Intuit Inc. is an American multinational business software company that specializes in financial software. Headquartered in Mountain View, California, the company is led by CEO Sasan Goodarzi. Intuit's products include the tax preparation application TurboTax, the small business accounting software QuickBooks, the credit monitoring and personal finance service Credit Karma, and the email marketing platform Mailchimp.[2] As of 2019, more than 95% of its revenue and earnings originated from its operations within the United States.[3] Intuit is listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange and is a component of the Nasdaq-100, S&P 100, and S&P 500 stock market indices.
Intuit offered 'TurboTax Free File' alongside a similarly named but paid service, 'TurboTax Free Edition'.[4] In 2019, investigations by ProPublica found that Intuit deliberately steered taxpayers from the free TurboTax Free File to the paid TurboTax Free Edition using tactics including search engine delisting and a deceptive discount targeted to members of the military.[5][6] As of the 2021 tax filing season, TurboTax no longer participates in the Free File Alliance.[7]
Intuit has lobbied against IRS proposals to create a free, pre-filled tax filing system. Critics of Intuit's lobbying often note that such pre-filled systems are standard in many other developed nations.[8][9]
History
The company was founded in 1983 by Scott Cook and Tom Proulx in Palo Alto, California.[10][11][12][13]
Scott Cook developed the concept for Intuit after his work at Procter & Gamble helped him realize that personal computers would lend themselves towards replacements for paper-and-pencil based personal accounting.[14] While seeking a programmer, Cook met Tom Proulx at Stanford University. The two started Intuit, which initially operated out of a small room on University Avenue in Palo Alto. The first version of Quicken was coded in Microsoft's BASIC programming language for the IBM PC and UCSD Pascal for the Apple II
Legal issues
Intuit formerly offered a free online service called TurboTax Free File as well as a similarly named service called TurboTax Free Edition which is not free for most users.[4][5][6] TurboTax Free File was developed as part of an agreement whereby members of the Free File Alliance would offer tax preparation for individuals below an income threshold for free in exchange for the IRS not providing taxpayers with free pre-filled forms.[31][4] In 2019, investigations by ProPublica found that Intuit deliberately steered taxpayers from the free TurboTax Free File to the paid TurboTax Free Edition through deceptive practices, including search engine delisting and misleading discounts targeted at members of the military.[5][6]
Current products
CEO Sasan Goodarzi oversees all products in all countries.
- TurboTax
- Offered in Basic, Standard, Premier, and Home & Business versions, as well as TurboTax 20 for preparing multiple returns.[39]
- QuickBooks
- Small business accounting and financial management software, offered in EasyStart, Pro, and Premier versions.
- QuickBooks Online
- Web-based accounting software designed for companies to review business financials through live data and insights to help make clear business decisions.
- ProConnect
- Professional tax products, including ProConnect Tax Online, Lacerte, ProSeries Professional, ProSeries Basic, and EasyAcct.
- Credit Karma
- Access to credit scores, reports, and monitoring. As of 2024, Credit Karma includes the personal account capabilities of former Intuit Mint.[40]
International operations
Canada
Intuit Canada ULC, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Intuit, is a developer of financial management and tax preparation software for personal finance and small business accounting. Services are delivered on a variety of platforms including application software, software connected to services, software as a service, platform as a service and mobile applications. Intuit Canada has employees located all across Canada, with offices in Edmonton, Alberta, and Toronto, Ontario.
Intuit Canada traces its origins to the 1993 acquisition by Intuit of a Canadian tax preparation software developer. In 1992, Edmontonians and University of Alberta graduates Bruce Johnson and Chad Frederick had built a tax preparation product called WINTAX – Canada's first Microsoft Windows-based personal tax preparation software. In 1993, they agreed to be acquired by Chipsoft, manufacturer of the U.S. personal income tax software TurboTax. Shortly after the WINTAX acquisition, Chipsoft agreed to merge with Intuit, the developer of the
Online communities
Intuit has had several online communities, some of which offer integration or cross-sells into its other products. These include the QuickBooks and TurboTax online communities for QuickBooks users and small business owners and tax payers respectively, Quicken Online Community for Quicken users and those who need help with the personal finances, and the Accountant Online Community and Jump Up. These communities have consisted of blogs, an expert locator map and event calendar, forums and discussion groups, podcasts, videocasts and webinars, and other user-created content.[68]
JumpUp (formerly JackRabbit Beta) was a free social networking and resources site for small business owners and/or start-ups. Free tools and services included an interactive business planner, online training for developing a successful business plan, starting costs calculator, cash flow calculator, break-even calculator, templates for business planning and sample business plans.
