COMPARISON
TaxRiskOS and TaxNow
TaxNow monitors IRS accounts and detects changes before notices arrive. TaxRiskOS structures the first hour after a notice arrives. Detection vs. response — complementary, not competing.
What TaxNow is
TaxNow is an IRS account access and monitoring platform. It connects directly to IRS account data via taxpayer authorization under Section 7216 — bypassing the CAF number and IRS e-Services friction that practitioners normally deal with. The platform monitors IRS accounts daily and fires alerts when something changes: audit flags, refund status, lien filings, installment agreement changes, ERC credit activity, and tax identity theft signals.
TaxNow is upstream of the formal notice. Its value is detecting that something is happening in a client's account before the IRS sends the formal correspondence — sometimes significantly before. The platform also integrates with Karbon for practice management handoff.
Pricing from public materials (June 2026): Free (1 account), Plus $20/month (5 accounts), PRO (unlimited accounts, variable pricing).
The two moments in the lifecycle
TaxNow and TaxRiskOS sit at different moments in the same notice lifecycle:
- TaxNow — before the notice arrives. Account monitoring detects that an audit has been flagged, a lien has filed, or an account balance has changed. The practitioner gets an alert. The formal notice has not arrived yet.
- TaxRiskOS — when the notice arrives. The client forwards the notice. The intake begins: notice type, notice date, statutory response deadline (computed from the date and notice code), escalation tier, document checklist, and handoff packet.
TaxNow's monitoring does not replace the intake step: when the formal notice arrives, it still needs to be classified, deadlined, and triaged. TaxRiskOS does not replace account monitoring: proactive detection of account changes before formal notice is outside its scope.
What TaxNow doesn't cover (after the notice arrives)
Based on TaxNow's public product materials, the following post-receipt workflow capabilities are not part of the platform:
- Structured notice intake. TaxNow alerts that something changed — it does not parse the formal notice, classify its type, or capture its date.
- Statutory deadline calculation. The 30-day CDP deadline on an LT11, the 30-day window on a CP2000, the 90-day Tax Court petition window on a Notice of Deficiency — TaxNow's alert calendar fires on account events, not on the statutory response windows printed on IRS correspondence.
- Escalation tier logic. No civil-vs-attorney fork, no detection of the indicators that change how a matter should be handled (special-agent contact, eggshell audit warning signs, summons).
- Notice-specific document checklist and handoff packet. TaxNow does not generate a structured first-hour intake record or a counsel-ready handoff packet.
Full lifecycle: detection through handoff
TaxNow + TaxRiskOS covers the full notice lifecycle — proactive detection before the notice and structured intake after it arrives. Neither company currently offers this as a packaged integration. The TaxNow-to-TaxRiskOS handoff (TaxNow detects the event; TaxRiskOS triggers the intake workflow when the notice arrives) is a natural integration that does not yet exist.
Frequently asked questions
What does TaxNow do?
TaxNow connects directly to IRS account data (bypassing CAF/e-Services friction) and monitors it daily for changes — audit flags, refund status, liens, ERC updates, installment agreement changes, and tax identity theft signals. It can detect that something is happening in a client's IRS account up to several months before a formal notice arrives, and fires alerts to practitioners or clients. It also has a Karbon practice management integration. Pricing: Free (1 account), Plus $20/month (5 accounts), PRO (unlimited, variable).
How is TaxRiskOS different from TaxNow?
TaxNow is upstream detection — it tells you that something changed in a client's IRS account before the formal notice arrives. TaxRiskOS is downstream response — it structures the first hour after a notice arrives: intake form, statutory deadline calculation, escalation tier, notice-specific document checklist, and a counsel-ready handoff packet. TaxNow doesn't do any of those things; TaxRiskOS doesn't do account monitoring. They cover different moments in the same lifecycle.
Are they complementary?
Yes — and neither currently integrates with the other. TaxNow detects an audit flag or account change; TaxRiskOS structures the response when the formal notice arrives. Together they cover the full notice lifecycle from detection through structured handoff. The TaxNow-to-TaxRiskOS handoff — detection triggers intake workflow — doesn't exist as a packaged integration yet.
Does TaxRiskOS do IRS transcript monitoring like TaxNow?
Not in V1. TaxRiskOS begins at the moment the notice is received. Transcript monitoring and proactive account detection are outside V1's scope. TaxNow is a strong complement for practitioners who need that upstream signal.
Other comparisons
- Full capability comparison — all tool categories →
- TaxRiskOS vs. Canopy →
- TaxRiskOS vs. IRS Solutions →
TaxNow capabilities above are drawn from public materials, pricing pages, and product documentation as of June 2026. Confirm specifics with TaxNow directly.