Estate Planning Apps and Online Will Makers: Costs, Limits and How to Choose

Estate planning apps are online services that ask you questions and produce a will, a trust, powers of attorney and a health care directive for your state. In October 2026, prices on the companies' own sites ran from free for a will to $129 to $549 for one-time packages, or $149 and up a year for a membership. They work well for simple situations, but they are not law firms, and the paperwork only counts once it is signed and witnessed correctly.

What do estate planning apps do?

Most work in a web browser, and some have phone apps. You answer questions about your family and property, and the service builds documents based on your state's rules. Typical packages include:

• a last will and testament, where you name an executor and, if you have young children, a guardian
• a durable power of attorney for finances
• a health care directive or living will, plus a HIPAA authorization
• for trust plans, a revocable living trust, a pour-over will and a schedule of assets

They do not give legal advice. LegalZoom states that it is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice, except through a subsidiary law firm for authorized services. Trust & Will says the same about its forms. Several now bundle AI question-and-answer tools, but treat those as general information, not advice about your situation.

How do the main services compare?

These prices were listed on each company's own pages in October 2026. They are starting prices, couples and some states or add-ons cost more, and prices change. Our own Simple Will Maker is not in the table.

A few details behind the table:

• FreeWill says its will costs nothing and that it is supported by more than 2,400 nonprofit partners. Its free tools also include a health care directive and a financial power of attorney, and it offers a revocable living trust to California residents only.
• LegalZoom adds a healthcare directive, powers of attorney and a HIPAA authorization at the Pro level, and lists 30 days of attorney consultations that renew at $25 a month. The Premium will includes one year of consultations that renews at $199 a year. Its trust plans include a pour-over will and a schedule of assets.
• Trust & Will lists a $49 per year membership for a digital vault and AI answers, and an optional $299 attorney support add-on.
• Rocket Lawyer is a general legal membership, not an estate-only service. Standard costs $149 a year, Plus $249 and Pro $349 when billed yearly, with a 7-day free trial, and its estate documents include a will and a living trust.

Watch for auto-renewing add-ons. LegalZoom's will page says the Pro will's attorney consultations renew at $25 a month after the first 30 days, and the Premium trust's renew at $199 a year after the first year.

For how a will and a trust differ, and why the price gap exists, read living trust vs will.

Is a will made in an app legally valid?

It is valid if it meets your state's rules. In most cases that means a written document, your signature and two adult witnesses who see you sign. FreeWill's instructions say to print the will, sign it before two witnesses who are 18 or older and of sound mind and who are not named in the will, and add a notary if you live in Louisiana.

Some states have electronic will laws. Arizona's statute, for example, lets a will be created as an electronic record signed electronically by the person and at least two witnesses, and Florida's code defines an electronic will signed with an electronic signature. These rules differ by state, so do not assume a fully digital will works where you live. Our guide to wills and funeral wishes covers signing basics.

When is an app enough, and when should you see a lawyer?

An app is often enough when your family and finances are simple. Many adults never get started: Caring.com and YouGov found that 24% had a will in 2025, and 43% of those without one said they just hadn't gotten around to it. A basic document you actually sign is better than a perfect plan you never make.

See an estate planning attorney if any of these apply:

• you have a child with special needs or a beneficiary who receives government benefits
• you have a blended family, an estranged relative or a likely dispute
• you own a business, or property in more than one state
• your estate approaches the federal estate tax exclusion, which is $15,000,000 per person for 2026, or your state has its own estate or inheritance tax
• you have been told you lack capacity, or someone is pressuring you about your documents

Trust & Will's own pricing page routes four of these cases (special needs, estates of $15 million or more, businesses with three or more employees and blended families with complex dynamics) to a pre-screened attorney.

What should an estate plan include besides the will?

A will covers only part of the picture. Check that you also have:

1. A durable financial power of attorney. It names someone to pay bills and manage money if you can't.
2. A health care directive and proxy. See advance directive vs living will.
3. Beneficiary designations that match your wishes. Accounts and policies with named beneficiaries pass outside probate and ignore the will. Cornell Law School lists these among nonprobate transfers. Use the beneficiary update checklist.
4. A funded trust, if you chose one. An app can draft the trust, but you have to retitle assets into it yourself.
5. Funeral wishes, written down and shared. A will is often read too late, so give your wishes to the people who will arrange the funeral.
6. A way into your digital accounts. See the next section.

How do you handle digital accounts and passwords?

Apps that make a will don't give your family access to your phone, email or cloud photos. Use each platform's own tools:

• Apple Legacy Contact lets a person you pick request access to some of your Apple Account data after your death. See our Apple Legacy Contact guide.
• Google Inactive Account Manager lets you choose what happens to your account after a period of inactivity. See Google's inactive account tool.
• Password managers can include emergency access. Bitwarden, for example, lets premium users appoint trusted contacts who can request access to the vault, which is granted after the wait time you set or when you approve.

Do not put passwords in your will. A will can become public once it is filed with the court, so keep credentials in a password manager or a sealed record instead.

What to check before you pay

• State coverage. Confirm the service produces documents for your state and that any trust is offered where you live. FreeWill's trust, for instance, is for California only.
• What you get after signing. Ask whether you can download everything, how long edits are free, and what updates cost later.
• Renewals. Read the terms for memberships and attorney add-ons so a trial or a first month doesn't roll into a yearly charge.
• Who reads the result. Reread your documents. A mistake in a name or a share is yours to catch, because the service does not review your situation like a lawyer would.

What to do next

1. Decide what you need: a will, a trust, or just the powers of attorney and directives.
2. Compare two services against your state and your family's situation, and consider a one-time attorney review if anything on the "see a lawyer" list applies.
3. Sign and witness the documents exactly as instructed, then store the originals and tell your executor where they are.
4. Gather everything in one place. Our Family Legacy Binder is one way to list accounts, contacts and instructions.
5. Review your plan after a marriage, divorce, birth, move or large change in assets.