“Ready to mail”or “Printed” means that your tax return has not been filed. Either you could not e-file for some reason , or you chose to file by mail. OR if you really did already mail your return, the software does not have any way to know that you put your return in an envelope and took it to a mailbox, so it will always say “ready to mail” in your online account.
TurboTax does not mail your return for you. You have to print it, sign it, and mail it yourself. When you mail a tax return, you need to sign it where it says "Sign Here" and write in the date you signed it by the word "Date". Attach copies of your W-2 and any other documents that show taxes withheld to the left side of the papers where it says "Attach Forms..."
When you print your return, it will print with filing instructions that tell you where to mail it. Pay careful attention to the address you mail your return to —federal and state returns do not get mailed to the same place.
It is not required, but is a good idea, to use a mailing service that will track your return or provide you with a receipt showing that the IRS got it--such as Fedex, UPS, or certified mail. It will take about 4 weeks and then you can track the status of your return at the IRS website.
You can print your return by following the instructions below
Sign in to your account using exactly the same account and user ID that you used to prepare your return.
On the bottom of the screen find Your tax returns & documents and click on Show. Click on the Year and Click on Download/print return (PDF)
To send your tax return by mail and get a receipt to see that the IRS and/or your state received it:
https://www.usps.com/taxes/welcome.htm
To track your Federal refund:
To track your state refund:
https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1899433
On the IRS site you are also offered the use of an app called IRS2Go
To change to e-filing:
If it has not been successfully e-filed and you did not put it in an envelope and mail it, it has not been filed. Sometimes people fill out their information and then do not go all the way to the big orange button to transmit the e-file, or they "mess up" in various ways that generate a "you filed" message when they really have not filed.