Review: Taxcalc Personal Lite office software

For the self-employed, summer means it's time to start thinking about tax, as the returns for the previous year start to become due. The program looks good and was easy to install, as well as being simple to use.

It roughly replicates the tax form and allows users to file electronically (you'll need to enter your HMRC username and password) or by printing out a paper return for you to post.

The Simplestep mode does a good job of simplifying the tax return, although the HMRC service gets easier to use as you get more used to it each year. Taxcalc does provide a certain amount of help with each field to explain some of what each entry means.

The £5 edition allows one return (and you can import your return from previous versions of the program) but if you have more complicated tax affairs such as a trust or a directorship you'll need to shell out for the more expensive editions (see the website for details). As it is, £5 isn't too high a price to pay for peace of mind if you find HMRC's own electronic submission website is too taxing.

Vista compatible: Yes