Frequently Asked Questions

TaxVant is built for DIY investors, retirement planners, and tax-conscious individuals who want to take control of their financial strategies.

Because the tax code is highly dependent on your specific household structure, income mix, and state of residence, generic rules of thumb and static advice often fail. TaxVant empowers you to visualize exactly how tax laws apply to your unique situation.

The most effective way to start is by aligning the tool with a tax return you’ve already filed to build a trusted baseline:

1. Build and validate your baseline: In a Household, create a baseline scenario using a recently filed tax return. Compare the final tax calculated by TaxVant to your actual filed return.If the numbers don't match, verify that you entered all details correctly. While TaxVant supports standard federal and state tax codes, it does not support every possible niche input field. If a specific input is important to your planning, let us know via the feedback menu!
2. Bring it to the current year: Once your baseline scenario matches your prior-year return, copy that scenario and update the numbers to match your current-year projections.
3. Explore strategy scenarios: Create additional copies to model different financial strategies (e.g., executing a Roth conversion, realizing capital gains, or adjusting pre-tax contributions).
4. Analyze ranges in Ranger: Go to a scenario's Ranger analysis to visualize exactly how your taxes, marginal rates, and cliffs change as a specific income or deduction varies over a range you define.

The tax code is enormously complex, especially with 50 states having their own unique tax laws. We believe in absolute transparency: you should be able to audit and review exactly how your taxes are calculated.

To achieve this level of precision, TaxVant's calculations are powered by the open-source PolicyEngine microsimulation core. To optimize performance for our interactive scenario workspace and add calculations unique to DIY strategy planning, we run a slightly customized version of their core.

For full transparency, all of our engine modifications are open-source and public. You can review our calculation code in our GitHub repository. If you notice any calculation bugs or discrepancies in your results, please feel free to reach out to us.

Disclaimer: TaxVant is an informational simulation tool. All projections are illustrative estimates, not guarantees, and are dependent on the accuracy of user inputs. Actual tax liability and savings will vary. Before executing any tax or financial plan, you should always consult with a qualified tax professional.

You can use the Share feature in the workspace to generate a secure, read-only link. You have the option to share either your entire Household comparison or a specific Ranger analysis.

Anyone with the link can view your scenario comparisons and interactive charts, but they cannot edit them. This allows you to safely send your figures to others while continuing to make changes to your active copy without affecting the shared view.

We take data security extremely seriously and have designed TaxVant with a privacy-first mindset. We do not link to your real-world bank or financial accounts, meaning your credentials never touch our systems. All data is encrypted in transit and at rest, and we utilize passwordless authentication via Google and Apple OAuth.

For full details about our hosting, encryption, and access controls, please review our Security Page.