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followed by users of CCH ProSystem fx (88%) and with a 4-percentage-point upward blip between
CCH Axcess Tax (86.3%). 2020 and 2022 in respondents saying the pro-
Drake Tax’s users were most likely to approve of gram lived on their vendor’s server (from 18% in
its price. Nearly 84% of its users did. Prices of ATX 2020 to 22% in 2022). Wide disparities among
and ProSeries were liked by 65.2% and 29% of their the products were evident on this feature, how-
users, respectively. ever. More than 84% of CCH Axcess Tax users
Under 8% of users of CCH Axcess Tax, CCH reported that the program was on their vendor’s
ProSystem fx, Lacerte, and UltraTax CS approved server, but only 34.7% of UltraTax CS users said
of these products’ price. Price was far and away the same. Fewer than 10% of the users of the other
named as the most frequent “dislike” for the latter top software programs said the program was in the
four products. By the same token, only 5.5% of cloud. (Anecdotally, some CCH Axcess Tax users
Drake Tax users disliked its price. Over three- appreciated its cloud-based operation, with three
quarters of users of Lacerte and UltraTax CS write-in “other likes” mentioning that feature as a
disliked those products’ price. plus.)
Support, another area where users often have Technical support was most often obtained by
strong opinions, also showed some striking differ- telephone rather than by electronic means (see the
ences among the products in both tables. Drake table “Technical Support”). For all the major prod-
Tax users gave the highest approval of its support ucts, 91% of users who needed technical support
at 72%, with only 3.3% disliking it. Support was accessed it by phone, with 30% accessing it by live
the highest dislike, however, among users of ATX chat or instant messaging (IM) and 28% by email.
and second highest (after price) by users of the five CCH Axcess Tax users were by far the most likely
remaining products other than Drake and ATX: to use chat/IM for technical support, with 59.4%
CCH Axcess Tax, CCH ProSystem fx, Lacerte, reporting they did so.
ProSeries, and UltraTax CS. Another question, Ideally, users of tax software would not need
discussed below, delved further into users’ assess- technical support at all. In reality, however, the
ment of the products’ technical support. majority of users did need it, although the percent-
Lacerte and ProSeries users liked those age requiring support was lowest for ProSeries at
products’ learning curve more than did users of 61.4% and ATX at 63.5%. In keeping with Drake
other products, at 16.2% and 16.7%, respectively. Tax users’ approval in the “Top Likes” table for its
Users of CCH Axcess Tax and UltraTax CS were support, that software received the highest ratings
noticeably more satisfied with those products’ for ease in getting support (4.7) and for its quality
integration with other software than other (4.5).
products’ users, at 20.6% and 21.5% liking it, Asked whether they received training in use
respectively. That result correlates with those two of their software and, if so, how they rated that
products’ higher ratings for integration in the training, ATX users had training least often at
“Overall Ratings” table. 11.3%. Most likely to have received training were
users of CCH Axcess Tax at 62.3%, although they
TECHNOLOGY, TRAINING, AND SUPPORT had the next-to-lowest opinion of it at a rating
By and large, CPAs are reluctant to adopt cloud of 3.8 (the lowest was for CCH ProSystem fx at
operation of their tax software, despite recent 3.6, with fewer than one-third, 32%, receiving
years’ pandemic-driven disruptions to office life. training). Complaints about training also turned
At least that’s the impression left by the 78% of up in “other dislikes” for several of the products.
users of all major products who said it resided on Almost a majority of Drake Tax users, 49.7%,
their own hard drive or network. That percent- received training, and these respondents also gave
age holds steady from 2021 and is only a slight that training the highest rating of any of the major
decrease from 2020 (82%). The shift corresponds products, 4.5. ■

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