Business & farm

Yes, you will need TurboTax Self-Employed to file your side business. You will file a Schedule C as a self-employed person.  (This is true as long as you have not taken any steps to become a corporation or are not a multi-member LLC.)

The Schedule C will flow onto your individual income tax return (Form 1040) and be netted with other personal income and expenses.

How to get to the area to enter your business income/expenses  While inside the software and working on your return, type Schedule C in the Search at the top of the screen (you may see a magnifying glass there).  There will be a popup that says Jump to Schedule C.  Select that to get to the general area. 

When you set up your business, you can use your own name, address, and social security number (if you don't have a business name or EIN). Then, when done with the Business Profile:

  • go to Business Income and Expenses
  • select Edit next to your business (if it is there)
  • scroll to Business Income 
  • on the next screen, you will see a place to enter a Form 1099-MISC (if you didn’t receive one, you can Skip past that)
  • then, on the next screen, you will see General Income (for income received that is not on a 1099-MISC form)
  • enter a description for the income (ex. Services, or Consulting, Customer Sales) and the amount

For expenses:

  • select Edit next to your business (if it is there)
  • scroll to Business Expenses
  • then Select one of the following, depending on what expenses you are entering: Other Common Business Expenses, Home Office, or Business Vehicle Expenses

Follow through all the areas in the Business section of the TurboTax software and it will provide you with a lot of assistance. You'll notice blue links that have more information and details about the particular sections that will be extremely helpful. 

Also, this link may be helpful to you IRS Small Business Help Center .