The Estate Planning Guide Est. 2026

What Happens If You Die Without a Will in Alabama?

By The Estate Planning Guide Editorial Team Researched against primary sources

Published June 3, 2026 7 min read

Quick answer

If a married Alabamian with kids dies without a will, and all the kids are also the surviving spouse's, the spouse takes the first $50,000 plus one-half of the balance and the children share the rest. If any child is from another relationship, the spouse takes only one-half and the children take the other half. Alabama is a common-law (separate property) state, so these shares apply to the whole estate.

⚠️ Educational information only — not legal, tax, or financial advice.

The figures on this page are general estimates. Laws, fees, thresholds, and prices differ by state and change often, and your own situation may change the result. Before you act, confirm the current numbers and rules for Alabama with a licensed professional — an attorney, tax advisor, or licensed agent as appropriate. Reading this page does not create a professional relationship.

How intestacy works in Alabama

When someone dies in Alabama without a valid will, Ala. Code §43-8-40 et seq. decides who inherits. The statute orders potential heirs by their relationship to the deceased — spouse and children first, then parents, then more distant relatives — and specifies exactly what share each one receives.

Alabama is a common-law (separate property) state, so there is no community-property split; the shares above apply to the whole estate.

What happens when there’s a surviving spouse only (no children, no parents)

Spouse inherits the entire intestate estate (Ala. Code §43-8-41(1)).

What happens when there’s a surviving spouse and children

This is the most common situation and where Alabama’s rules get specific:

If all the decedent's children are also children of the surviving spouse, the spouse takes the first $50,000 in value plus one-half of the balance, and the children share the remaining half by representation. If one or more children are not the surviving spouse's, the spouse takes one-half of the estate and the children take the other half (Ala. Code §43-8-41(3)-(4)).

For families where everyone is from the same marriage, the spouse generally gets a meaningful share. For blended families — where one or more children are from a prior relationship — many states change the math substantially. If your situation might fit that, the section above is exactly the rule that applies.

What happens when there’s a surviving spouse and parents (no children)

With no children, the spouse takes the first $100,000 in value plus one-half of the balance; the decedent's surviving parent or parents take the rest (Ala. Code §43-8-41(2)).

What happens when there are children but no spouse

Entire estate to the children equally; a deceased child's share passes to that child's descendants by representation (Ala. Code §43-8-42(1)).

What happens when there’s no spouse and no children

Order of inheritance: descendants → parents → issue of parents (siblings and their descendants) → grandparents or their issue, split between the paternal and maternal sides → and, if no heir can be found, escheat to the State of Alabama (Ala. Code §43-8-42).

This is where intestacy starts producing results that often surprise people — distant relatives the deceased may not have been close to can end up inheriting, and a long-time unmarried partner inherits nothing.

A Alabama-specific quirk

Alabama abolished dower and curtesy but gives the surviving spouse a homestead allowance (up to $15,000), exempt property (up to $7,500), and a family allowance off the top before the intestate shares are calculated (Ala. Code §§43-8-110 to 43-8-112). It also retains the older Uniform Probate Code 'first $50,000 / first $100,000' spousal figures rather than the higher modern UPC amounts.

What intestacy can’t do (and why it usually fails most people)

Even when Alabama’s intestacy rules produce a result close to what someone would have chosen, the rules can never:

  • Leave anything to an unmarried partner — intestacy doesn’t recognize unmarried partners regardless of relationship length
  • Leave anything to a step-child you didn’t formally adopt
  • Leave anything to a friend, charity, or specific person outside your family
  • Name a guardian for your minor children — a Alabama judge picks
  • Specify who handles your estate — a court appoints an administrator
  • Identify specific items for specific people
  • Account for blended-family dynamics in nuanced ways
  • Reduce probate costs and time — intestate estates still go through full probate

For most Alabama families, a basic will — costing $300 to $1,500 with a local attorney, or $50 to $300 with an online service — is meaningfully better than the default rules.

What probate looks like in Alabama when there’s no will

If someone dies intestate in Alabama, the estate still goes through probate. A court appoints an administrator (rather than an “executor” — the title is different for intestacy) to:

  1. Inventory the estate’s assets
  2. Notify creditors and pay debts
  3. Identify legal heirs under Alabama’s intestacy statute
  4. Distribute remaining assets to heirs according to the statute

For details on what probate costs and how long it takes in Alabama, see:

What to do this week if you don’t have a will

The most useful single move for any Alabama adult without a will:

  1. Write a basic will. Either through an online service ($50-$300) or a local attorney ($300-$1,500). Name an executor, name a guardian for any minor children, and specify who inherits what.
  2. Update beneficiary designations on retirement accounts, life insurance, and POD/TOD bank accounts. These pass outside both the will and intestacy.
  3. Sign a financial power of attorney and a healthcare directive. These handle incapacity (not death) and prevent your family from needing court-appointed guardianship.

For a Alabama family with a typical estate, this whole package usually costs under $1,500 and takes a couple of weeks of intermittent work. It’s substantially cheaper and less stressful than what happens if you don’t do it.

What happens without a will in other states

Intestacy rules differ from state to state — here’s what happens when someone dies without a will elsewhere:

This page explains Alabama intestacy law in general terms as of 2026. It is not legal advice; intestacy provisions, dollar thresholds, and statute citations can change. Confirm current rules with a licensed Alabama attorney before relying on this page. Sources: Ala. Code §43-8-41 (share of the spouse), Ala. Code §43-8-42 (share of heirs other than the spouse), Ala. Code §43-8-110 (homestead allowance), Ala. Code §43-8-40 (intestate estate).

Related guides