Tools for Planning and Settling an Estate

For anyone planning an estate or settling one. Each tool answers for the state you choose: what a will or trust costs, whether an estate needs probate, what executors and trustees are paid, and the taxes on an inheritance.

All Planning ahead Settling an estate

40 tools

How Much Does Probate Cost?

Estimate attorney fees, executor fees, court costs, and timeline for probating an estate.

Use Calculator

How Much Can an Executor Charge?

Calculate how much an executor can charge for administering an estate.

Use Calculator

Who Inherits Without a Will?

Find out who inherits your estate and how much they get if you die without a will.

Use Calculator

What's Fair Trustee Compensation?

Find out what fair compensation looks like for serving as trustee.

Use Calculator

How Much Are Estate & Inheritance Taxes?

Calculate federal estate tax, state estate tax, and inheritance tax for an estate.

Use Calculator

How Much Is the Federal Gift Tax?

Whether a gift owes federal gift tax, how much of the annual exclusion and lifetime exemption it uses, and whether Form 709 is due.

Check a Gift

How Many Death Certificates Do I Need?

Calculate how many certified death certificates you need and see ordering info for your state.

Use Calculator

Do I Need Probate?

Find out if an estate needs probate or qualifies for simplified procedures.

Check Now

What Does Estate Planning Actually Cost?

Compare costs across estate planning providers including online services and attorneys.

Compare Costs

How Much Does a Revocable Living Trust Cost?

Compare revocable living trust costs across providers including online services and attorneys.

Compare Costs

How Much Does a Will Cost?

Compare will costs across providers plus probate costs your heirs will pay.

Compare Costs

How Much Life Insurance Do I Need?

Calculate your life insurance needs based on income, debts, and family situation.

Use Calculator

What Taxes Apply to My Inheritance?

Inheritance tax by state, federal tax on inheritance, and timeline estimates for receiving money, property, or retirement assets.

Learn More

How Does Step-Up in Basis Work?

Calculate the new cost basis on inherited assets under IRC § 1014 and project capital gains tax savings.

Use Calculator

Are My Beneficiary Designations Protected?

Check how divorce, creditors, and state laws affect your beneficiary designations.

Check Now

What Are the Estate Laws in My State?

See probate costs, will requirements, trust rules, and intestacy laws for your state.

Check Your State

How Does SimplyTrust Compare to LegalZoom, Trust & Will, and Other Services?

Compare what it costs to make a trust official across SimplyTrust, LegalZoom, Trust & Will, Rocket Lawyer, and Quicken WillMaker.

Compare Services

How Do I Name a Guardian for My Minor Children?

See how a parent names a guardian for their minor children, what weight the court gives your choice, and your options for temporary care.

Check Your State

What Are the Burial and Cremation Laws in My State?

See who controls final arrangements, cremation and burial rules, and what your state allows.

Check Your State

How Do I Sign Estate Documents?

Find witness, notary, and remote signing requirements for all 50 states.

Check Requirements

1 2

The tools are free. They exist so that the costs, deadlines and rules of planning or settling an estate in each state are visible before anyone pays for a document or a service.

The tools are grouped by situation. In the weeks after a death: the Death Certificate Calculator and the Estate Settlement Plan. For an executor: the Estate Settlement Plan, the Probate Cost Calculator, the Executor Fee Calculator and the Creditor Claims Deadlines. For a trustee: the Trust Settlement Plan and the Trustee Compensation Calculator. For taxes and inheritance: the Estate and Inheritance Tax Calculator and the Who Inherits Calculator.

The calculators apply each state's current statutory rates and typical fee ranges, and the statute is cited beside each figure. Probate costs vary with the estate's complexity, the attorney's terms and the court's requirements, and inheritance shares follow the state's intestacy statute. Consult a licensed attorney in your state for precise figures.

Every state-paged tool answers for all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and the county pages add the local court or recording office where the state files by county. A few tools have no state axis: the inherited IRA rules are federal, and the estate account and trust account guides are keyed to the institution.

Free Estate Planning Tools

The tools are grouped by who you are. Planning ahead covers the questions that come before any document is drafted: what a will, a trust, or a full plan costs in your state, whether a trust or a transfer on death deed changes anything for you, and how documents are signed. Someone I love died covers the first weeks: death certificates, burial and cremation rules, and whether the estate needs probate at all. The executor and trustee groups follow an administration from appointment to distribution, and inheriting covers what a death triggers in estate, inheritance, and income tax.

Every answer is specific to the state you choose, drawn from that state's statutes, court rules, and fee schedules, and the county pages add the local court or recording office where the state files by county.