Best App for Salaried Tax Optimisation in India (2026)

Updated 2026-06-12 · 14 min read

A neutral, India-specific comparison of apps that help salaried Indian employees optimise income tax year-round - ClearTax, Quicko, Tax2Win, ET Money, Scripbox, and Qubera. Focused on old vs new regime, Section 80C/80D/HRA headroom, RSU planning, and year-round (not just July) workflow.

# Best App for Salaried Tax Optimisation in India (2026)

TL;DR: Tax optimisation and tax filing are two different jobs. ClearTax, Quicko, and Tax2Win are the strongest filing apps. Qubera, ET Money, and Scripbox are the strongest year-round planning apps. For a salaried earner with a modest deduction stack, the simplest 2026 stack is Qubera for planning + ClearTax for filing. For an MNC employee with RSUs, ESPP, and Schedule FA exposure, Qubera's planning value is highest because the RSU module is built around the year-round vest schedule, not the July ITR.

Quick answer

Best year-round tax planning + RSU module: Qubera.
Best ITR filing engine (DIY): ClearTax, Quicko (toss-up; pick by UI preference).
Best CA-assisted filing: Tax2Win or ClearTax assisted plans.
Best for tax planning + mutual funds combined: ET Money.
Best for tax planning + financial advice (high-touch): Scripbox.
Best for crypto, NRI, capital gains heavy filings: Quicko.

Filing vs optimisation - why the distinction matters

A filing app is event-driven. You open it in June or July, upload Form 16, answer questions, e-verify, done. The app's job ends at the refund. ClearTax, Quicko, and Tax2Win are excellent at this and have been for years.

A tax optimisation app is calendar-driven. It tells you in April whether to switch from old to new regime for the year ahead. In July it reminds you to declare HRA changes if you moved. In September it asks if your employer NPS contribution is on. In November it shows whether your 80C is on track or whether you need to top up an ELSS SIP. In February it surfaces an RSU vest hitting next week and asks whether you want to sell to cover tax or hold for LTCG. In March it reminds you of Form 67 if the US withheld tax on a vest.

Most salaried earners need both layers. The mistake is treating a filing app as a planning app, or assuming the planning app will also file.

Who this guide is for

You earn between ₹15 lakh and ₹75 lakh CTC. You have a Form 16 from one employer. You may also have RSU/ESPP at an MNC parent, mutual fund SIPs, EPF, HRA, possibly a home loan, and maybe NPS. You file under the old regime or the new regime, or you are not sure which. You want to make decisions during the year that are visible at filing time, not just clean up at filing time.

If you are a freelancer, business owner, or have presumptive income under Section 44ADA, this guide is the wrong fit - your tax surface is different and your tooling stack will look different.

How we evaluated

Six criteria:

Regime comparison fidelity. Does the app run the old vs new comparison against your actual salary structure (not just a typed-in gross)?
Section 80C/80D/HRA planning. Does it show year-to-date utilisation against the cap, with topup suggestions?
RSU/ESPP module. Does it handle Section 17(2) perquisite, FIFO cost basis, Schedule FA, and DTAA Form 67 - year-round, not just at filing?
Year-round nudges. Does it surface decisions you can act on this month, or only show summaries at filing time?
Filing integration. Does it file the ITR, hand off cleanly to a filing app, or both?
India ICP. Is it built for the salaried Indian, or repurposed from another market?

The six apps we tested

Qubera - best year-round planning + RSU module

Qubera is the planning layer. It reads your salary structure (Form 16 upload or AA-pulled EPF entries), your bank accounts and credit cards, your mutual fund holdings (via AA), and your RSU vest schedule (via broker CSV or vest emails).

The tax surface includes:

Regime comparison that recomputes monthly as your numbers shift. Not a one-time calculator.
80C optimiser that shows year-to-date utilisation, available cap, and a topup suggestion (ELSS, PPF topup, EPF VPF, or NPS Tier I).
80D + employer NPS + standard deduction stacking against the old-regime breakeven.
HRA + home loan interest with city-specific rent assumption and metro-flag aware computation.
RSU module - vest-by-vest FMV-in-INR, FIFO cost basis chain, STCG vs LTCG classification (24-month rule for foreign shares), Schedule FA list grouped by calendar year, Form 67 DTAA prompt.
March planning - tax-loss harvesting opportunities, RSU sale timing for LTCG, advance tax check.

Qubera does not file. The output is a clean export your CA or your filing app uses.

Strengths: the year-round planning surface; RSU depth; AI commentary that explains tradeoffs. Weaknesses: does not file ITR; advisory-only. Pricing: free. India fit: native.

