smartsteuer review
A guided German tax-filing service with ELSTER, business returns and five annual submissions.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
smartsteuer is browser-based tax-preparation software for German taxpayers, including employees, students, retirees, investors, landlords, self-employed people, freelancers and businesses. It guides users through tax returns covering employment, investments, rental property and self-employment. The service can retrieve prefilled data from the tax office, transfer prior-year information, check entries before submission and send returns electronically through ELSTER. It also supports document submission to the tax office and works on computers and smartphones without installing an app.
The published plan is €39.99 per year for the smartsteuer plan. That price covers up to five tax-return submissions for the purchased tax year, business tax returns, a pre-submission tax check and support. The plan also includes an income-surplus calculation for self-employed users, plus automatic preparation of VAT and trade-tax returns where required. For people who need several submissions within one tax year or a combination of personal and business filing tools, the single paid plan keeps the offering straightforward.
Its strongest fit is for German filers who want guided preparation and electronic ELSTER submission in one web service. Self-employed users gain specific support for income-surplus calculations, VAT and trade-tax returns, while correction and re-submission workflows help when a return needs updating. smartsteuer integrates with ELSTER and Lexware Office, but access is limited to the web rather than a dedicated app. Choose it for German tax workflows, prefilled information and business-related filings; look elsewhere if you need broader platform coverage or tax filing outside this focus.
smartsteuer pros and cons
- Where it wins
- Guided preparation with smartCheck and prefilled tax data
- Supports self-employed calculations, VAT and trade-tax returns
- Includes ELSTER filing, corrections and up to five submissions
- Where it doesn't
- Web-only access may not suit buyers seeking a native app
- The €39.99 annual plan covers one purchased tax year
- Its focus is German tax filing and ELSTER workflows
smartsteuer fact sheet, pricing and score →
Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.
Last updated · How we research and update