How AI Became a Go-To Tax Assistant This Filing Season

Nobody likes doing their taxes. Even with the advent of user-friendly platforms like TurboTax, the yearly chore is both high-stakes and tedious. This year, however, AI is offering citizens a shiny new way of paying Uncle Sam. Tax-related ChatGPT prompts surged significantly in April, revealing a shift in how consumers approach tax filing. This trend has implications for consumers, personal finance apps, investors, and anyone interested in how AI is rapidly transforming long-standing industries. 

In April (when taxes are typically due), 16% of all queries were tax-focused — up 4% from the previous year’s filing season. Equally notable is the high user overlap seen between TurboTax and ChatGPT. 36% of US TurboTax users also used ChatGPT in April (versus 13% in 2024). That near 3x increase in usage signals a clear upwards trend in consumers turning to AI for difficult and time-consuming tasks, even ones as sensitive as filing taxes. In addition, TurboTax users were more engaged than the average ChatGPT user, with 12% more sessions and 5% more time spent on the platform. 

What does this increase suggest? For one, consumers trust AI for more critical tasks. This comfortability is a positive sign for ChatGPT’s reputation; it implies that more people are perceiving the platform as reliable, factual, and concretely helpful. Users may also prefer the simplicity or speed of ChatGPT over dense tax sites. 

In the near future, ChatGPT could be seen as the go-to financial co-pilot. But this doesn’t have to spell out bad news for existing personal finance apps. Instead, brands like TurboTax could consider integrating AI as an embedded part of tax filing workflows, aligning with consumer behavior and creating mutually beneficial partnerships. 

The shift towards AI for financial decision making betrays a larger trend of people across the globe putting increasing trust in this technology, as they incorporate it more and more into their everyday lives. Will next tax season see even higher AI use? Sensor Tower will be around to give you the inside scoop.