Doing your taxes is stressful enough without wondering whether the numbers you are looking at are even correct. With income limits, contribution rules and shifting IRS guidelines, small mistakes can have real consequences, which is why getting three different answers to the same tax question can feel alarming.
That’s what happened to the person who tried getting tax advice from ChatGPT. In a recent Reddit post in r/tax, they warned others: “Do NOT rely on ChatGPT for tax advice.” The post drew responses from taxpayers and professionals, many of whom said the experience was not surprising.
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The original poster said the issue involved simplified employee pension contributions and Roth IRA eligibility in a low-income married filing jointly household. They said they received three different calculated numbers over three different responses. The answers shifted each time. “Absolutely horrible for taxes,” the person wrote. “Stick to your tax software and/or a qualified tax advisor. AI has a long way to go, at least in this field.”
Several professionals said they have already seen real-world consequences. A tax lawyer shared that clients have shown up with AI-generated returns rejected by the IRS.
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Math errors were a recurring theme. One person said a $2 million income was calculated as owing $26 million in taxes. “It would just say ‘oops, you’re right!’ and then be wrong again,” they wrote. Another person said asking the same question on different days produced different answers. “The confidence it has while being wrong is wild,” they said.
Commenters repeatedly pointed out that large language models do not actually understand tax law. “ChatGPT cannot reason,” one person said. “All it can do is predict the most probable next word in a conversation.”
“[They] don’t understand anything, they’re predictive,” another added. “If an answer sounds right… it is right. That’s how they work.”
Some Say It Can Help, With Limits
A smaller group argued the issue is how people use AI. “Garbage in -> garbage out,” one commenter wrote. Others said detailed prompts and full context can improve responses.
Still, even supporters urged caution. “Use it as a starting point, maybe but it shouldn’t be the end point,” one person said.
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Many agreed AI can help explain concepts or summarize IRS publications. But most said it should not replace official tax software or a licensed professional when filing a legally binding return.
Taxes carry real consequences. Filing errors can result in penalties, interest or rejected returns. Laws change frequently, and eligibility rules depend on income, filing status and other details.
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