Best Texas property tax protest services compared (2026)
The best Texas property tax protest service depends on one question: do you want to keep every dollar you save, or hand a professional a cut of it? Contingency firms like O'Connor, Ownwell, and Texas ProTax charge nothing upfront but take a percentage of your first-year savings and represent you at the hearing. TaxStand charges one flat fee, builds the same evidence packet from public records, and lets you file it and keep 100% of the savings. This guide compares every major option honestly, including the ones we compete with.
Side-by-side comparison
| Service | Fee model | Upfront cost | Who keeps the savings | Who files & attends | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| O'Connor & Associates | Contingency (% of tax savings) | $0 | You keep savings minus their cut | They do | Hands-off, high volume |
| Ownwell | Contingency (advertises 25% of savings) | $0 | You keep savings minus 25% | They do | Hands-off + exemption help |
| Texas ProTax | Contingency (% of savings) | $0 | You keep savings minus their cut | They do | Austin / Central TX homes |
| Texas Tax Protest | Contingency (% of savings) | $0 | You keep savings minus their cut | They do | Hands-off statewide |
| NTPTS | Contingency (% of savings) | $0 | You keep savings minus their cut | They do | Higher-value North Texas homes |
| DIY (on your own) | Free | $0 | You keep 100% | You do (no evidence built for you) | Time-rich, detail-oriented owners |
| TaxStand | Flat fee | $199 (once per year) | You keep 100% | You file the packet; scripts included | Owners who want pro evidence & keep all savings |
Fee models are each provider's publicly advertised terms as of 2026 and can change. Contingency percentages across Texas protest firms commonly range from about 25% to 50% of first-year tax savings; confirm the exact figure with the provider.
O'Connor & Associates
O'Connor (poconnor.com) is one of the largest and best-known property tax consulting firms in Texas, handling a very high volume of residential and commercial protests. There is no upfront fee — they take a percentage of the tax savings they obtain, and they handle the filing and hearing for you.
- Zero upfront cost
- Fully hands-off — they represent you
- Handles commercial and residential
- Takes a percentage of your savings every year
- You don't control which comps are used
- High client volume can mean less individual attention
Ownwell
Ownwell (ownwell.com) is a technology-driven service that advertises a 25% contingency fee on tax savings, with no upfront charge. It operates in several states, handles protests and some exemption filings, and is known for a clean online experience.
- Clear 25%-of-savings pricing
- Zero upfront cost, no savings = no fee
- Also assists with exemptions
- Still surrenders a quarter of your savings
- You don't build or control the evidence
- Recurs every year you use them
Texas ProTax
Texas ProTax (texasprotax.com) is an Austin-based firm with a long track record in Travis and the surrounding Central Texas counties. It works on a contingency model and represents owners through the informal and formal hearing process.
- Deep Central Texas / Travis County experience
- Licensed agents handle the hearing
- Established local reputation
- Contingency cut of your savings
- Strongest fit is regional, not statewide
- You don't keep 100%
Texas Tax Protest
Texas Tax Protest (texastaxprotest.com) is a statewide contingency firm that files and represents residential and commercial owners across most Texas counties. Like the others in this group, there is no upfront fee and they take a share of the savings.
- Broad statewide coverage
- Zero upfront cost
- Fully managed for you
- Percentage of savings each year
- Evidence and strategy are theirs, not yours
- No option to simply buy the evidence
NTPTS (North Texas Property Tax Services)
NTPTS (ntpts.com) focuses on North Texas — Dallas, Collin, Denton, and Tarrant counties — and positions itself toward higher-value residential properties. It works on contingency and represents owners at the ARB.
- Specialized in higher-value North Texas homes
- Boutique, focused attention
- Zero upfront cost
- Narrow geographic focus
- Contingency cut of savings
- Less suited to modestly-valued homes
Do it yourself (DIY)
You can protest entirely on your own for free. Texas built the protest process for homeowners: you file a Notice of Protest (Form 50-132), pull comparable properties from your county appraisal district, and present your case at the informal meeting or ARB hearing. The catch is that assembling defensible unequal-appraisal evidence is time-consuming, and most owners walk in without the numbers that actually move the appraiser.
