How Much Does a Will Cost in Texas?

By The Estate Planning Guide Editorial Team Researched against primary sources

Published June 11, 2026 7 min read

Quick answer

A simple will in Texas typically costs $300 to $800 with an attorney, and $0 to $150 online. Texas also recognizes handwritten (holographic) wills with no witnesses, so a basic will can cost nothing. A will directs an estate through Texas probate rather than avoiding it; Texas administers most estates under independent administration (Tex. Est. Code §401.001) and sets no statutory attorney fee percentage.

⚠️ 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 Texas with a licensed professional — an attorney, tax advisor, or licensed agent as appropriate. Reading this page does not create a professional relationship.

What a will costs in Texas

How you make it	Typical cost in Texas	Best for
Attorney-drafted	$300 to $800	Most people; anything with children, property, or blended families
Online will service	$0 to $150	Simple estates, clear beneficiaries
Pure DIY / handwritten	$0	Rarely the best idea — easy to get wrong

Illustrative Texas pricing as of 2026 — re-verify with current quotes. Attorney quotes are often for a small package (the will plus financial and healthcare powers of attorney), not the will alone.

A simple will in Texas is genuinely inexpensive — $300 to $800 with an attorney, and as little as $0 online. The price is low for a reason: a will is a relatively simple document. The cost climbs only when your situation is complicated — minor children and a guardianship decision, a blended family, a business, or potential estate tax.

What makes a will valid in Texas

A standard Texas will must be signed by you and by two credible witnesses over age 14 who sign in your presence (Tex. Est. Code §251.051).

The witnesses should be disinterested — that is, not people who inherit under the will — so no one can later argue they had a reason to lie about the signing. Get that one detail wrong and the gift to an interested witness (or the whole will) can be challenged.

Can you write your own will by hand in Texas?

Texas recognizes holographic (handwritten) wills — valid if wholly in your handwriting and signed, with no witnesses required (Tex. Est. Code §251.052). Legal, but a witnessed, self-proved will is far easier to admit to probate.

Even where a handwritten will is legal, it’s the riskiest way to do it: no witnesses means no one to confirm it was really you and that you weren’t pressured, and ambiguous handwriting is a gift to anyone who wants to contest it. A typed, witnessed, self-proved will costs very little and avoids all of that.

The self-proving affidavit (a small step that saves a big headache)

Texas lets you add a self-proving affidavit (a notarized statement signed by you and your two witnesses) so the witnesses never have to appear at probate. It is added at signing.

Without it, your witnesses may have to be tracked down years later to confirm they watched you sign — which can be impossible if they’ve moved, lost touch, or died. It’s one of the cheapest, highest-value things you can add to a will.

What a will does not do in Texas

A will directs an estate through probate; it does not remove assets from it. A will tells the Texas probate court who receives what and who administers the estate. Property governed by the will still passes through probate — the court-supervised, public process.

The cost of the document and the cost of probate are therefore separate figures. For what probate itself costs in Texas, see How Much Does Probate Cost in Texas?.

What passes outside probate in Texas

Assets transfer outside probate only by operation of law or contract, regardless of what a will says. The recognised mechanisms are:

Beneficiary designations — retirement accounts, life insurance, and payable-on-death accounts pass to the named beneficiary.
Joint ownership with right of survivorship — passes to the surviving owner.
Transfer-on-death instruments, where Texas authorises them.
Assets titled into a funded living trust.

A will has no effect on any asset transferred by these routes. For the Texas figures on the trust alternative, see How Much Does a Living Trust Cost in Texas?, and for the documented differences between the two instruments, Will vs. Trust: How They Differ.

What affects the price in Texas

Published pricing varies with these factors:

Preparation route. Online will services are the lower end of the range; attorney drafting is the upper end. Texas-specific forms and a self-proving affidavit are not included by every service.
Bundling. A will, a financial power of attorney, and a healthcare directive are commonly quoted together at less than the sum of their separate prices. The power of attorney and directive operate during life; a will operates only at death.
Estate complexity. Minor children, blended families, business interests, special-needs beneficiaries, and estate-tax exposure are the factors attorneys cite for higher quoted fees.

What the record shows

Item	Texas
Attorney-drafted simple will	$300 – $800
Governing statutes	Tex. Est. Code §251.051 (execution); Tex. Est. Code §251.052 (holographic); Tex. Est. Code §251.104 (self-proving)
State authority	TexasLawHelp.org (Texas Legal Services Center)

A will directs an estate through probate and does not remove assets from it. Execution requirements, the treatment of handwritten wills, and the self-proving affidavit rules for Texas are set out above with their statutory citations. Figures reflect published 2026 pricing and should be re-verified against live quotes.

Will costs in other states

Compare Texas with what a will costs in other states:

How to Write a Will (and What Makes It Valid) — the full step-by-step.
Do I Need a Will? — what happens under intestacy when there is none.
How Much Does a Will Cost with a Lawyer? — the national cost picture.
How Much Does Probate Cost in Texas? — the separate cost of probate itself.
How Much Does a Living Trust Cost in Texas? — the instrument that holds assets outside probate.

This page explains will costs and validity rules in Texas in general terms as of 2026. It is not legal advice; statutes and figures change and depend on your situation. Confirm current rules with a licensed Texas attorney. Cost figures reflect published 2026 attorney and online-service pricing and should be re-verified with live quotes. Sources: TexasLawHelp.org (Texas Legal Services Center); Tex. Est. Code §251.051 (execution), Tex. Est. Code §251.052 (holographic), Tex. Est. Code §251.104 (self-proving).

Related guides

What Happens If You Die Without a Will by State

Do I Need a Will? What a Will Does and What Intestacy Does

How Much Does a Will Cost with a Lawyer?