Why can't I enter Schedule C Expenses manually without purchasing additional software? This seems like a rip-off to me!

[MichaelDC]

If you have only income from self-employment and no expenses, there is no need to upgrade from Deluxe. If you do have expenses, however, that will trigger an upgrade to the TurboTax Self-Employed edition.

Expenses, however, could reduce your total income and overall tax bill. Including SE tax (social security/medicare tax) of 15% and a 15% tax rate, $280 of expenses would save you around $84 in taxes. At 25% tax bracket, it would mean a $112 saving, and so on.

This may be helpful:

https://ttlc.intuit.com/replies/5559255