TaxAlmanac was a free online tax research resource. The site included information including the Internal Revenue Code, Treasury Regulations, Tax Court Cases, and a variety of articles. This site was up for closure but due to massive feedback, has reminded up. It has however been archived since June 2014, meaning the existing content can be accessed and viewed but no new posts or comments can be made after this archival.[69]
Modeled after English Wikipedia, TaxAlmanac was launched in May 2005. The June 6, 2005 edition of Time magazine featured an article entitled "It's a Wiki, Wiki World"
Finances
For the fiscal year 2021, Intuit reported earnings of US$2.062 billion, with an annual revenue of US$9.633 billion, an increase of 25.4% over the previous fiscal cycle. Intuit's shares traded at over $498.18 per share and total international net revenue was less than 5% of total net revenue.
Acquisitions and carve-outs
1990s
In 1993, Intuit acquired Chipsoft, a tax preparation software company based in San Diego.[93]
In 1994, the firm acquired the tax preparation software division of Best Programs of Reston, VA.[94] In the same year, Intuit acquired Parsons Technology from Bob Parsons for $64 million.[95][96]
In 1996, it acquired GALT Technologies, Inc of Pittsburgh, PA.[97]
Lobbying
Intuit has lobbied extensively against the IRS providing taxpayers with free pre-filled forms, as is the norm in developed countries.[8][9][141]
In 2009, the Los Angeles Times reported that Intuit spent nearly $2 million in political contributions to eliminate free online state tax filing for low-income residents in California.[142] According to the New York Times, from 2009 to 2014, Intuit spent nearly $13 million lobbying, as reported by OpenSecrets, as much as Apple. Intuit spent $1 million on the race for the California state comptroller to support Tony Strickland, a Republican who opposed ReadyReturn, against John Chiang, a Democrat who supported ReadyRun (and won). Joseph Bankman, professor of tax law, Stanford Law School, and advocate of simplified filing, believes that the campaign warned politicians that if they supported free filing, Intuit would help their opponents.[143]
Lawsuits
An antitrust lawsuit and a class-action suit relating to cold calling employees of other companies were settled out of court along with Apple and Google.[147]
In March 2015, The Washington Post and computer reporter Brian Krebs reported that two former employees alleged that Intuit knowingly allowed fraudulent returns to be processed on a massive scale as part of a revenue-boosting scheme. Both employees, former security team members for the company, stated that the company had ignored repeated warnings and suggestions on how to prevent fraud. One of the employees was reported to have filed a whistleblower complaint with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.[148][149]
FTC Lawsuit Over Intuit's 'Free' Tax Filing Claims
Artificial intelligence
In 2025, Intuit announced a $100 million partnership with OpenAI to integrate its financial products—TurboTax, Credit Karma, QuickBooks, and Mailchimp—directly into ChatGPT, representing one of the largest enterprise adoptions of generative AI.[155]
In early 2026, Intuit and Anthropic announced a multi-year partnership to bring custom AI agents to mid-market businesses on the Intuit platform using Claude, with experiences beginning to roll out in spring 2026.[156]
In 2026, Intuit expanded its physical presence by opening nearly 600 offices and 20 TurboTax-branded storefronts, combining AI and machine learning capabilities with human tax expertise.[157]
See also
- Comparison of accounting software
External links
References
- FY 2025 Annual Report (Form 10-K) U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, September 3, 2025^
- Intuit to buy Mailchimp for $12 billion September 13, 2020^
- 2019 Annual Report on Form 10-K