home improvements, Republicans instead prioritize paying off debt. Independents, meanwhile, lean toward investing or going shopping with it.
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With tax season on the horizon, Americans are more optimistic about receiving a refund this year, with some possibly filing earlier to claim it. Despite this, retailers hoping to capitalize on tax return spending should remain agile – filers so far eye a more conservative approach with their refunds. This year’s filing likely will not be impacted by the new Trump term, but it remains to be seen how other policies might impact consumer tax refund plans.
