Avalara doesn't provide what's promised in their contracts
We used Avalara to track, file, and remit state and international sales taxes.
Starting at $21 per month
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What is Avalara?
Avalara AvaTax connects to the software that businesses already have and delivers sales tax decisions based on precise geo-location in more than 12,000 taxing jurisdictions in the U.S.
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Awards
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Popular Features
- Sales and Use Taxes (295)8.888%
- Tax Exemption Processing (201)8.383%
- Tax Data Reporting (248)8.383%
- 3rd-Party Software Integrations (223)8.080%
Reviewer Pros & Cons
Pricing
Entry-level set up fee?
- Setup fee optional
For the latest information on pricing, visithttps://www.avalara.com/us/en/products/…
Offerings
- Free Trial
- Free/Freemium Version
- Premium Consulting/Integration Services
Starting price (does not include set up fee)
- $21 per month
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Avalara AvaTax Demo
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What is Avalara?
Avalara helps to make tax compliance faster,
easier, more accurate, and more reliable for 30,000+ business and government
customers in over 90 countries. Tax compliance automation software solutions
from Avalara leverage 1,200+ signed partner integrations across ecommerce, ERP, and other billing systems to power tax calculations, document
management, tax return filing, and tax content access. Visit avalara.com to learn more.
Avalara Features
Type of tax Features
- Supported: Sales and Use Taxes
- Supported: Cross-border Taxes
- Supported: VAT / GST Taxes
- Supported: Energy and Fuel Taxes
Tax Reporting & Compliance Features
- Supported: Geolocation for Tax Assessment
- Supported: 3rd-Party Software Integrations
- Supported: Tax Data Reporting
- Supported: Compliance Administration Management
- Supported: Tax Exemption Processing
- Supported: Tax Document Management
- Supported: Complex Tax Scenario Management
Additional Features
- Supported: Centralized tax management: Unifies sales and use tax calculation, document management, and returns preparation.
- Supported: Integrations: AvaTax connects with more than 700 prebuilt integrations to connect with accounting, ecommerce, POS, and other systems, plus an advanced API.
- Supported: Cloud-based: A software-as-a-service solution, AvaTax updates take effect as soon as they are deployed, helping to ensure the most current information is used.
- Supported: Exemption management: Certificates from vendors are stored electronically for access and to track expiration dates. Automatic renewal requests are sent out before certificates expire.
- Supported: Returns filing and remittance: Returns preparation and remittance in multiple jurisdictions. Avalara Returns can track and manage due dates and payment requirements, enabling users to pay returns with a single source of payment.
- Supported: Lodging: Lodging tax for hotel or rental property are managed with a solution that plugs into reservation software to deliver lodging tax calculations in real time as well as preparation, filing, and remittances of lodge tax returns.
- Supported: Communications: Tax calculations are delivered on an array of communications transactions by directly connecting to a current billing or ERP system, or to an in-house build via API.
- Supported: Beverage Alcohol: Simplified regulatory compliance for suppliers, distributors, and retailers in the beverage alcohol industry.
Avalara Screenshots
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Why Avalara?
Avalara Integrations
Avalara Competitors
Avalara Technical Details
| Deployment Types | Software as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based |
|---|---|
| Operating Systems | Unspecified |
| Mobile Application | No |
Avalara Downloadables
Frequently Asked Questions
Avalara AvaTax connects to the software that businesses already have and delivers sales tax decisions based on precise geo-location in more than 12,000 taxing jurisdictions in the U.S.
Avalara starts at $21.
Vertex, Sovos Intelligent Compliance Cloud, and Thomson Reuters ONESOURCE are common alternatives for Avalara.
Reviewers rate Sales and Use Taxes highest, with a score of 8.8.
The most common users of Avalara are from Mid-sized Companies (51-1,000 employees).
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Reviews and Ratings
(720)Attribute Ratings
Reviews
(51-75 of 413)Companies can't remove reviews or game the system. Here's why
February 02, 2023
Sales Tax is complicated - Avalara makes it easier
We sell product all over the world and have nexus in 35 states as of January 1. We have hundreds of customers and constantly deal with sales tax and compliance. My role consists of being the point person for all things sales tax, including consulting our customers on the specific laws and regulations. Additionally, I research the compliance requirements for each state in which we collect tax in so that we have the correct documentation on file to protect our company as well as our customer.
- Efficiency
- Accuracy
- Communication
- Understanding of help tickets/cases and providing accurate solutions
February 02, 2023
Avalara - Like it once you get to know it
Avalara is linked to QuickBooks for real time tax collection. This assists in data collection for filing returns.
