Sree Tips: Tax Prep Apps
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - April 15 will be here before you know it, and there are lots of websites and software to get you ready, but you may not have thought of smartphone apps for doing your taxes.
Sree Sreenivasan, tech expert from our partner network CNET and Columbia University's chief digital officer stopped by with some apps you should know.
It's more obvious to talk about websites for taxes than apps, but these apps aren't meant to substitute for sites and software. They are meant to help you get organized for the tax season and get you ready to deal with software or your accountant.
The first app to mention is H&R Block At Home 1040EZ (free, Android/iPhone).
This is a useful app if you fill in the 1040EZ form (you are single and your income is less than $80,000 or you file jointly and your income is less than $100,000). Take a photo of your W-2, see the filled-in form and you can send it directly to the IRS.
Up next is iDonatedIt ($2.99, Android/iPhone).
This is a handy app if you donate used items to charity. Take a photo, estimate the item's value and calculate the tax savings.
The next app is Lemon.com (free, Android/iPhone/Blackberry).
Lemon.com offers multiple ways to get organized around your finances, including receipt tracking. Take a picture of a receipt and you can track the expense, share with your accountant, etc. You can track 25 receipts free, but for $5 a month, you can do up to 500.
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Sree Sreenivasan is CBS2′s technology expert, appearing every Wednesday morning at 6:50 am to discuss ways to save you time, money and aggravation. You can find him on Twitter and Facebook and on his personal site. E-mail your questions with "CBS New York" as the subject line.
