Drake Software Review: Achieve Flawless Tax Filing For Over 70,000 Firms

Tired of tax software slowing you down?

If you’re evaluating new solutions, it’s likely because manual data entry, error-prone filing, and complex multi-state returns eat up your billable hours every season.

But the real pain? You’re stuck double-checking calculations and firefighting late-night filing issues, all of which delay your clients and make tax season even more stressful.

Drake Software tackles these headaches by combining comprehensive tax prep tools, real-time form updates, and integrated document management—plus a new contactless payment system, all designed specifically around what you need as a tax professional.

That means in this review, I’ll break down how Drake streamlines your entire workflow so you can cut back on errors and focus on what matters most: delivering for your clients.

In this Drake Software review, you’ll see what sets Drake apart in real tax scenarios, including features, user experience, pricing, and how it compares with top alternatives.

You’ll get the insights and honest opinions you need to choose the features you need to boost your accounting firm or solo practice.

Let’s get started.

Drake Software Overview

Since 1977, Drake Software has been a trusted partner for professional tax preparers. Headquartered in Franklin, North Carolina, their founding mission was to provide powerful, straightforward tools to help them build their practice.

They specialize in serving independent preparers and smaller accounting firms that need robust features without enterprise-level complexity. I find their intense focus on empowering independent tax professionals is what truly sets them apart in this market.

Recent developments, like a major private equity investment and the 2024 launch of Drake Pay™, signal they’re actively modernizing. We’ll explore the impact for you through this Drake Software review.

Unlike competitors like Intuit’s Lacerte, which can be overwhelming with tiered pricing, Drake feels refreshingly direct. Their biggest differentiator is its all-inclusive, flat-rate pricing model, giving your firm much-needed budget certainty.

They now work with a massive base of over 70,000 tax and accounting firms. These are typically solo practitioners and smaller practices that collectively file over 40 million returns annually on the platform.

From my analysis, their current strategy centers on building an integrated ecosystem, from secure client portals to embedded payment processing. This end-to-end workflow focus directly addresses your team’s need for greater efficiency.

Now let’s examine their capabilities.

Drake Software Features

Still struggling with tax season chaos?

Drake Software features are designed to streamline the entire tax preparation process, making your busy season more manageable. Here are the five main Drake Software features that simplify tax compliance and client management.

1. Drake Tax

Overwhelmed by complex tax forms and rules?

Manually handling federal and state tax forms can be a nightmare, leading to errors and compliance worries. This often causes stress and wasted time during peak season.

Drake Tax offers comprehensive tax preparation for all entity types, supporting over 4,300 federal and state forms. From my testing, the instant calculation results and autofill feature truly shine, reducing manual entry and potential errors. This feature ensures you stay compliant with the latest tax codes.

This means you can prepare accurate returns faster, allowing you to serve more clients with confidence.

2. Drake Accounting

Need better control over client accounting and payroll?

Juggling separate accounting software for each client can be inefficient and prone to data inconsistencies. You might miss opportunities to offer integrated services.

Drake Accounting provides a robust platform for bookkeeping and payroll, integrating seamlessly with Drake Tax for easy data export. What I love is how it supports multi-location payroll and double-entry accounting, giving you accurate financial records. This feature helps you centralize client financial data.

So, you can provide comprehensive accounting services, attracting new clients and building deeper relationships.

3. Drake Portals

Is secure client document exchange a constant headache?

Sharing sensitive tax documents via insecure methods risks data breaches and erodes client trust. This creates unnecessary security vulnerabilities for your firm.

Drake Portals offers a secure, web-based client portal using 256-bit encryption for confidential document exchange. From my evaluation, the contactless preparation and team collaboration truly stand out, simplifying client communication. This feature ensures your data is protected during transmission.

This means you can offer clients a convenient and highly secure way to send information, streamlining your workflow.

4. Drake Documents

Drowning in stacks of paper client files?

Managing physical documents can lead to disorganization, lost papers, and slow retrieval times. This often makes auditing and record-keeping a time-consuming chore.

Drake Documents acts as a digital filing cabinet, securely storing and organizing all client tax returns and supporting records. Here’s the thing – it automatically creates and organizes client folders, eliminating manual saving. This feature helps you transition to a truly paperless office.

You could finally achieve a highly organized and accessible digital archive, making audits and client inquiries simple.

5. Drake Pay™

Struggling with slow or inconvenient client payments?

Traditional payment methods can create delays in getting paid, impacting your cash flow and client experience. This means extra administrative work tracking invoices.

Launched recently, Drake Pay™ is an integrated contactless payment system that simplifies client billing. What I found impressive is how it allows credit, debit, and contactless payments directly within the Drake ecosystem. This feature streamlines the virtual tax preparation trend.

