Steuerbot

Overview

Steuerbot is a German income-tax service that guides preparation and filing through a chat, with access on mobile, desktop and the web. It suits taxpayers with supported income who prefer answering prompts to working through tax forms on their own.

The free refund calculation lets users estimate a result before deciding whether to file through the service. The trade-off is a firm eligibility boundary: Steuerbot does not support self-employment, business income, or income from agriculture and forestry.

Key features

Chat-led preparation

The app asks straightforward questions and can provide extra explanations along the way. That guided structure is useful for people who want help navigating a return, but it does not replace checking the information entered or broaden the income types the service accepts.

Pre-filled tax data

A pre-filled return brings important tax data into the case automatically; users then confirm it. This can reduce manual entry for supported taxpayers, while keeping them responsible for reviewing the information before filing.

Support and data handling

Users can contact support in the app. Steuerbot says trained tax experts respond within 24 hours, a useful route to help when a question arises during preparation. The provider says it follows GDPR, encrypts transfers with HTTPS/SSL, transmits tax data through the official ELSTER interface and keeps servers in Germany. It also says it retains submitted data for five years to handle possible tax-office queries.

Pricing

Steuerbot is freemium: calculating a potential refund is always free, and submitting a return costs €39.99 once, payable after the calculation if the user chooses to file. The free option is valuable for checking a likely refund without committing to a paid submission, but it does not include filing.

A pay-later option charges only after the tax assessment arrives and is offered individually. That may suit someone who wants to defer the fee, but the price depends on an individual offer rather than a fixed published amount.

Platforms

Steuerbot offers apps for iOS, Android, Mac and Windows, plus a browser-based web app. This gives users a choice of phone or computer for preparing a return.

Who it's for

The service names employees, civil servants, retirees and trainees as supported groups for tax returns. Students and school-based trainees can use it for loss carryforwards. Investment income and rental income are supported, making Steuerbot relevant beyond taxpayers with only employment income.

It is not the right fit for people with income from self-employment, commercial operations, or agriculture and forestry. Check that your income situation falls within the supported cases before relying on the guided process.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Free refund calculation lets users assess a potential result before paying to submit.
• Pros: Chat prompts, optional explanations and pre-filled data can make preparation more guided and reduce manual entry.
• Pros: Investment and rental income are supported, alongside the named employee, civil-servant, retiree and trainee groups.
• Cons: Submission costs €39.99 once; the free plan stops at calculating the refund.
• Cons: Self-employment, business income, and agricultural and forestry income are outside the service's support.
• Cons: The pay-later fee is an individual offer, so users cannot know a fixed price from the plan terms.

Alternatives

WISO Steuer is worth considering if you want to try all functions before deciding to submit; its test version is free and payment is due only when filing. Taxfix is another option for a self-prepared individual return, with a Basic plan priced at €39.99 a year and free use until submission.

For US tax filing, FreeTaxUSA, TaxSlayer, H&R Block Online and TaxAct are alternatives. StudioTax and UFile are also alternatives.

Browse more options in Tax Preparation Software or Personal Tax Software.

Verdict

Choose Steuerbot if you belong to a supported taxpayer group and want a guided chat, pre-filled data and a free way to calculate a potential refund before filing. Its fixed €39.99 submission fee makes the cost clear, but taxpayers with self-employment, commercial, or agricultural and forestry income should choose another service.