- State by state sales
- break out of county, city taxes
- sales tax rates
- will become unresponsive with QB's located on the server
- some reports are not available when I became a MRA user
February 02, 2023
Avalara Review
For sales tax calculation and return filing. Initially Avalara was purchased to be used for global tax calculation and return filings, but there is still an issue with the reverse charge mechanism not working between Avalara and Chargebee. This issue led us use other tax software to calculate and file international tax returns.
- Calculating US Sales Tax
- Plenty of reporting options to analyze data
- No ability to review tax returns before filing.
- Support tickets are closed before solutions are confirmed to work, so need to open/file multiple tickets for the same issue.
- No ability to prevent tax returns from being filed after the 1st, but do not know if anything is incorrect until the 1st.
- All returns filed should include payment confirmations from the state, for audit purposes.
February 02, 2023
Avalara Review
JetBrains Americas Inc uses Avalara to file our Monthly/Quarterly/Annual Sales Tax Returns. We have peace of mind knowing that our sales tax returns are being filed correctly on a timely basis with backup support.
- Product mapping with correct sales tax applied per product per state
- Quick responses from support
- Change the order of states on "Approve Returns" to Alphabetical order of abbreviated states as it was in the past.
February 02, 2023
Useful product that saves time but has many areas for improvement
We use it to manage exemption certificates, file sales tax returns, and for sales tax calculations.
- Maintain sales tax rates and calculation of sales tax on invoices.
- Store exemption certificates.
- Keeping up with ever changing rules on what is taxable/non-taxable.
- Implementation and training, especially training unique to your ERP.
- Customer service response times.
- Communication of changes, updates to the software, etc.
- Better reporting - would like to see customizable reports
February 02, 2023
Use Avalara! You won't be disappointed!
Avalara has been an amazing tool to manage our customer's sales tax exemption forms and provide us with the most up to date sales tax rates. We also utilize it to track sales throughout the country and see what thresholds we've met to register in new states as needed.
- Up to date sales tax rates
- Excellent exemption certificate management
- Wonderful customer service
February 02, 2023
Definitely Recommend AvaTax and Avalara Returns
We use AvaTax for tax calculation and Avalara Returns to file the US and Canadian returns. AvaTax is used to calculate taxes on our invoices with the correct rates and taxability determinations. A significant number of our returns are also filed using Avalara Returns, freeing up time for my team to focus on more value added activities.
- Calculation of tax using customers ship to address
- Timely filing and payment of returns
- Taxability determination for most products
- Response with statutory support to questions regarding the taxability determination on certain tax codes
- Responses to account questions sent to account manager are too slow and often require multiple follow ups to get a response
- Need additional tax codes to account for changing technology in the software industry
February 02, 2023
Avalara Review
I use it daily, with uploading new tax certificates for customers. I also use it to reach out to customers to inform them when their tax certificates are about to expire and request a new tax certificate to be put on file. I use it daily to confirm with customers and coworkers if a customer has a valid sales tax exemption form on file or not.
- Easy upload form process
- Great reports for expiring forms
- Easier to manage the website, feel like there is a lot hidden that can be used.
January 26, 2023
Avalara - Easy to Use and Reliable Reporting
Avalara is our tool for tax calculation for all revenue transactions and compliance reporting for each jurisdiction we operate within. The tool integrates with our operating platform, NetSuite, for accurate calculation of applicable taxes on all system generated revenue transactions. It also provides an easy tool to research nexus requirements in jurisdictions we operate within or may desire to operate in, as well as allows us an easy way to monitor as we approach nexus thresholds for jurisdictions we are currently operating within.
- Tax calculation
- Integration with NetSuite
- Nexus research and monitoring
- Automated emails to administrators for "watched" jurisdictions
December 28, 2022
Avalara Managed Returns - Another Corporate Resource.
We use Avalara Managed Returns in conjunction with AvaTax. The combination of these products ensures that we correctly collect and remit sales and use taxes for the regions in which we do business. The savings in resource time alone has provided a huge cost benefit for us, let alone an increase in the accuracy of our reporting.
- Establishes the connection with the appropriate municipal entity,
- Provides ample time for review of the sales and use tax liability,
- Submits the returns in accordance with the requirements of the respective municipal entity.
- Maintains historical record of each remittance.
- Allows for easy retrieval of past returns.
- Make it easier to find and modify the filing frequency of returns for a municipality.
- Be able to engage with an account manager on a quarterly basis.