This means you can get paid faster and more conveniently, enhancing the client experience while boosting your firm’s efficiency.

You’ll appreciate how these Drake Software features work together to create a cohesive tax preparation environment, from client intake to final filing and payment.

Drake Software Pricing

Is Drake Software pricing clear and simple?

Drake Software offers transparent pricing models with several plans designed for professional tax preparers, making it straightforward to understand your potential investment.

Plan	Price & Features
Pay-Per-Return Plan	$345 annually • 10 individual tax returns (1040, 1040-NR) • Additional returns $29.99 each • Ideal for small volume filers
Unlimited Plan	$1,825 annually (single user: $2,195; multi-user: $2,495) • Unlimited individual & business returns • Federal & all state programs with e-file • Suitable for high volume firms
Power Bundle	$1,975 annually (Tax Pro plan: $2,195 single, $2,495 multi) • All Unlimited Plan features • Drake Accounting & Payroll included • Comprehensive accounting and tax solution

1. Value Assessment

Solid value for tax professionals.

What I found regarding Drake Software pricing is that the Unlimited Plan offers significant value if you handle a high volume of returns, effectively eliminating per-return costs. Their tiered pricing ensures you only pay for the scale you need, and the Power Bundle adds robust accounting functionality if your firm offers bookkeeping.

This means your budget gets a predictable annual cost without worrying about hidden per-filing fees piling up.

2. Trial/Demo Options

Try before you buy.

Drake Software provides a free trial, allowing you to test the software’s functionality before making a financial commitment. From my cost analysis, this hands-on experience is crucial for validating if the features like instant calculations and autofill truly streamline your workflow.

This helps you evaluate performance and ease of use, ensuring it meets your specific tax preparation needs before committing to the full pricing.

3. Plan Comparison

Choosing the right plan.

For new or smaller practices, the Pay-Per-Return Plan offers a cost-effective entry point. However, the Unlimited Plan quickly becomes more economical as your return volume increases, providing comprehensive features and unlimited federal and state e-filing.

Budget-wise, this helps you select a plan that aligns directly with your client volume, optimizing your investment for maximum return.

My Take: Drake Software’s pricing is straightforward and scales effectively, making it a strong contender for tax preparers ranging from individual practitioners to larger firms needing comprehensive solutions.

The overall Drake Software pricing reflects transparent value for diverse tax professional needs.

Drake Software Reviews

What do real customers actually think?

To help you understand real-world experiences, I’ve analyzed numerous Drake Software reviews, pulling insights from various user feedback channels. Here’s what customers truly think about this tax software.

1. Overall User Satisfaction

Users seem generally happy here.

From my review analysis, Drake Tax consistently boasts high satisfaction, with G2 reporting a 4.5-star average. What impressed me most is how superior customer support elevates user sentiment, leading to notably higher scores compared to many competitors.

This indicates you can expect reliable service backing your tax preparation.

2. Common Praise Points

The interface wins users over consistently.

Users frequently praise the software’s user-friendly nature, particularly for 1040 tax returns and its processing speed. From customer feedback, transparent pricing is a consistently mentioned benefit, making budget planning straightforward for many users.

This means you’ll likely find it easy to use for standard returns, with clear costs.

3. Frequent Complaints

Common user frustrations emerge.

While generally positive, some Drake Software reviews point to a “no-frills” interface and occasional clunkiness for complex business returns. What stands out in feedback is how the learning curve for new users can be steep, requiring more time to master than some might expect.

These issues seem more impactful for new users or those with intricate business tax needs.

Overall, Drake Software reviews reflect strong user satisfaction rooted in support and value, balanced by notes on interface modernity and complexity handling.

Best Drake Software Alternatives

Struggling to pick your perfect tax software?

The best Drake Software alternatives include several strong options, each better suited for different business situations and priorities. I’ll help you navigate the competitive landscape.

1. Intuit Lacerte

Handling high volumes of complex returns?

Lacerte suits larger firms with very complex returns, offering an extensive tax form library and robust automation features. From my competitive analysis, Lacerte provides deeper integration with other Intuit products, though it comes at a higher price point than Drake.

Choose Lacerte if your firm needs extensive features for high-volume, complex filings and Intuit ecosystem integration.

2. Thomson Reuters UltraTax CS

Are you a large firm needing comprehensive features?

UltraTax CS is favored by larger firms seeking extensive features and deep integration within the CS Professional Suite. What I found comparing options is that UltraTax CS focuses on advanced federal tax forms, though its cost often exceeds Drake’s flat-rate pricing.

Consider this alternative if your large firm prioritizes advanced features and integration with Thomson Reuters tools.

