Quick answer: New Jersey pays an executor two separate statutory commissions. Under N.J.S.A. 3B:18-14, the corpus commission is 5% of the first $200,000, 3.5% of the next $800,000, and 2% above $1,000,000 of estate principal — $38,000 on a $1,000,000 corpus. Separately, N.J.S.A. 3B:18-13 allows a 6% commission on income the estate receives during administration, taken without needing court approval. Get an illustrative estimate covering both with the New Jersey executor fee calculator.
The corpus commission: a real tiered schedule
N.J.S.A. 3B:18-14: "Commissions on all corpus received by the fiduciary may be taken as follows: 5% on the first $200,000 of all corpus received by the fiduciary; 3.5% on the excess over $200,000 up to $1,000,000; 2% on the excess over $1,000,000." Corpus generally means the estate's principal — bank accounts, vehicles, business interests, tax refunds, litigation interests, life insurance payable to the estate, retirement accounts with no named beneficiary, and real estate the decedent owned. Assets that pass outside probate (life insurance or retirement accounts naming a beneficiary, property held jointly with survivorship rights) generally aren't part of the corpus.
A separate 6% income commission, no court order needed
N.J.S.A. 3B:18-13: "Commissions in the amount of 6% may be taken without court allowance on all income received by the fiduciary." This is a real, independent commission on top of the corpus figure — interest, dividends, rents, and other income the estate earns during administration generate their own 6%. Income withheld for tax purposes still counts as "received" for this calculation. On an estate earning meaningful investment income over a longer administration, this second commission can add substantially to the total.
Multiple fiduciaries: additive, not multiplied
§ 3B:18-14: each additional fiduciary beyond the first adds "1% of all corpus" to the aggregate commission pool — but "no one fiduciary shall be entitled to any greater commission than that which would be allowed if there were but one fiduciary involved." A modest, capped increase, not a doubled or tripled commission per additional executor.
Challenging the commission: a real burden on the objector
§ 3B:18-14: the court can reduce the corpus commission "only upon application by a beneficiary adversely affected upon an affirmative showing that the services rendered were materially deficient or that the actual pains, trouble and risk of the fiduciary in settling the estate were substantially less than generally required for estates of comparable size." That's a specific, two-prong test the objecting beneficiary has to prove — not a general reasonableness review the executor has to defend.
There's also a less-common annual alternative
Separately, N.J.S.A. 3B:18-25 lets a fiduciary take an annual corpus commission instead of the one-time figure above — $5 per thousand on the first $400,000 and $3 per thousand above that, with a $100 annual minimum. This alternative is less frequently used in practice, and a court can disallow it if it exceeds what § 3B:18-14 would allow. Banking institutions serving as fiduciary are entitled to "reasonable" compensation instead of this schedule.
Worked examples
| Corpus received | Corpus commission |
|---|
| $500,000 | $20,500 |
| $1,000,000 | $38,000 |
| $4,000,000 | $98,000 |
Each figure computed tier by tier from the statutory schedule and independently cross-checked against outside worked examples for both $1,000,000 and $4,000,000. Add any separate income commission and model your own estate in the calculator.
Estimate for general guidance only, not legal advice. Based on N.J.S.A. 3B:18-13, 3B:18-14, and 3B:18-25. Figures reflect the statutory schedules as written. Verify with the Surrogate's Court or a licensed New Jersey attorney.