Avalara review
Bottom line
Avalara is a sales tax and compliance platform that calculates tax, files returns, and monitors nexus across U.S. states and many other countries. Its clearest strength is depth of tax content and the number of systems it connects to, including major ERPs and ecommerce platforms. The main cost to watch is that Select pricing is charged per state, so expenses rise as a business registers in more places, and companies above $50M in revenue must request custom pricing. It suits multistate sellers that want calculation and filing handled in one platform.
What is Avalara?
Avalara is a tax compliance platform for businesses that sell goods and services across U.S. states and other countries. It calculates sales tax, files returns, and tracks where a business has tax obligations, so finance teams do not have to maintain their own rate tables or file state by state. AvaTax covers more than 12,000 U.S. sales and use tax jurisdictions, and the platform reaches more than 190 countries of tax content.
Day to day, the software runs inside the systems a business already uses. Tax is calculated in real time through integrations with ERPs, ecommerce platforms, and accounting software, including Shopify, NetSuite, QuickBooks, and Sage. Nexus monitoring tracks economic nexus across all 50 states, Managed Returns handles filing, remittance, and notice management, and AvaTax Exemptions records tax-exempt customer data. Accounts payable teams can use AvaTax for Accounts Payable to handle use tax on purchases.
Freelancers, small businesses, midsize companies, and enterprises all use Avalara. Avalara Select starts at $69 per state per month. Core Compliance costs $79 per state per month or $799 per state per year and includes AvaTax, Managed Returns, nexus monitoring, and exemption management. Core Compliance + SST Services costs $699 per state per year and adds no-cost calculation, filing, and remittance in up to 25 states for qualifying sellers. Businesses with $50M or more in annual revenue receive a custom plan.
What sets Avalara apart is breadth. It covers VAT returns, e-invoicing, cross-border duties, property tax, and business licenses from one vendor, and it offers more than 1,400 signed partner integrations. Its Aviator AI agents operate inside ERPs, billing platforms, and other business systems rather than as a standalone chatbot. Businesses can also buy Avalara through AWS Marketplace and other cloud marketplaces to draw down existing cloud commitments.
Who it's for
- Multistate ecommerce sellers
- Growing businesses tracking economic nexus
- Finance teams managing sales tax filings
Who should look elsewhere
- Businesses that sell in only one state with no filing complexity
- Companies needing a free plan to test software
Typical uses
- Calculating sales tax at checkout for ecommerce orders
- Filing and remitting sales tax across multiple states
- Tracking economic nexus as sales grow into new states
- Recording exemption certificates for wholesale customers
- Handling use tax on purchases through accounts payable
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Ready to try Avalara?
Avalara is a sales tax and compliance platform that calculates tax, files returns, and monitors nexus across U.S. Paid plans from $699/mo · opens avalara.com.
