By age 29, you deserve a literal tax break — a new survey has found that the average American lets professionals prepare their taxes before they hit their thirties.
The poll of 2,000 U.S. taxpayers found that at a certain stage of life, more than a third (37%) are happy to just let professionals handle their taxes for them.
And it could be because handling your finances can simply get too complicated the more you age.
Commissioned by TaxSlayer Pro and conducted by Talker Research, the study found respondents turn to professional tax preparers because they’ve either started investing their money (23%) or no longer have the bandwidth to handle their own taxes (22%).
Many said they also opt for professional tax preparers when they experience major life milestones — the top two of which included getting married (21%) and buying a home (15%).
Sixty-nine percent said they’re motivated by going to someone more knowledgeable about taxes than they are themselves, with 41% hoping a professional can get them a bigger chunk of cash come refund time.
96% of people who go straight to the pros said it helps them feel more confident about filing their taxes.
Meanwhile, 63% of taxpayers said they still take matters into their own hands and file their taxes themselves.
Sixty-one percent said they prepare their own taxes in order to save money. Others said they handle their own taxes because they can easily understand it (41%), have always done it themselves out of habit (39%) or that their tax situation is simple (32%).
However, more than half of them (53%) said they’d likely consider using a professional within the next two years — especially if their tax situation were to become more complicated (55%), if there were tax law changes that affect them (27%) or if they could no longer manage their own finances (25%).
“For many Americans, big life milestones like getting married or buying a home can make filing taxes start to feel overwhelming,” said Richard Marshall, Director of Sales at TaxSlayer Pro. “That’s when professional preparers can make a real difference, by simplifying the process and giving people confidence they’re getting the best possible outcome.
“Another motivator for people — especially this year — is when tax laws change. Knowing what those changes are and how they affect taxpayers is critical, and it’s something many professional preparers can help with.”
The survey also revealed working and self-employed Americans face their own particular tax challenges. Of those polled, 63% work either full-time or part-time, while an additional 8% own their own business.
More than a quarter of employed Americans (26%) said they have multiple sources of income, which can result in a more complicated tax process.
And nearly half of those who are self-employed (48%) said they’ve consulted with tax preparers about what they should do or how they should manage their business’s taxes.
They reported learning things such as what counts as tax-deductible, what forms need to be filed, how to apply for loans and how to keep business and personal finances separate.
One particular respondent shared their experience: “They taught me how to keep information better, how to log my expenditures more accurately, to make tax preparation easier.”
“For the self-employed or those managing multiple income streams, tax season can be especially complicated,” continued Marshall. “Ultimately, professional tax preparers are well-equipped to remove the stress, identify opportunities to strategize, and help clients avoid costly mistakes so they can focus on what matters most.”
Survey methodology:
Talker Research surveyed 2,000 tax paying Americans; the survey was commissioned by TaxSlayer Pro and administered and conducted online by Talker Research between Sept. 1 and Sept. 5, 2025.
We are sourcing from a non-probability frame and the two main sources we use are:
Traditional online access panels — where respondents opt-in to take part in online market research for an incentiveProgrammatic — where respondents are online and are given the option to take part in a survey to receive a virtual incentive usually related to the online activity they are engaging in
Those who did not fit the specified sample were terminated from the survey. As the survey is fielded, dynamic online sampling is used, adjusting targeting to achieve the quotas specified as part of the sampling plan.
Regardless of which sources a respondent came from, they were directed to an Online Survey, where the survey was conducted in English; a link to the questionnaire can be shared upon request. Respondents were awarded points for completing the survey. These points have a small cash-equivalent monetary value.
Cells are only reported on for analysis if they have a minimum of 80 respondents, and statistical significance is calculated at the 95% level. Data is not weighted, but quotas and other parameters are put in place to reach the desired sample.
Interviews are excluded from the final analysis if they failed quality-checking measures. This includes:
Speeders: Respondents who complete the survey in a time that is quicker than one-third of the median length of interview are disqualified as speedersOpen ends: All verbatim responses (full open-ended questions as well as other please specify options) are checked for inappropriate or irrelevant textBots: Captcha is enabled on surveys, which allows the research team to identify and disqualify botsDuplicates: Survey software has “deduping” based on digital fingerprinting, which ensures nobody is allowed to take the survey more than once
It is worth noting that this survey was only available to individuals with internet access, and the results may not be generalizable to those without internet access.
