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End of Life Tools

Free tool · Wills, Probate & Estates

Digital Legacy Checklist

This free checklist lists the online accounts and digital assets most families struggle to find, from email and photos to bank apps and cryptocurrency, and suggests one step for each. The most reliable step is to use the tools Google and Apple offer, which let you choose in advance who can get your data. Your ticks are saved in your browser only, and the tool never asks for a password.

  • No sign-up
  • Private: nothing you enter leaves your device
  • Figures checked Sep 30, 2026

Your digital legacy checklist

Tick each step as you finish it. If something doesn't apply to you, mark it so it doesn't count against you.

Access and passwords

0 of 5 done

These control access to everything else, so do them first.

Email

0 of 3 done

Password resets usually go to email, so it opens other accounts.

Money and payments

0 of 6 done

Accounts that hold real money or take automatic payments.

Cloud storage and photos

0 of 6 done

Family photos and documents are the things people miss most.

Social media and messaging

0 of 4 done

Most platforms handle these through a request from family, with proof of death.

Subscriptions and purchases

0 of 4 done

Keeps the estate from paying for services nobody uses.

Websites, domains and online business

0 of 3 done

Skip this section if you don't have any.

Progress

0%

0 of 31 done. 0 of 10 "Start here" items done.

This checklist only records ticks, never passwords or account numbers. Your progress is saved in this browser on this device, and nowhere else.

Keep passwords and recovery phrases in a password manager or another secure place, not in your will and not on this page.

Where to start

You don't need to record every account on day one. Work in this order, because each step makes the next one easier.

  1. Secure the keys. Choose a password manager and decide how a trusted person could get into it, and into your phone.
  2. Set up the tools providers give you. Google and Apple both let you name contacts ahead of time (details below).
  3. List the accounts that hold money. Banks, investments, payment apps and any cryptocurrency.
  4. Find your photos and documents. Pick one main home for family photos and note where scanned documents live.
  5. Tell someone where the list is. Your executor should know where to look. Keep passwords out of your will, because a will can become part of the public court record.

The checklist is a planning aid, not legal advice. For help with your will or power of attorney, see an estate attorney in your state.

Tools that let you choose in advance

If a provider has its own tool and you use it, your choice is the clearest instruction your family can have. The details for Google and Apple come from each company's own support pages.

ProviderToolWhat to know
GoogleInactive Account ManagerYou set how long Google waits after you stop using the account. You can name up to 10 people and choose which data each can receive. Each needs a mobile number for verification.
AppleLegacy ContactYour contact needs the access key you create and a death certificate. You can name more than one, and any one of them can decide what happens to the data, including deleting it. Purchased media and iCloud Keychain data aren't included.
FacebookLegacy ContactSet in your account settings. Check the current options there, because they change.

Most other services, including many social networks, deal with this through a request from family with proof of death. Options change, so check each provider's help pages for the current process.

What the law says about access

Being an executor doesn't automatically let you sign in to someone's accounts. Most states have adopted a version of the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, drafted by the Uniform Law Commission, to set out when an executor, trustee or agent can get access.

In broad terms, the act gives priority first to a provider's own online tool, then to what you wrote in your will, trust or power of attorney, and only then to the provider's terms of service. It also generally protects the content of private messages unless you agreed to share it. State versions differ, so ask a local estate attorney how yours applies.

This is why the checklist has you set up provider tools first, and then mention digital assets in your legal documents.

If you're handling an account after a death

  • Google says it can work with immediate family and representatives to close an account where appropriate, and may provide content in some circumstances after a careful review. It can't give out passwords. If you ask it to close the account, it can't hand over the contents later, so decide about the contents first.
  • Providers commonly ask for a death certificate, so order several certified copies early. Our documents wizard shows what else you may need.
  • Look through recent bank and card statements for subscriptions and automatic payments, and cancel the ones no longer needed.
  • Use the after-death checklist for the other tasks, and the probate cost estimator if an estate has to go through court.

Frequently asked questions

What is a digital legacy?

It's everything you leave behind online: email and social media accounts, cloud storage, photos, bank and payment accounts, subscriptions, domain names and cryptocurrency. A digital legacy checklist records where these are and what you want done with each one.

Should I put my passwords in my will?

No. A will can become part of the public court record during probate, and it may not be read until well after a death. Use a password manager, and tell a trusted person where its recovery or emergency-access information is kept.

What is RUFADAA?

It's the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, a model law from the Uniform Law Commission that most states have adopted in some form. It sets an order of priority: a provider's own online tool first, then your will or trust, then the provider's terms of service.

What happens to a Google account nobody uses?

Google says it may delete an account and its data if you're inactive across Google for at least two years. Inactive Account Manager lets you decide in advance whether named contacts receive your data, so set it up while you can.

What can an Apple Legacy Contact access?

Once they provide the access key and your death certificate, they can get the data in your Apple Account. They can't access purchased movies, music, books or subscriptions, or iCloud Keychain data. You can name more than one contact, and any one of them can decide what happens to the data.

What happens to cryptocurrency when someone dies?

If the coins are in a wallet the owner controlled themselves, they can't be recovered without the recovery phrase or keys. Record each exchange and wallet, keep the recovery phrase offline in a secure place, and tell your executor where it is. Don't write the phrase on this page.

Sources we checked

  1. 1.Set up Inactive Account Manager for your Google Account · Google Account Help
  2. 2.Submit a request regarding a deceased user's account · Google Account Help
  3. 3.How to add a Legacy Contact for your Apple Account · Apple Support
  4. 4.Legacy contacts · Facebook Help Centre
  5. 5.Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, Revised · Uniform Law Commission

Please note: General information, not legal, financial or medical advice. Check the details with the relevant agency or a qualified professional. Rules and prices change, so confirm anything important with the organization concerned. If you spot something out of date, tell us.

Guides that go with this tool

Wills & estatesEstate Inventory Checklist: What to List and How to Value ItAn estate inventory checklist for executors: what to list, how to value each asset on the date of death, where to find hidden accounts and court deadlines. 7 min readWills & estatesApple Legacy Contact: How to Set One Up and How Access Works After DeathHow to add an Apple Legacy Contact, what they can and can't access, what they need to request it, and the three-year limit before the account is deleted. 5 min readWills & estatesClosing Email Accounts After a Death: Gmail, Apple, Microsoft and YahooHow to close or get data from a deceased person's Gmail, iCloud, Outlook or Yahoo account: what providers require and why to wait before deleting. 6 min readMemorialsMemorial Website Builders: How to Choose One and Set It UpHow memorial websites work, what free and paid plans usually cover, how to compare Keeper, Kudoboard and others, and how to set up a page step by step. 4 min read

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