Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Deductible Duck FAQ — **Frequently Asked Questions about Deductible Duck**

Is Deductible Duck free?

There is a free trial where you can track up to $500 in donations for free to give us a try. After that, it’s a small annual subscription fee of $29.99 to keep the lights on, help add new features and provide human-based customer support. This is how we’re able to sustain the service and make sure you never have to have an “ItsDeductible Moment” ever again.

How does Fair Market Value (FMV) work?

We have a database of items from eBay auctions and thrift store valuations to determine the FMV of items on the list. We conservatively value items to ensure they meet IRS Pub 561 guidelines. Per IRS regulations (Publication 561), it’s up to the person donating the item to determine the final fair market value, but we provide good-faith estimates on current market data to help.

Do you use AI to value my donations?

No — and we think that’s the right call until IRS guidance specifically addresses it.
IRS Publication 561 names the methods it considers acceptable for valuing donated property: comparable sales, thrift store and consignment shop prices, replacement cost, and qualified appraisals. It does not mention AI. It also explicitly states that clothing valuation “does not lend itself to fixed formulas or methods”, which is exactly what an AI-generated value is.
The IRS wants to know “where did this number come from?” Deductible Duck uses estimates grounded in actual comparable sales, like item prices sold on eBay, consignment shop values, and thrift stores pricing, actual methods called out in Pub 561. AI-generated values, especially one assigned from a photo, suffer from two problems: it can’t reliably assess item condition (which Pub 561 treats as central to fair market value), and it can produce numbers that sound authoritative but aren’t grounded in any real market data.
Deductible Duck sticks with the methods Pub 561 actually names. If IRS guidance evolves to specifically endorse AI-based valuations, we’ll revisit. Until then, Deductible Duck will produce defensible numbers rather than impressive sounding answers.

Does this work with TurboTax?

Yes, with Desktop! Deductible Duck provides you an export file (TXF format) that you can import into TurboTax that will fill your Schedule A form AUTOMATICALLY. This is available for Desktop users (Windows or Mac)–Desktop import instructions here.
If you’re using the Online version (meaning you login to TurboTax.com to file your tax return), Intuit’s software, unfortunately, has limitations. Read more about TurboTax Online and the limits here.

Is my data secure?

Yes. Deductible Duck is hosted on secure infrastructure in the cloud, with highly restricted access. We follow all best practices concerning enterprise data security, including encryption, 2FA, password rotation, email verification, anti-spam and bot technologies, strong privacy controls, and PCI compliance. We have over 40 years experience running enterprise grade SaaS, you can be confident your data is secure.

When is Form 8283 required?

Form 8283 is required when you have charitable donations to any single organization over $500. See this article for more details on the record keeping requirements: When do I need Form 8283?

Here are some more commonly asked questions about Deductible Duck.

Deductible Duck provides you an export file that you can import into TurboTax Desktop that will fill your Schedule A form AUTOMATICALLY. This is available for Desktop users (Windows or Mac). If you’re using the Online version (meaning you login to TurboTax.com to file your tax return), there are some limitations we discovered in January of 2026. Read about TurboTax Online Limits here. The process looks like this:

1. You enter donations into Deductible Duck
2. When you’re done, you export your data as a TXF file
3. You import this file into TurboTax Desktop
4. You review the data inside of TurboTax
5. You’re done!

We use TXF format to exchange data with TurboTax (and other tax software). You can easily import the TXF into TurboTax Desktop using these instructions from Intuit.

Yes! We have a database used for FMV determination of items. We use eBay auctions and thrift store valuations to determine the FMV of items on the list. And if something isn’t available, you can always add it via Custom Items. Our data is a starting point and should be a guide for finding the final value that best suits the condition of the items you’re donating. These are estimates, not official appraisals. Per IRS regulations (Publication 561), it’s up to the person donating the item to determine the final fair market value.

No. We are not Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) or other licensed tax professionals, and cannot provide you with any tax advice regarding your donations. Please consult a CPA or other licensed professional if you have any questions or concerns about your donation valuation, timing or other issues with charitable contributions and your tax situation.

Our reports meet the same standards as those you used to use with ItsDeductible. While there is no generally required format for the IRS report itself, our reports contain all the necessary tracking information you require in order to be compliant with IRS recordkeeping standards for charitable contributions.

Deductible Duck is written and managed by experienced SaaS operators with over 40 years of experience in software development, enterprise software security, SaaS development operations and running online businesses for the last 25 years.

We follow all best practices for security and privacy.

Deductible Duck is hosted on secure infrastructure in the cloud. Access to this infrastructure is highly restricted and use 2FA to ensure that our logins are not compromised. We rotate passwords frequently. The data is encrypted in motion and at rest. The site can only be securely accessed through encrypted links.

The database is not accessible outside of our infrastructure. We store passwords in a secure way as salted hashes, using high encryption methods. We do not store any credit card information on our servers or database, instead we use a well-known, secure payment processor to handle all of the payment processing so we are fully PCI compliant.

Logins on the site are through 2FA and require email registration verification, to avoid spam registrations and hacked accounts being compromised. We do not store uploaded files on our servers, they are deleted immediately after use to maximize privacy.

In short, we are serious about security because we know your data is our business and protecting it is our #1 job.

YES! We added a mobile app to Deductible Duck in January of 2026, and it’s available now. Read the instructions on how to install the mobile app

Yes, although we’ll be sad to see you leave. You are never locked into long term contracts with us. Cancel anytime, and you’ll retain access to your account and exports while your subscription remains active. Subscriptions start when you enter your credit card information and renew every 12 months, so if you cancel in the middle of that time, you’ll retain access until your renewal date. You can request account removal at any time by contacting us.

You do, full stop. We never sell, rent, or share your personal identifiable data for any reason. We are privacy focused and have secure infrastructure to protect your data at all times, but still make it accessible in multiple places (any desktop, any browser, any time). See our Privacy Policy for all the details of how your data is protected.

We are keeping a close eye on this as a feature, however, IRS Publication 561 (Determining the Value of Donated Property) explains that you must have reliable valuation information to support the deduction you claim, particularly for non-cash contributions. It is not enough to just show a number — you must be able to demonstrate how that value was arrived at. This is the problem with AI at the moment–there’s little “how”, just the “what”.

If an AI tool gives you a value but doesn’t show:

real market data (like sold prices),
how condition was factored in, or
any explanation you can keep with your records,

then that AI-derived value may not be defensible if the IRS ever asks. This is why we use other, defensible methods for determining FMV estimates of your items, like comparable sales, thrift store values, and eBay auctions. If this changes, we’ll definitely look at AI more closely, until then, we’re going to stick with the acceptable methods that the IRS will definitely allow you to deduct to reduce the risk of an audit.

Deductible Duck uses the standard TXF format for exporting our data from Deductible Duck into other tax software. Specifically, the TXF format is supported by multiple vendors, but Deductible Duck is tested and working on TurboTax (Desktop editions) only right now. TurboTax Online has other limits, which are worth reading.

For more information about how to import your TXF file on TurboTax, visit this article.

Unfortunately, no. Intuit has significant differences in how these two programs behave and what integrations are available. We strongly recommend DESKTOP over Online, because Desktop has all of the right support. We recommend you read more about the limitations of TurboTax Online before you pick one.

Deductible Duck’s paid plan comes with a one-year subscription to the service. You can manage, track and report on donations for 12 months after you sign up for your Deductible Duck account and upgrade it to paid. We don’t support individual months for paid plans. One year is the shortest subscription available.

Not a problem! Just Contact Us and we’d be happy to help.

And you may also be wondering what happened to ItsDeductible, which you can learn more about by reading that article.