3. Intuit ProSeries Tax

Prioritizing automation and a streamlined workflow?

ProSeries is often quicker for certain tasks, offering more automation and time-saving features for efficient workflows. Alternative-wise, I found that ProSeries provides a more intuitive dashboard for a clear overview, though it generally costs more than Drake.

Choose ProSeries if you prioritize automation and a highly streamlined workflow, accepting a higher cost for efficiency.

4. TaxAct

Seeking customizable cloud capabilities for individual returns?

TaxAct is a more customizable alternative with strong cloud functionality, often preferred for W-2 or investment income clients. From my analysis, TaxAct excels with less complex individual returns, while Drake is favored for business returns.

Choose TaxAct if you need strong cloud features and primarily handle simpler individual tax filings.

The best Drake Software alternatives depend on your specific firm’s size, budget, and complexity rather than generic feature comparisons.

Drake Software Setup

Concerned about a lengthy, disruptive software rollout?

This Drake Software review section explores what it truly takes to get up and running, helping you set realistic expectations for the deployment and adoption process.

1. Setup Complexity & Timeline

Getting started is generally straightforward.

Drake Software implementation typically involves desktop installation or cloud hosting setup, followed by basic configuration. From my implementation analysis, most small to mid-sized firms can get productive quickly, especially for basic 1040 tax returns.

You’ll want to plan for initial data migration and user account setup, but extensive project planning isn’t usually required.

2. Technical Requirements & Integration

Expect standard IT needs for a desktop application.

Your setup requires Windows-compatible workstations and network considerations if sharing files or using the desktop version across multiple users. What I found about deployment is that cloud hosting through Rightworks simplifies remote access and security, reducing your local IT burden.

Plan for secure data backup solutions and ensure your system meets the recommended specifications for optimal performance.

3. Training & Change Management

User adoption has a manageable learning curve.

Staff training focuses on navigating the user-friendly interface and leveraging features like instant calculation and error diagnostics. From my analysis, the familiar filing cabinet approach aids user adoption, especially for those new to tax software.

Invest time in exploring onboarding webinars and community groups to help your team maximize their efficiency with the software.

4. Support & Success Factors

Robust support is a key advantage during implementation.

Drake Software’s highly-rated customer support via phone, email, and chat can be invaluable during initial setup and ongoing use. From my implementation analysis, their responsive support helps overcome any initial hurdles, ensuring a smoother transition for new users.

Prioritize leveraging their support channels and take advantage of the free trial to assess the fit before full commitment.

Overall, Drake Software setup emphasizes user-friendly implementation and strong support, making it a manageable transition for most tax professionals.

Bottom Line

Is Drake Software the right fit for your firm?

This Drake Software review offers my final assessment, outlining who benefits most from its robust features and transparent pricing, and where its limitations might lead you to explore alternatives.

1. Who This Works Best For

Professional tax preparers, accountants, and small to mid-sized firms.

Drake Software truly shines for high-volume tax professionals, particularly those handling many individual and business returns, who value strong customer support. From my user analysis, firms prioritizing transparent pricing and unlimited returns will find exceptional value here, especially during peak tax season when per-return costs add up.

You’ll succeed with Drake if you need a comprehensive, cost-effective tax solution for your growing practice.

2. Overall Strengths

Unmatched value and customer support truly stand out.

The software excels by offering an unlimited return option at a competitive price point, backed by consistently highly-rated customer service and comprehensive federal and state forms. From my comprehensive analysis, its integrated ecosystem streamlines tax, accounting, and payroll within a single, cohesive platform, boosting your firm’s efficiency significantly.

These strengths translate into significant cost savings and peace of mind, allowing you to focus on serving your clients effectively.

3. Key Limitations

Interface modernism and initial learning curve are considerations.

While functional, some users note Drake’s interface isn’t as modern or intuitive as newer competitors, and the initial learning curve can be steep for complete novices. Based on this review, complex business returns can feel less fluid to navigate than basic 1040s, and its primarily desktop-based deployment may require cloud add-ons.

I’d say these limitations are manageable trade-offs for the comprehensive features and excellent support, rather than being deal-breakers for its target audience.

4. Final Recommendation

Drake Software earns a strong, confident recommendation.

You should choose this software if you’re a professional tax preparer or a small to medium-sized accounting firm seeking a reliable, feature-rich, and well-supported solution. From my analysis, it offers exceptional value for high-volume filers and those prioritizing responsive customer service over a cutting-edge interface.

My confidence level is high for established practices looking for a dependable and cost-effective tax preparation partner.

This Drake Software review confirms it’s a top choice for value and support, helping you make a confident decision for your tax practice.