- Quarterly newsletter offering tips - techniques - product updates.
November 30, 2022
Avalara- There when you need them!
Currently, we use Avalara for knowledge base and article reference. We attend multiple webinars to remain compliant regarding Resale Certs and state nexus. We also have the Salesforce application integrator which we are currently navigating thru with our reps. We use them on a daily basis for reference and guidance for compliance issues. Their staff is extremely knowledgeable and customer service orientated.
- Customer Service
- Knowledge Base Articles
- Relatable Blog Posts
- Quote via website/info given
- Articles that reference E-invoicing
- Federal Agency buyers and their taxability from state to state
November 29, 2022
review
We use Avalara for certificate validation and storage. We also use Avatax for correct sales tax and to file returns
- Storing Documents
- Ease of use
- Certificate support - since it has changed to a general email and we no longer have a specific point of contact for issues the service has gone down hill
- On Avatax website - it states we are approaching thresholds however in my opinion it is very misleading because some states it is for only taxable transactions/ sales
- On certcapture. The expiring reports are misleading as it does not account for certificates that have already been uploaded. You have to look up the customer see if there is any pending certificates so you do not upload a duplicate
- On CertCapture: The reasons why certificates are being marked invalid are inconsistent. Some times it will state the issue in the validation - but it will state something differently in the notes section
- Certcapture - for PR we have received some certificates in spanish. It has been marked invalid due to language. - that is not an acceptable reason to mark invalid since it is their native language in PR
November 16, 2022
Time Saving Product
We use Avalara to file state excise tax returns. The product creates consistency and accuracy.
- Custom scenarios
- Rate changes
- Custom queries
- Complex scenarios
- Business entity maintenance
- Location maintenance
November 16, 2022
Avalara can help...
Avalara is our return sourcing company.
- File returns timely
- Provides lots of general trainings
- Good resource tool
- More human accessibility vs tickets
- Delay/lack response on tickets
- Better response from representatives
November 16, 2022
Avalara Review!
We use Avalara to collect and report sales tax across various states. Avalara is integrated with our ERP system such that our ERP reaches Avalara for each invoice to capture the correct amount of sales tax in each state prior to invoicing. Avalara then provides us with the appropriate reports in order to streamline our tax filing process.
- Sales Tax Exemptions
- Sales Tax Report
- Sales Tax Collection
- Additional filtering for transactions
- Additional information on exemptions
November 07, 2022
Avalara saved my sanity!!
We are a network marketing company that sales to wholesale distributors through out all of North America. We use both Avatax and Avalara Returns to ensure we are collecting and remitting the correct sales/sellers taxes in all states and provinces. The biggest issue our company was facing when we moved to Avalara was two-fold; the ability to apply multiple tax rates in the markets we are in, and the time it took to file the returns each month. With Avatax we are now taxing products as they should be in every market, right down to the local tax rates in different states. The time it takes to file returns has been cut down from a full 40 hour week, to a mere 4 to 6 hours a week, dependent upon if it is quarterly filings, etc.
- Calculating taxes down to the local levels
- Remitting tax returns in a timely manner
- Responding to tax questions in a timely manner
- Reporting issues with their platform and updating as they make corrections to ensure uninterrupted use of their product.
- Ensuring tax rates are updated and locales change them
- I really have no complaints about the product at this time.
- It works very well for our company and size of business.
November 04, 2022
Avalara Review
We use Avalara for all Direct to Consumer and Wholesale compliance needs. Reporting, Licensing, Registration, Excise Tax and we also use Avatax for Sales Tax reporting.
- On time reporting
- On time license renewal
- Customer Service
- Transparency on the portal
- Timeliness in responding to concerns
October 27, 2022
Great Product and Service.
Avalara provides a complete solution for our application, collection, and payment of Sales and Use Tax. Avalara's services negate the need for specialized staff to continually research changes in Tax law for individual States.
- Compliance with changing regulations.
- Filing of individual returns.
- Application of specific tax rates based on location.
- Additional sources for tax determination based on product and use.
- Notifications of changes in rates and rulings from states.
October 26, 2022
Avalara - review from a long-term user
We use Avalara for sales tax determination, and we utilize the tax law research functionality. We have multiple ledgers that roll up into one legal entity and Avalara was easy to implement across the various ledgers and product offerings. We enjoy the accuracy of the research tool and ease of use. It's become our go to research tool for sales and uses tax research.
- Easy implementation
- Allows the use of GPS coordinates
- Provides quick solutions to meet tax law requirements - i.e. the CO transportation fee.
