Quick answer: Probate costs add up from court filing fees, pay for the personal representative, attorney fees, and the cost of things like newspaper notices, bonds, appraisals and selling property. States set the big fees in different ways, from fee schedules based on the value of the estate to "reasonable compensation" decided case by case, so the total varies widely from state to state. The estate pays these costs before the heirs receive anything.
On this page:
- The pieces that make up the cost
- How states set the big fees
- A worked example of a fee schedule
- What pushes the total up or down
- Who pays, and when
- Your state's numbers
The pieces that make up the cost
The cost of probate is not one bill. Wyoming's court-hosted guide lists court filing fees, fees for the representative and for attorneys, travel, and the costs of selling and managing property among the administrative expenses an estate carries. In practice they break down like this:
- Court filing fees. Set by each court or state, and usually flat. Alaska's court system lists $250 to open a probate case, and Montcalm County's probate court lists $175 plus a small fee for certified copies of the letters. Extra certified copies of the letters, which banks and other companies ask for, carry their own charge.
- The personal representative's pay. A representative is entitled to reasonable compensation, but does not have to take a fee. Our guide on how much an executor gets paid covers this piece in depth, and the Executor Fee Calculator shows the rule in each state.
- Attorney fees. Set by a statutory schedule in some states, as described below. Where the law uses a reasonableness standard, the court can review what an attorney the representative hired is paid.
- Notice and publication. The notice to creditors is generally published in a newspaper. A Minnesota court guide notes that the newspaper charges separately for publication.
- A bond, if required. Many wills waive it. In Alaska, for example, a representative does not need to file a bond if the will waives the requirement. Otherwise the representative has to post one.
- Other professionals. The representative can hire people such as appraisers or accountants, and their pay comes from the estate too.
- Selling or maintaining property. If a house or other asset has to be sold, or kept up while the estate is open, those costs are part of the total. The Probate Real Estate Sale Calculator covers them.
How states set the big fees
The representative's pay and the attorney's fee are usually the largest items, and states set them in two main ways.
- A fee schedule based on the value of the estate. California sets statutory percentages for both. For the attorney, section 10810 gives 4 percent on the first $100,000, 3 percent on the next $100,000, 2 percent on the next $800,000, 1 percent on the next $9 million, and one-half of 1 percent on the next $15 million, with a reasonable amount set by the court above $25 million. Section 10800 sets the same schedule for the personal representative. Wyoming's guide describes a schedule as well, often $350 plus 2 percent of the value of the probate estate.
- Reasonable compensation. Under the Uniform Probate Code model, a representative is simply entitled to reasonable compensation, with no percentage attached. Arizona and Hawaii both use that wording. In that model, a court can review the reasonableness of what the representative and the people they hire are paid.
Either way, work outside the ordinary can cost more: Wyoming's guide says extraordinary fees need court approval before they are paid. Because probate courts operate under state law, the method and the numbers change from state to state.
A worked example of a fee schedule
To see how a schedule works, take California's statutory percentages and apply them to a $500,000 estate. This is one state's rule, shown for illustration only.
| Slice of the estate | Rate | Fee on that slice |
|---|---|---|
| First $100,000 | 4% | $4,000 |
| Next $100,000 | 3% | $3,000 |
| Next $300,000 (part of the $800,000 tier) | 2% | $6,000 |
| Total for the representative | $13,000 | |
| Total for the attorney (same schedule) | $13,000 |
Two details matter. First, the schedule applies to each of them, so the ordinary fees for the representative and the attorney together come to $26,000 on this estate. Second, the value is the appraised inventory without reference to encumbrances, so a $500,000 house with a $400,000 mortgage still counts as $500,000. Work outside the ordinary can be paid on top, with court approval, as described above. A state with a reasonable compensation standard would reach its number differently, which is why the same estate can cost different amounts in different states.
What pushes the total up or down
- The value of the probate estate. In schedule states, a bigger estate means bigger fees. The base is generally the probate estate, so only assets that go through probate count, which is why which assets go through probate matters for cost.
- Property that has to be sold. Selling and managing assets adds costs of its own.
- Formal or supervised proceedings. They involve more filings, and supervised administration requires additional documents served on interested persons, which usually means more work for the attorney.
- Disputes and delays. A contested estate runs longer (see how long probate takes), which can mean more legal work.
- A simpler route. Wyoming's guide says its summary procedure for smaller estates is faster and less expensive than formal probate. See when probate is required and the small estate affidavit checker.
- Waiving or lowering the representative's fee. It is a choice the representative can make. For all the ways to bring the total down, see how to reduce probate fees.
Who pays, and when
Probate costs are paid by the estate, not billed to the heirs one by one. Court guides explain that the estate must settle its expenses, debts and taxes before the remaining assets are distributed. If there is not enough cash, some property may have to be sold to cover them, so a large share of the cost is felt as a smaller inheritance.
Your state's numbers
Everything above is the general picture. The exact filing fees, the compensation rule and the typical costs depend on your state, and that is what the Probate Cost Calculator breaks down, state by state. If you are planning ahead, comparing probate with a living trust shows how the costs of the two routes differ. For the process the costs attach to, start with how probate works.
The full set of tools is at the probate calculators page, and our methodology shows how we check every figure. Court guides note that an attorney is often worth hiring, especially for larger estates.