Do I need a will?

Do I need a will?

If you are an adult in the United States, the short answer is almost always yes. A will is a signed legal document that says who gets your property when you die and, if you have minor children, who should raise them. Without one, a state court decides those things using a fixed formula that does not ask what you would have wanted.

Nolo's guidance is direct about who this catches: an unmarried partner inherits nothing automatically, no matter how long the relationship lasted, unless a will or another legal document says otherwise². The same is true for stepchildren you never formally adopted, close friends, and charities.

The exceptions are narrow: if you own almost nothing, have already put everything into a living trust, and have no minor children or anyone specific to exclude, a will has less work to do. Even then, most attorneys recommend a short "backup" will to cover anything a trust missed.

What a will actually does

A will lets you:

• Name who inherits your property, and in what shares
• Name an executor (personal representative) to carry out your instructions
• Name a guardian for minor children
• Disinherit someone specific, where state law allows it
• Make specific gifts of named items to named people

A will does not control everything you own. Life insurance, retirement accounts, and payable-on-death bank accounts pass to whoever is named as beneficiary on the account itself, regardless of what the will says, and property in a living trust also passes outside the will.

A will also differs from a living will, which covers medical decisions while you are alive rather than property after death. See living will and advance directive if that is what you need instead.

What happens if I die without a will?

If you die without a valid will, you have died "intestate," and your state's intestate succession law decides who inherits. Nolo describes the outcome plainly: courts distribute property in a fixed order, usually to a spouse, children, parents, or siblings, and "unmarried partners, friends, and charities get nothing"². With no living relatives at all, property "escheats" to the state, though Nolo notes this is rare since intestacy laws are written to find almost any blood relative first².

Intestacy law also does not appoint a guardian for minor children. If both parents are gone and no will names a guardian, a court decides who raises your kids, usually giving weight to close relatives but without any instruction from you².

Who clearly needs a will?

• Parents of minor children, to name a guardian and set up a simple trust so a young beneficiary does not inherit a lump sum at 18.
• Unmarried couples, since a partner has no inheritance right without one.
• Blended families, to spell out what stepchildren, a spouse, and earlier children each receive.
• Anyone who wants to exclude a specific relative on the record.
• Business owners, so a share does not default to whichever relative intestacy law names.
• Anyone with property in more than one state, since each applies its own rules.
• Anyone who wants to name their own executor, rather than leave that to the probate court.

How much does a will cost?

Costs range from free to a few thousand dollars, depending on complexity and whether you use an online tool or an attorney.

Price climbs with complexity: MetLife notes a business, a blended family, or a large estate all push the fee higher¹⁰.

Do I need an attorney for a will? Do I need a lawyer for a will?

Not always. AARP notes that online tools "can help you draft a will" but can fall short on state-specific requirements, and recommends "working with an estate planning attorney who is licensed in your state" once things get complicated⁸.

A DIY or online will is usually enough if: you have one clear plan (for example, everything to a spouse or split evenly among your children), any guardian choice is simple and uncontested, you do not need to disinherit anyone, and your estate has no business or real estate in more than one state.

Talk to a lawyer instead if: you have a blended family or want unequal shares; you want to disinherit a spouse or child, which many states restrict; you own a business or property in more than one state; a beneficiary has special needs and could lose benefits from a direct inheritance; your estate is near the $15,000,000 federal estate tax exemption for 2026 deaths¹²; or you expect a challenge.

As one attorney told AARP, in a complicated situation "a will by itself may not be sufficient"⁸.

What makes a will legal?

Every state sets its own rules, but most share the same frame: an adult of sound mind signs a written will in front of witnesses. "Sound mind" generally means you understand that you are making a will, roughly what you own, and who your close family members are, at the moment you sign.

The baseline most states follow:

1. You are at least 18 (a few states allow younger married or military testators).
2. You are of sound mind when you sign.
3. The will is in writing and signed by you, or by someone you direct in your presence.
4. Two competent adult witnesses watch you sign or acknowledge your signature, then sign themselves.

A self-proving affidavit is a separate, optional page, signed by you and your witnesses in front of a notary, that lets a probate court accept the will without tracking down your witnesses later. It is allowed in every state except Ohio and Washington, D.C.¹¹.

How this varies by state

Confirm your own state's current requirements on its court self-help site or with a local attorney before you sign anything.

Many states, including California, also allow a "holographic" will, written and signed entirely in your own handwriting with no witnesses, though courts scrutinize these more closely. See our handwritten (holographic) will guide for where that option exists.

How to make a will: step by step

1. List what you own and roughly what it is worth: real estate, accounts, vehicles, and business interests.
2. Decide who gets what, and pick backup beneficiaries.
3. Name an executor and a backup executor.
4. If you have minor children, name a guardian and a backup guardian.
5. Choose a format: a free or paid online tool, DIY software, or an attorney.
6. Draft the will, following your state's exact witness and signature rules.
7. Sign it with two witnesses present, and add a self-proving affidavit if allowed.
8. Store the original safely and tell your executor exactly where it is.
9. Review it after a marriage, divorce, birth, or death in the family, and update it with a formal amendment or a new will, not by crossing things out.

What to record in your family guide

Once your will exists, the harder problem is making sure your executor can find it. Record, in one place:

• Where the signed original is kept, and who has a copy
• Your executor's and backup executor's contact information
• Your attorney's contact information, if you used one
• The date of your most recent will or codicil

This is the kind of information a family guide keeps in one place. See our broader estate planning checklist for everything else worth gathering alongside the will.

Common mistakes people make with wills

• Not signing it correctly. A missing witness or skipped state-specific step, like Louisiana's notary, can invalidate the will.
• Writing on the original after signing. Crossing out or adding a line can void that part, or the whole document.
• Forgetting beneficiary designations. A will does not override who is named on a life insurance policy or retirement account.
• Never updating it. A will from before a divorce or a new child may still name an ex-spouse as executor.
• Not naming a backup executor or guardian. If your first choice cannot serve, the court chooses instead.
• Losing track of the original. A copy is rarely enough in probate.

When to get professional help

Get an estate planning attorney involved if you have a blended family, want to disinherit a spouse or child, own a business or property in more than one state, have a beneficiary with special needs, or expect the will to be contested. A mistake in your state's witness or signature rules is usually only discovered after you are gone, when it is too late to fix. Otherwise, a reputable online tool or DIY software can produce a valid, state-compliant will for far less.