ClearTax - best DIY ITR filing app + strong planning tools

ClearTax is the dominant filing engine. ITR-1 through ITR-3 are well-supported. Form 26AS and AIS auto-fetch save hours. Assisted-CA plans add a human review layer. The planning side is good for a filing app - regime calculator, 80C optimiser, salary structuring guides - but is calculator-driven, not data-driven; you type in numbers rather than have your accounts read.

Strengths: best filing UX in India; CA upsell; refund tracking; trusted brand. Weaknesses: planning surface is calculator-based, not account-data-based; less depth on RSU planning year-round. Pricing: free DIY; paid for assisted-CA (₹1k-10k by complexity). India fit: native.

Quicko - best for capital gains, crypto, and NRI filings

Quicko has the strongest depth on capital gains - equity, mutual funds, RSU, crypto, F&O. The UI is engineered for cases that ClearTax simplifies. NRI filings (DTAA, Schedule FA, Section 115H if applicable) are well-supported. Planning tools are present but secondary.

Strengths: capital gains depth; crypto; NRI; F&O; clean import from Zerodha and Upstox. Weaknesses: planning surface is thinner than ClearTax; UI is less forgiving for ITR-1 simplicity. Pricing: free DIY for simple cases; paid for complex returns. India fit: native.

Tax2Win - best CA-assisted filing

Tax2Win's primary product is the CA-assisted plan. You upload documents, a CA prepares the return, you e-verify. Strong for low-confidence filers and complex cases where you want a human in the loop without paying the assisted-CA premium ClearTax charges. Planning side is minimal.

Strengths: CA-assisted pricing; strong support; takes the filing anxiety off your plate. Weaknesses: thin planning tools; UX is filing-only. Pricing: ₹500-5,000 by complexity. India fit: native.

ET Money - best for tax planning + mutual funds in one app

ET Money's primary product is mutual fund investing. The tax planning layer is solid - 80C ELSS picker, regime comparison, NPS Tier I integration, retirement projection. It does not handle RSU/Schedule FA at planning depth. It does not file.

Strengths: clean 80C optimiser tied directly to ELSS execution; trusted AA-FIU app; retirement projection. Weaknesses: RSU and Schedule FA are out of scope; no filing. Pricing: free for core tools; some advisory tiers paid. India fit: native.

Scripbox - best for tax planning + advice (high-touch)

Scripbox started as a mutual fund advisory and expanded into broader wealth management. The tax planning side is more advice-led than tool-led - a Scripbox advisor reviews your goals and suggests a tax plan. Less DIY than Qubera, more concierge.

Strengths: human-advisor model; trusted for the affluent-mid-career segment; mutual fund advisory bundled. Weaknesses: higher friction; pricing model is advisor-led; not for the DIY user. Pricing: advisory fees vary. India fit: native.

Comparison table

App	Regime comparison from your data	80C/80D/HRA planning	RSU/ESPP year-round	Schedule FA support	Files ITR	India ICP
Qubera	Yes, data-driven	Yes, with topup suggestions	Yes, full	Yes, by calendar year	No	Native
ClearTax	Calculator-based	Calculator-based	Filing-time only	Filing-time only	Yes	Native
Quicko	Calculator-based	Filing-time only	Filing-time strong	Strong at filing	Yes	Native
Tax2Win	Via CA	Via CA	Via CA	Via CA	Yes (CA-assisted)	Native
ET Money	Calculator-based	Yes, 80C-led	Limited	No	No	Native
Scripbox	Advisor-led	Advisor-led	Advisor-led	Advisor-led	Hand-off	Native

The decisions a salaried earner should run through each year

This is the tax planning calendar. If your tools cannot answer these in the month listed, they are not optimisation tools.

April. Choose regime for the year (old or new) based on your salary structure and likely deduction stack. Inform employer to set TDS accordingly.
June. Verify the regime selection landed in your salary slips; correct course if not.
July. File last year's ITR using prior-year numbers.
September. Check Section 80C YTD utilisation. Decide ELSS SIP topups.
October. Check Section 80D and 80CCD(1B) (NPS) utilisation.
November. RSU vest check - upcoming Q4 vests, sell-to-cover or hold.
January. Mid-year regime second-look if salary changed, RSU sales happened, or a goal changed.
February. Tax-loss harvesting on equity/MF if any losses are sittable.
March. Final 80C topup, advance tax check, RSU LTCG vs STCG planning, Form 67 if any US-withheld tax this year.

Qubera and ET Money are the two apps that engage with this calendar. The others mostly engage with April (regime choice) and July (filing).