- Communication, communication, communication -room for improvement on getting help with resolutions.
- Helping customers with TLS issues.
- The first level of support is not very helpful. We are often referred to our technical account manager for further research. Have the TAM train the first level support staff.
- We pay to get responses within 24 hours, but a response of "this has been escalated to your TAM" should not count as a solution response.
October 26, 2022
Convenience and ease
We have a large base of retail and wholesale customers in many states that we sell product to. Avalara software is a great tool that we use on a daily basis to calculate sales tax in the 36 state that we ship to. Using the software we don't have to guess at what the taxes are for the state, city, county and any special jurisdictions. It stay up to date with the ever changing laws and applies those changes.
- Notifying us of thresholds met
- Staying current on sales tax law changes
- Applying the current sales tax percentage when states increase or decrease their tax amounts
- Giving us more options to customize a report that we may need for sales tax reporting
- Being able to setup a quick use dashboard that is personalized to the users
- Bring back to the quick keys when entering a new customer or updating. ie When entering in the state, you type the first letter of that state and tab to the state you need from there. O would bring up Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, So you would type O and tab once to get to Oklahoma. Right now if you type O it brings up every state that has the letter O in it.
October 26, 2022
Avalara is the Gold Standard for Tax Compliance
Avalara is the gold standard for managing tax compliance in many districts couldn't do without it. We utilize cert capture to manage tax exemptions as it is an ever changing landscape with tax laws and court cases making the decisions outside of our ability to manage those changes. Avalara makes compliance possible.
- Tax Compliance
- Exemption Capture
- Tax code changes
- Pricing model
- refinement of cert capture UX
October 23, 2022
Best investment we could have made in a painful process.
Keeping track of the various local taxes and tax structures is overwhelming. For a small company that does periodic business in other states, Avalara is a Godsend. The integration with our ERP system is seamless, and maintaining tax-exempt certificates could not be easier.
- Integrates with order processing and invoicing in ERP system.
- Maintain a clean database of Certs.
- Calculates all state and local taxes on invoices.
- Files quarterly sales tax for various states.
- Better forms.
- Easier to add transaction.
- More intuitive on linking certs to multiple customers.
October 19, 2022
If your e-commerce is growing, it helps to know what your owing! Avalara does it all.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
We utilize Avalara as a key tool within our online e-commerce platform. As a national distributor of lab products and supplies, we have met the economic Nexus thresholds in a majority of states. AvaTax is a vital part of our assessment and remittance process, starting with the shopping experience of our customer, all the way to managing sales tax exemptions, closing out invoices and filing returns.
- Assesses up-to-date sales tax at the local jurisdiction.
- Manages sales tax exemptions through the CertCapture Module
- Provides ongoing information of changing regulations in individual states.
- Allows for easy reconciliation of transactions.
- Provides easy registration for SST states.
- Reconciling errors in transactions of SST states is often difficult.
- Sometimes support can be a bit slow or not provide as good of information as might be needed.
- Scaling up services and what the cost is to do so at renewal can be confusing/fuzzy.
October 19, 2022
Can't get any better than this!
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
We use Avalara for multiple reasons. Avalara Returns to file our many sales tax returns as we collect sales tax in over 20 states. They keep us compliant and correct! I use AVATAX to code our items to ensure correct taxability. This is something I simply could never do without their expertise. And newly Consumer Use to help us get our personal use taxes correct. This is an area we just struggled in. It is so difficult to not only know WHAT is taxable when you purchase it, but how MUCH of it is taxable, and at what rate! I couldn't do this with them!
- Returns - There are so many! They keep us on task and compliant without us having to think twice!
- Consumer Use - By tax coding our items purchased, and where from, they are able to quickly figure out how much you owe, and if you even have overpaid!
- Support Customer Service - Their answers to questions can be short and borderline rude. However I have found with further explanation, I can get to the answer I am needing. Also with this current world of 'work at home', email is not always the best way to present oneself as you cannot hear tone of voice in an email.
October 07, 2022
Great Sofware
Avalara provides a turn-key solution beginning with exemption certificate management for approximately 1,500 customers through the Cert Capture product. For customers that are taxable, Avatax ensures that the appropriate sales tax is charged on each invoice. Finally, Avalara Returns is utilized to prepare and file the recurring sales tax returns.
- Accurate sales tax rates.
- Exemption Certificate Campaigns.
- Complete and accurate sales tax return filings.
- Quicker and more knowledgeable when responding to open cases/issues.
- Improved product taxability charts.
- Updates on sales tax changes, news and legislative changes.