Instead vs TelosTax

Instead is a web-based AI agent for tax research, planning, preparation, filing, and defense. It lists support for individual 1040, C corporation 1120, S corporation 1120-S, partnership 1065, and trust and estate 1041 returns. Users choose which workflows to run, and credits are consumed only when they start a task; the credit estimate is shown beforehand. Users can review the agent’s work before filing. Google Drive, OneDrive, and Box are live integrations with two-way sync, version tracking, and automatic folder mapping. Instead says it is IRS-approved and supports e-filing in 48 or more state jurisdictions, as well as local filing. Federal and state e-file and prior-year import are listed. The free Instead Platform plan is free and includes unlimited users, entities, e-file and print file, multi-entity support, and collaborators and viewers. Instead Agent is billed per credit, with pricing dependent on volume and usage; purchased credits are valid for 12 months. The service lists a free trial, US-based customer support, and 24/7 support, with email responses within 24 business hours.

TelosTax is a browser-based tax preparation app for the 2025 tax year, built on an open-source tax engine. It lists AI tax guidance, document import, deduction finding, and federal and state filing. The project reports more than 90 tax features intended to cover about 85–90% of individual filers. Its federal scope includes Form 1040 with Schedules A–H, SE, and D, plus more than 30 supplemental forms; state calculations cover all 50 states and Washington, DC. It lists 41 IRS and 43 state PDF templates with automatic field mapping. Private Mode is described as fully offline. Optional BYOK Mode uses the user's Anthropic API key for AI chat, expense scanning, and document extraction, with personally identifiable information removed before transmission. TelosTax says tax data is encrypted at rest with AES-256-GCM, and that its calculation layer has no database access or network calls. The free, open-source project is installable on desktop and mobile and supports Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, web, and Windows. Although a free plan is listed, the maker does not publish plan prices.