When NOT to use Qubera for tax

Your tax surface is one Form 16, standard deduction, basic 80C - the planning value over a calculator is small.
You want one app to also file. Use ClearTax or Quicko for end-to-end DIY, or Tax2Win for CA-assisted.
You have a CA who handles everything proactively. Then Qubera is redundant for tax; it remains useful as the data layer your CA reads from.

The pragmatic 2026 stack

Qubera for year-round planning, regime monitoring, 80C/80D/HRA optimisation, and the RSU/Schedule FA/Form 67 surface.
ClearTax or Quicko for the July filing event (DIY).
Tax2Win or a CA for CA-assisted filing if complexity is high (RSU, crypto, multiple employers, NRI status changes).
ET Money if you want 80C ELSS execution to live in the same app as the 80C planning.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a tax filing app and a tax optimisation app?

A filing app handles the July ITR submission - schedules, e-verification, refund tracking. A tax optimisation app helps you decide, year-round, what to invest in for Section 80C, whether to switch from old to new regime, whether to claim HRA or own a house, how to time RSU sales for capital gains classification, and how to use Section 80D and NPS for incremental savings. ClearTax, Quicko, and Tax2Win are filing-first. Qubera, ET Money, and Scripbox are planning-first. Most salaried earners need both.

Which app is best for old vs new tax regime comparison?

Most apps now offer a side-by-side regime calculator for the salaried employee. The differences are in fidelity. Qubera computes both regimes against your actual income, deductions, and salary structure - including RSU perquisite, HRA, and employer NPS contribution - and tells you which regime saves more this year. ClearTax has a strong filing-time calculator. ET Money has a clean comparison tool. The right answer depends on your income bracket, deduction stack, and whether you have employer NPS - Qubera reads all three; standalone calculators ask you to type them in.

How does Qubera differ from ClearTax for tax optimisation?

ClearTax is the filing engine - end-to-end ITR generation, assisted-CA upsell, refund tracking. It is the strongest tool for the July filing event. Qubera does not file ITR. Qubera plans tax across the year - which 80C investments to make, whether your HRA claim has runway, whether you should sell RSUs in March vs April for STCG/LTCG split, whether to switch regimes for next year. The two apps are complements, not substitutes. The optimal 2026 stack for a salaried earner is Qubera for planning and ClearTax (or a CA) for filing.

Can these apps handle RSU and ESPP tax for MNC employees?

Most filing apps handle RSU at filing time - they show you how to enter Section 17(2) perquisite, Schedule FA, and capital gains lots. Few handle it at planning time. Qubera plans RSU vest-by-vest - FMV in INR at SBI TT rate, FIFO cost basis across years, Form 67 for DTAA credit, Schedule FA reminder by calendar year. If you have multi-year vests at a US-listed employer, RSU planning is the highest-value tax module. ClearTax, Quicko, and Tax2Win can file it; Qubera plans it.

Does the new tax regime kill the case for Section 80C?

For most salaried earners with modest deduction stacks, yes - the new regime's lower slabs and absence of deduction maths is the simpler and often cheaper path post Budget 2024. Section 80C remains relevant if your old-regime deduction stack (HRA + 80C + 80D + home loan interest + standard deduction) exceeds the new-regime breakeven. Apps compute the breakeven against your real numbers. Generic rules of thumb are unreliable because the breakeven depends on your salary structure, not your gross.

Is HRA still worth claiming under the new regime in 2026?

Under the new regime, HRA is not an allowed deduction - the new regime trades all the major deductions including HRA, 80C, and home loan interest for the lower slab rates and the standard deduction. So the HRA question is really a regime choice question. If your HRA + 80C + 80D + home loan interest deduction stack is large (typical for a Bangalore/Mumbai metro renter with employer house rent allowance and 80C utilised), old regime usually wins. Otherwise new wins. Qubera tells you which.

Are these apps DPDP-compliant and safe to use with PAN data?

All India-domiciled apps used in this guide are DPDP-2023-compliant; they publish privacy policies that name retention periods and purpose-limited use of PAN, Aadhaar (where applicable), and salary data. Qubera uses Setu Account Aggregator for consent-based bank/EPF data access. Always check that the app names its TSP, encryption posture, and retention policy. Apps that ask for net banking credentials directly should be avoided.

Is Qubera free for tax planning?

Yes. Tax planning features in Qubera - regime comparison, 80C optimiser, HRA + housing, RSU planner, Schedule FA reminder - are free in 2026 with no mandatory subscription. The actual filing (which Qubera does not do) is paid wherever you choose to file - DIY portal, ClearTax, or a CA.

Related guides

Qubera is the AI personal finance companion for India. Loading the interactive version…