Tax Buddy

What Tax Buddy does

TaxBuddy, operated by SSBA Innovations Pvt Ltd and founded in 2017 in Mumbai, is an online income tax filing and compliance platform serving individual and small business taxpayers in India. The company operates a dual-mode filing product — an assisted ITR service backed by a team described as including ex-IRS joint commissioners and chartered accountants, and a self-service DIY filing flow — supported by an AI-assisted engine that auto-imports data from Form 16, Form 26AS, and AIS, performs regime comparison, and generates filing reminders. The platform has accumulated 1.3 million users across 2,600 Indian towns, holds a 4.9/5 Google rating across 16,000+ reviews, and is ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type 2 certified. Its named products include assisted and DIY ITR filing, FlexiBuddy (a B2B2C flexible employee benefit product for employers), TDS return filing, income tax appeal services, legal consultation, GST filing, and specialized tools such as the Portfolio Doctor (AI-based CAS analysis) and Wealth Builder (assisted investment planning).

The company monetizes primarily through annual subscription tiers for ITR filing (₹699 to ₹9,999 depending on income complexity and income source), supplemented by per-unit pricing for TDS returns (₹1,499–₹3,999), appeal services (starting ₹25,399), legal consultations (from ₹1,999), and other add-on compliance products. The go-to-market combines a product-led self-serve web platform (itr.taxbuddy.com) with a sales-led enterprise motion through FlexiBuddy targeting employer HR teams, and a franchise partner network for geographic reach. Distribution leverages content marketing, 25+ tax calculators, SEO, social media, and earned media coverage in Indian and international business publications. To date the company has disclosed approximately $3 million in total funding across two rounds led by UAE-based Zenith Global (~$1M in December 2020 and $2M in May 2022), and has extended its footprint to US tax filing for NRIs via a sister site.

Name

Tax Buddy

Legal name

SSBA Innovations Pvt Ltd

Website

https://taxbuddy.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

TaxBuddy is an India-based AI-assisted tax compliance platform that offers assisted and DIY ITR filing, TDS, GST, legal, and appeals services to salaried individuals, freelancers, and small businesses across 2,600 towns.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Tax Filing Services

NAICS

Tax Preparation Services (541213), Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services (54121)

SIC

Services-Computer Processing & Data Preparation (7374)

akta.pro primary industry

Tax Advisory & Compliance (BPAHABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Tax Return Filing, Processing & Assessment (BPAIADAC), Tax Planning & Personal Tax Optimization Tools (FSAGADAJ)

Keywords

• Income tax filing
• Tax compliance services
• TDS return filing
• Tax advisory platform
• Employee benefits management

Headquarters

HQ city

Mumbai

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. ITR Filing Services: Subscription-based pricing for income tax return filing services, offered in self-filing and assisted modes with tiered plans based on income complexity (salaried, business, capital gains, NRI, crypto). Pricing ranges from ₹699 to ₹9,999 per filing.
2. TDS Return Filing: Professional services for TDS compliance including quarterly return filing for Forms 24Q, 26Q, 26QB, 27Q, priced per return or per quarter.
3. Tax Appeal Services: Expert support for income tax appeal filing before CIT(A), starting from ₹25,399, including consultation and document preparation.
4. Legal Services: Online legal consultation and document drafting services including property, inheritance, family law, and tax-related matters starting at ₹1,999.
5. FlexiBuddy (B2B Employee Benefits): Flexible benefit plan management for employers enabling employee salary customization for tax savings. Revenue generated through employer subscriptions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

TaxBuddy is an online tax compliance and advisory platform that lets Indian individuals and businesses file income tax returns via an AI-powered self-serve portal or through expert-assisted service delivered by ex-IRS officers and chartered accountants. Beyond ITR filing, the company provides TDS return filing, tax planning, income tax notice management, appeal services, GST filing, legal consultation, business registrations, and an employer-facing flexible benefits product (FlexiBuddy) that helps employees structure salary components for tax savings.

Product overview

TaxBuddy is an AI-powered tax compliance platform operated by SSBA Innovations Pvt Ltd, offering a comprehensive suite of income tax filing and related financial services for individuals and businesses in India. The platform operates on a dual-mode architecture combining assisted filing (expert-supported) with self-service DIY options, supported by an AI-powered engine that automates data import from government forms (Form 16, Form 26AS, AIS) and provides real-time tax calculations and regime comparisons. The core offering consists of ITR Filing (both Assisted and Self-Filing modes), supplemented by a broad ecosystem of add-on services including TDS Return Filing, Legal Services, Tax Planner, Income Tax Notice Management, GST Filing, Business License Registration, Company Registration, and specialized tools like FlexiBuddy (employee benefits management), TaxBuddy Portfolio Doctor (AI-powered portfolio analysis), and TaxBuddy Wealth Builder (investment planning). The platform serves diverse segments including salaried individuals, freelancers, business owners, NRIs, and HUFs, covering income types from salary and capital gains to cryptocurrency and foreign income. TaxBuddy was founded in 2017 and positions itself as India's first AI-powered ITR filing platform, having served 1.3 million users across 2,600 towns.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FlexiBuddy: A TaxBuddy product offering flexible employee benefit plans that allows employees to customize salary components such as food, travel, and healthcare to save on taxes and increase take-home pay.
• MyBizCFO

