Drake continues to lead core tax preparation while gaining momentum across workflow, payments, document management, and firm operations

FRANKLIN, N.C., May 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Drake Software continues to strengthen its position as one of the accounting profession's most trusted technology providers, earning top recognition across multiple categories in the 2026 CPA Practice Advisor Readers' Choice Awards.

Most notably, Drake once again earned the top position in Federal & State Income Tax Preparation, reinforcing the company's long-standing leadership in the profession's most critical category.

Drake also maintained leadership in Tax Planning, 1099/W-2 Compliance, and gained momentum in adjacent operational categories including Sales & Use Tax Preparation, Fixed Asset Management, Workflow, Small Business Accounting, and integrated payments.

The annual Readers' Choice Awards reflect feedback from thousands of accounting and tax professionals nationwide and highlight the technologies practitioners rely on most to serve clients and manage their firms.

"These results reflect our continued commitment to supporting tax professionals not only during filing season, but throughout the entire client lifecycle," said Noha Ghazouani, VP, Product Management.

"Drake has always been known for trusted tax preparation, but we're also investing heavily in the broader connected ecosystem firms need to operate more efficiently year-round reducing friction, improving visibility, and helping practitioners spend more time serving clients instead of managing disconnected processes," said Ghazouani. "This includes continued investment in AI-powered capabilities designed to automate data collection, streamline tax source document ingestion, and simplify tax review workflows."

Over the past year, Drake expanded its integrated ecosystem with enhancements designed to streamline firm operations and improve the taxpayer experience, including:

• Launch of enhanced workflow capabilities to help firms better manage return status and operational visibility
• Expanded portal functionality with AI-powered document classification capabilities to simplify organization and retrieval
• Continued innovation within Drake Pay to support faster, more flexible payment experiences
• Improvements across Drake Accounting, document management, portals, and workflow tools to support more connected firm operations

The 2026 awards also reflect broader industry trends as firms increasingly seek integrated platforms that combine compliance, workflow, collaboration, payments, and automation into a more seamless experience.

While many providers compete in workflow and practice management categories, Drake's continued leadership in core tax preparation demonstrates the strength of its foundation and the trust tax professionals continue to place in the platform.

"Our focus remains simple," said Ghazouani. "Help tax professionals work smarter, operate more efficiently, and deliver a better client experience with technology that is reliable, connected, and purpose-built for the profession. As firms continue evolving beyond seasonal tax work into year-round advisory and operational services, we're committed to building solutions that support every stage of that workflow."

Highlights from the 2026 awards include:

• #1 in Federal & State Income Tax Preparation
• #1 in Tax Planning
• #1 in Sales & Use Tax Preparation
• #1 in Fixed Asset Management
• #1 in 1099/W-2 Compliance
• Strong year-over-year growth in Workflow, Payments, and Small Business Accounting categories

For more information about Drake Software and its integrated suite of professional solutions, visit www.drakesoftware.com.

About Drake Software
Drake Software, a private company founded in 1977, provides software solutions to over 70,000 tax and accounting firms that file more than 36 million tax returns every year. Known for its award-winning customer service, Drake Software is consistently recognized for excellence in quality, value, and reliability. For more information, visit www.DrakeSoftware.com.

Media Contact:
Colleen Woods Heikka
Sr. Director, Product Marketing
Colleen.woods@Taxact.com

+1 781 588 6339

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SOURCE Drake Software, LLC