- Completely free
- You keep 100% of savings
- Full control of your case
- You build all the evidence yourself
- Easy to under-shoot the reduction you deserved
- Learning curve on comps and the §41.43(b)(3) median math
See our free walkthrough: how to protest property taxes yourself in Texas.
TaxStand
TaxStand (taxstand.us) sits between the contingency firms and pure DIY. For a flat $199 — once per year, never a cut of your savings — TaxStand pulls your county record, runs the same equal-and-uniform (unequal-appraisal) analysis the professionals use, and delivers a hearing-ready evidence packet: adjusted comparables, the district's own numbers, a homestead-exemption audit, federal market data, verbatim hearing scripts, and filing instructions. You upload it and show up. You keep every dollar you save.
- One flat fee — you keep 100% of savings
- Professional-grade evidence packet built for you
- Transparent, published methodology — no black box
- Covers 45 Texas counties
- You file it and attend the meeting yourself
- No in-person representation at the hearing
- Best for owner-occupied residential, not complex commercial
See exactly what's included: how TaxStand works · pricing · example packet (PDF).
How to choose
There is no single "best" service — there's a best fit for how you value your time versus your money:
- Want zero effort and don't mind sharing the savings? Pick a contingency firm — O'Connor or Texas Tax Protest for statewide volume, Ownwell for clear 25% pricing plus exemptions, Texas ProTax for Central Texas, NTPTS for premium North Texas homes.
- Want to keep every dollar and file a professional packet yourself? TaxStand's flat $199 is the lowest-cost way to protest with real, hearing-grade evidence.
- Have time and want to spend nothing? Pure DIY works — just know most self-filers leave money on the table without a structured comp analysis.
The math is simple: if a contingency firm saves you $2,000 and keeps 30%, that's $600 gone — every year. A one-time $199 flat fee that captures the same reduction leaves the other $1,801 in your pocket. The trade is effort: you file it.
Keep 100% of your savings
TaxStand builds the same evidence the pros use, for one flat $199 — and you keep every dollar you save. Free analysis is live for 45 Texas counties.
Check your property →Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest way to protest property taxes in Texas?
Doing it yourself is free, but you build all the evidence. Among services that build the evidence for you, a flat-fee packet like TaxStand ($199, once per year) is typically the cheapest overall because you keep 100% of your savings instead of paying a contingency firm 25%–50% of them every year.
Do property tax protest companies actually work in Texas?
Yes — a well-evidenced protest frequently results in a reduction, and in 2024 over a million Texas protests ended with a reduction at the informal stage before any hearing. What matters is the quality of the evidence, not who submits it. Contingency firms, flat-fee services, and prepared DIY filers can all succeed with the right comparable-property analysis.
Is O'Connor or Ownwell better?
O'Connor handles very high volume across residential and commercial and charges a contingency percentage; Ownwell advertises a flat 25% of savings and a more modern online experience plus exemption help. Both are hands-off and take a cut of your savings. If keeping 100% of your savings matters more than being hands-off, a flat-fee service is worth comparing against either.
Can I protest my property taxes myself instead of hiring a company?
Absolutely. Texas designed the protest process for homeowners, and the comparable-property data is public. The only thing separating a strong protest from a weak one is a professional-looking evidence packet with the right numbers. You can build it yourself (free), or buy a ready-made packet for a flat fee and still file it yourself.
How much do property tax protest companies charge in Texas?
Most Texas protest firms charge a contingency fee — a percentage of your first-year tax savings, commonly in the 25%–50% range, with no upfront cost. Flat-fee alternatives charge a fixed price regardless of savings (TaxStand is $199 per year). Always confirm the current fee directly with the provider.