How This Tool Works
📋 Purpose
Most UK adults either overpay a solicitor £400+ for a routine will, or dangerously DIY-kit a will that ends up contested. This tool applies a 5-factor complexity score (step-family, business, foreign property, estate size, child count) against published UK pricing for DIY kits, Farewill-style online platforms and solicitor firms — plus your £82 LPA registration fees — so you pick the cheapest route that actually fits your circumstances.
⚙️ How It Works
- 1Enter your estate value and age.
- 2Mark married/civil partnership (doubles IHT threshold).
- 3Enter number of children.
- 4Flag complexity risks: step-family, business, foreign property.
- 5Select LPAs needed (Property & Financial, Health & Welfare).
- 6We calculate complexity score (0-10).
- 7We recommend DIY, online platform or solicitor.
- 8We show cost, dispute risk, IHT liability and 20-year lifecycle cost.
Wills + LPA cost planner — UK, 2026
DIY, online platform or solicitor — which actually fits your estate?
Complexity score across 5 risk factors drives the route recommendation. Includes £82 per LPA gov.uk fee, couple mirror-will discount, 20-year lifecycle (updates every 5yr) and IHT liability on estates above the nil-rate band.
Your estate
Property + savings + investments − mortgage and debts.
Doubles IHT threshold; enables mirror will.
Complexity factors
+2 complexity — high dispute risk
+2 complexity — Business Relief planning
+2 complexity — multi-jurisdiction
20% discount on matching wills
Lasting Power of Attorney
£82 gov.uk registration
£82 gov.uk registration
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Complete Guide: Wills, LPAs & IHT Planning (UK, 2026)
How to choose between DIY, online and solicitor without overpaying — or leaving your family a probate disaster.
📅 Last updated: April 2026
Quick Tips
Jump-start your understanding with these essential tips
If a beneficiary (or their spouse) witnesses your will, THEY lose their entire inheritance. The will itself stays valid — they just get nothing. This is the #1 DIY will mistake.
Most people don't know this. You marry — your existing will is automatically void unless drafted "in contemplation of marriage". Always redo your will within weeks of marrying.
Solicitors charge £300-500 per LPA. gov.uk charges £82 and includes registration. For standard LPAs without complex instructions, DIY saves £400-800 per couple.
Mirror will couples: the survivor can change their will to disinherit the original beneficiaries. If you have step-children or want protection, use "mutual wills" with a contract — costs ~£100 more but legally binding.
This one's free and saves 40% of the payout in IHT. Get the trust form from your insurer and complete it before any payout is needed. Most people miss this and it's the single easiest IHT saving.
Step-by-Step Guide
Follow these steps to get the most from this tool
Property + savings + investments − mortgage and debts. If you're unsure, use the value you'd get selling everything tomorrow.
Doubles your IHT threshold (£1M combined) and enables the 20% mirror-will discount.
More than 3 children adds complexity. RNRB only applies if you're passing your home to direct descendants.
Step/half children (+2), business interests (+2), foreign property (+2), estate above £500k (+1), more than 3 children (+1). Score of 4+ = solicitor, 2-3 = online, 0-1 = DIY suffices.
Both LPAs recommended for every adult over 40. Each costs £82 on gov.uk.
We show cost, dispute risk and lifecycle cost for all three routes. Bar chart overlays cost (bars) with dispute risk (red line).
Advanced Topics
Deep dives for advanced users
A will can set up trusts on your death: discretionary trusts (flexibility for changing family circumstances), life-interest trusts (protect assets from a second-marriage trap), bereaved minor trusts (for under-18 beneficiaries). These are core solicitor work — DIY kits cannot do them safely. Budget £400-£600 extra on top of the base will for a trust structure.
Gifts made 7+ years before death are fully exempt from IHT. Gifts in year 3-7 get tapered relief. Gifts in year 0-3 are taxed at the full 40%. Regular gifts from surplus income (e.g., £500/month) are immediately exempt if they're a pattern. For estates over £1M, systematic gifting plus life cover in trust (to fund any early-death IHT) is the standard solicitor strategy.
Unquoted business assets held for 2+ years qualify for 100% IHT relief (Business Relief). AIM-listed shares held 2+ years also qualify. From April 2026, Business Relief is capped at £1M of combined qualifying assets per person — above that, you get 50% relief. High-value business owners should revisit planning with a solicitor ahead of April 2026.
England & Wales: spouse gets first £322k + personal effects + half the remainder; children get the other half (held in trust if under 18). Unmarried partners get NOTHING, regardless of how long you've lived together. Scotland has different rules via "prior rights". Every cohabiting couple should have wills — intestacy is financially catastrophic for unmarried partners.
Pair with Life Insurance Estimator — life cover in trust bypasses your estate and saves 40% IHT. Annuity vs Drawdown impacts what your estate looks like on death.
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