Products and services

• ITR Filing (Assisted) Expert-assisted income tax return filing where in-house tax professionals handle the complete filing process from document upload to submission, offering accuracy and maximum savings for salaried, freelance and business taxpayers in India.
• Self-Filing (DIY ITR e-Filing) Self-service tax filing platform with step-by-step guidance, AI-powered prompts and real-time validation that lets users file Indian income tax returns independently across salaried, business, capital gains and crypto plans.
• FlexiBuddy Employee benefits management platform that lets employees customize salary components such as food, travel, and healthcare to save on tax and increase take-home pay, with WhatsApp-based claim submissions and a centralized employer dashboard.
• TDS Return Filing Online TDS return filing covering Forms 24Q, 26Q, 26QB, 26QC and 27Q with automated liability computation, challan generation, and post-filing support for Indian businesses and property buyers.
• Tax Planner Tax planning service that delivers in-depth tax reports, identifies tax-saving investment opportunities, and provides expert consultation to help individuals and businesses reduce their tax liability.
• Income Tax Notice Management Notice management service for handling income tax notices including mismatch notices under Section 143(1), refund adjustments under Section 245, and defective return notices under Section 139(9), offered free with TaxBuddy-assisted filings.
• Legal Services Online legal consultation and document drafting services covering property & inheritance, family law, taxation matters, fraud & cybercrime cases, and civil disputes, offered at fixed consultation fees starting at ₹1,999.
• MyBizCFO Virtual CFO service for small businesses providing end-to-end tax filing including GST returns, business registration support, and ongoing financial management.
• Appeal Services Income tax appeal filing service providing expert support for appeals before CIT(A), including case evaluation, document preparation, consultation and deadline management.
• GST Filing GST registration and timely filing services for Indian businesses, provided as part of the broader TaxBuddy compliance ecosystem.
• Business License Registration Comprehensive business registration services covering FSSAI, Shop and Establishment Act, Import Export Code, Udyog Aadhaar, and Trade License for Indian small businesses.
• Company Registration Online Online company registration service for private limited, public limited, partnership firm, LLP, and one-person company registration in India.
• TaxBuddy Portfolio Doctor AI-powered investment portfolio analysis tool that ingests CAS reports to identify top performers, laggards, and personalized tax-efficient investment insights for Indian investors.
• TaxBuddy Wealth Builder Expert-assisted investment planning service with customized advice based on income, tax profile, and future goals, aligning investments with tax planning strategies for salaried, self-employed, and NRI users.
• Tax Calculators Suite Suite of 30+ online tax and financial calculators including EMI, home loan, SIP, NPS, cryptocurrency tax, HRA, gratuity, TDS, and old vs new tax regime comparison, used for lead generation and self-service tax planning.
• Lower Deduction Certificate (Form 13) Assistance service for obtaining a lower or nil TDS certificate using Form 13 under Section 395 of the Income Tax Act for Indian taxpayers seeking reduced tax deduction at source.
• PF Withdrawal Provident Fund withdrawal assistance service that helps Indian employees complete EPF withdrawal paperwork and processes hassle-free.
• HUF Registration & Filing Hindu Undivided Family tax filing service covering HUF registration and ongoing ITR compliance for families with diverse income sources including capital gains, property and business income.
• US Tax Filing US tax preparation and filing services delivered by experts for NRIs and US residents who also have Indian income, operated via ssbafa.com.
• Accounting & Bookkeeping Services Outsourced accounting and bookkeeping services for small Indian businesses to balance books and maximize profits, offered alongside TaxBuddy's tax compliance suite.

Quantifiable outcome

• 94% of 1st time users save tax with TaxBuddy
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Feature4 records

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• myITreturn: India-focused online ITR filing service with assisted and DIY plans for individuals and HUFs. Overlaps with TaxBuddy's core filing products and price-band positioning for salaried and self-employed filers.
• Tax2Win: Indian ITR e-filing platform serving salaried individuals, businesses, and NRIs with both self-file and expert-assisted options. Directly comparable product offering and target segments to TaxBuddy.
• ClearTax: One of India's largest tax-tech platforms offering ITR e-filing, GST, and business compliance for individuals and enterprises. Direct competitor to TaxBuddy with a similar AI-assisted filing and subscription model and a broader enterprise/CA suite.
• Quicko: Indian online tax filing and compliance platform for individuals, NRIs, and businesses with DIY and assisted plans. Closely comparable to TaxBuddy on consumer ITR filing, pricing tiers, and self-serve vs. assisted flow.

Broad incumbents

• Zoho (Zoho Books / Finance): India-rooted SaaS suite including accounting, GST, and payroll modules for SMBs and tax practitioners. Adjacent incumbent with overlapping SMB compliance and tax features relevant to TaxBuddy's MyBizCFO and TDS offerings.
• Intuit TurboTax: US-headquartered consumer and small-business tax preparation software with AI-guided interviews and live expert assist. Broad incumbent reference point for TaxBuddy's AI-powered assisted filing model and product experience.
• H&R Block: Global tax preparation retailer combining DIY software with in-person and virtual expert assistance. Comparable to TaxBuddy's hybrid DIY + expert-assisted approach and tiered pricing for complex filers.

Others

• Perfios: India-based financial-data and analytics platform serving lenders, fintechs, and tax/finance use cases. Enabling peer whose data-extraction and statement-parsing capabilities overlap with TaxBuddy's Form 16, 26AS, and CAS-processing stack.

Regional players

• LegalDesk: Indian online legal services and documentation platform with adjacent tax and registration offerings. Comparable to TaxBuddy's Legal Services and company/business registration modules in the Indian consumer segment.

Emerging players

• TaxGuru: Popular Indian tax information portal with a large tax-professional audience and indirect filing/advisory offerings. Comparable to TaxBuddy as a tax-content and professional-services destination, though it does not primarily run a consumer filing product.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TaxBuddy1
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@TaxBuddy
• Facebookfacebook.com/TaxBuddyOfficial
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tax-buddy-india
• Instagraminstagram.com/taxbuddy_official

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tax Buddy