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September 2015 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com 9 TAX PLANNING SYSTEMS Reviews BEST FIT BNA Income Tax Planner is an excellent fit for firms with more complicated tax needs that require ta x planning capab i l it y across multiple states. PRODUCT STRENGTHS • P roduc t c a n i mpor t t a x d at a f r om s e v e r a l t h i rd p a r t y t a x preparation programs • G o o d r e p o r t i n g o p t i o n s including charts and graphs • Produc t i nteg rates w it h BNA products POTENTIAL LIMITATIONS • Does not hand le non-resident taxes for all states SUMMARY & PRICING BNA Income Tax Planner is a good option for firms that need solid third party application integration as well as online program access. Pricing is dependent on both the platform (Desktop/Online) as well as number of users. Base pricing for the online version is $1,115, with additional user licenses extra. www.BNASoftware.com BEST FIT ProSystem fx Planning will work well for mid-sized to larger frms that have more complex tax planning needs. Ideally, ProSystem fx Planning should be used in connection with either ProSystem fx Suite or CCH Axcess Tax packages; with both products ofering complete integra- tion with ProSystem fx Planning. PRODUCT STRENGTHS • Product can forecast up to 30 diferent tax scenarios • Scenarios can include up to 10 years of data per plan • Solid integration with ProSystem fx Suite and CCH A xcess Tax • User t utor ia l s a nd sol id help resources available POTENTIAL LIMITATIONS • Product currently does not ofer e x por t c apabi l it y to E xcel or other applications • Reporting is limited to spread- sheets SUMMARY & PRICING Solid integration with ProSystem fx Suite and CCH Axcess Tax make the program even more desirable while increasing its value to those already using CCH products. Base pricing for ProSystem fx Planning starts at $775.00, which includes all federal and state tax data. www.cchgroup.com BEST FIT Drake Tax Planner is a free add-on offered by Drake Tax Software, making the product an ideal ft for smaller frms using or planning to use Drake Tax Sofware. PRODUCT STRENGTHS • Product ofers excellent integra- tion with Drake Tax Sofware • Product is easy to navigate • T h r e e s of t w a r e d e plo y me nt options are available: Desktop, Hosted, and Online • Good product support options • P roduc t i s av a i lable a s a f ree add-on to t hose usi ng or pu r- chasing Drake Tax POTENTIAL LIMITATIONS • Tax scenarios are limited to two years SUMMARY & PRICING Available as a desktop product, as a h o s te d p ro d u c t , o r a n o n l i n e product, Drake Tax Planning ofers a level of fexibility to smaller frms. Free to those already using Drake Tax Sofware, the product is a good c h o i ce f o r f i r ms l o ok i ng f o r a completely integrated tax prepara- tion and tax planning system. With Drake Tax Sofware also ofering free built-in modules for client w r ite-up, pay rol l, and practice management, this is truly a com- plete solution for the smaller frm. www.DrakeSoftware.com BEST FIT Lacerte Tax Planner ofers a lower price point than many other tax planning products, making it a good ft for small to mid-sized frms with limited budgets. PRODUCT STRENGTHS • User friendly interface • O f fer s e a s y i nte g r at ion w it h Lacerte Tax • Produc t comes bu nd led w it h Lacerte Tax A nalyzer • Of fers yearly wage estimation capability POTENTIAL LIMITATIONS • Does not ofer preconfgured tax calculations for all states SUMMARY & PRICING Current Lacerte Tax users will fnd a number of benefts in using Lacerte Tax Planner – most importantly the level of integration available between products. Currently, Lacerte Tax Planner is bundled with Lacerte Tax Analyzer at a cost of $208, with a free demo ofered to those interested in test driving the product prior to purchase. http://accountants.intuit. com/tax/lacerte/ BEST FIT Fir ms already using Thomson Reuters tax applications will beneft the most from using CS Planner. PRODUCT STRENGTHS • Ability to produce multiple tax proje c t ion s for a n u n l i m ited number of years • Excellent report customization capabilities • Excel lent integration w ith the c o m p l e t e s u i t e o f T h o m s o n Reuters tax related applications • Ability to import data from third party tax preparation products POTENTIAL LIMITATIONS • L i m ited e x por t c apabi l it y to third party applications SUMMARY & PRICING Planner CS, from Tomson Reuters ofers mid to large-sized organiza- tions the tools they need to easily handle more complex client tax needs. Excellent integration with Thomas Reuters tax preparation products will save users a great deal of time and increase tax planning efciencies for both their frm and their clients. Te standalone price for Planner CS is $710 for the fed- eral application, with all 50 states available at a cost of $320. https:// cs.thomsonreuters.com/ planner BNA Income Tax Planner CCH ProSystem fx Planning Drake Tax Planner Intuit Lacerte Tax Planner Thomson Reuters Tax Planner CS Read the full review and see expanded ratings for this product online at: www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/12107040 Read the full review and see expanded ratings for this product online at: www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/12107051 Read the full review and see expanded ratings for this product online at: www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/12107019 Read the full review and see expanded ratings for this product online at: www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/12107011 Read the full review and see expanded ratings for this product online at: www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/12107011 5 4.75 4 4.5 5 2015 OVERALL RATING 2015 OVERALL RATING 2015 OVERALL RATING 2015 OVERALL RATING 2015 OVERALL RATING