Search for a dollar amount in a form

[arlenezimmerly]

How do I search for a dollar amount in any TurboTax entry? Often, I can't remember where I entered a certain dollar amount but I need to find that entry. How do I accomplish that? Clicking Search takes me to a search of questions, keywords, or topics. I want TurboTax to find a dollar amount in forms or places where I have already entered it, list those places with hyperlinks to each one. The workaround I use is to save the return as a PDF and search there. Surely there's a better way. All suggestions appreciated.

[MonikaK1]

You are correct, the Search function searches for information about the program itself or tax topics.

You can preview your return before filing to find out how your taxes were calculated and to review the forms that TurboTax has prepared from your entries. See here for details. 

If you use the Download/Desktop version of TurboTax, you can switch from Easy Step (entry) mode to Forms mode to quickly see where your amounts have been entered. It also has a tool, My Tax Data, that you can pull up and scroll through to see the dollar amounts you entered on various forms.

See here for more information about TurboTax Desktop.

See this TurboTax tips article for suggestions on organizing your input documents to make filing easier.

[arlenezimmerly]

Thank you for that but that doesn't really help when I need to move efficiently to a dollar amount. This started because I identified a glitch in TurboTax Deluxe 2022 in the Federal Tax Payments Worksheet and State Tax Payments Worksheet for California. The 4th California State payment does not flow correctly from one form to the other and it makes a significant difference in the bottom line refund or tax owing. The date doesn't flow properly either. In troubleshooting this, I wanted to search for the dollar amount of the 4th State payment, but could not. So I tediously worked through opening and closing various forms and changing numbers on that 4th payment until I determined that there is indeed a glitch. I called TurboTax today to report the issue. The agent was very grateful for the information. I feel sorry for all the California TurboTax customers who already filed and possibly have an error on their 4th payment. Not sure if this is a glitch in other states as well.

[LuvTaxation]

If you're using the Download/Destop version of TurboTax, you can create a PDF file containing all your tax forms and calculation worksheets, and then search the PDF file to find any text or dollar amount of interest, to find which form(s) and worksheets contain that text/amount.  To do this, you'll need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader (or some other PDF reader) installed on your computer. 

[Note that I'm using TurboTax Deluxe 2024, so if you're using software for a different year, Intuit may have un-intuitively renamed or moved the software features around.]

Follow these steps:

1. With your current tax file open in TurboTax, click the File > Save To PDF... menu item.  A Form Selection box will be displayed.
2. In the Form Selection box, under What forms would you like to generate? click the Tax Return, all calculation worksheets radio button.  Be sure all checkboxes in the right-hand box are checked, so those forms will be included in the output.
3. Click Save As PDF, accept or edit the file name as desired, and click Save.
4. Open the newly created PDF file using your PDF reader (e.g. Adobe Acrobat Reader DC).
5. Use the reader's Find/Search feature (e.g. use the Edit > Find menu or the CTRL-F keyboard shortcut) to search for any keyword (or dollar amount) of interest.
6. If found, make a note of the tax form(s) that contain the searched text.
7. Return to TurboTax.
8. Be sure you're in Forms mode.  (If you're in Step-by-Step mode, click the Forms button near the upper right corner of the screen.)
9. In Forms mode, click the Open Form icon near the upper left side of the screen, then select the tax form or worksheet you noted in step (6).  Then manually scan through that form to find the line(s) containing that text.

[VolvoGirl]

What was wrong with the 2022 4th Quarter California estimated payment?  What form was wrong?  If you paid it in Jan 2023  it won’t show up on the federal Schedule A since it wasn’t paid during 2022.  But Schedule A will include a 2021 estimated payment made in Jan 2022.  Could that be what you are seeing?  

Im in California and pay estimates for over 20 years and it’s always been right.  I use the Windows Desktop program.

To enter or review Federal or State Estimated Taxes Paid, including a state estimated payment made in January for the prior year, go to

Federal on left or at top (Personal for Home & Business)

Deductions and Credits

Then scroll way down to Estimates and Other Taxes Paid

Estimated Taxes - click the start button

Federal Estimated payments should be on 1040 line 26.

You enter state estimated payments under the federal side (because they can be a federal itemized Deduction).  THEN after you finish filling out the estimates under Federal you need to click on the State Tab at the top and start the state return over for it to update.

You have to pick the right state from the drop down box and enter the right payment dates.