How much does probate cost in Massachusetts?
5 Aug 2026
Massachusetts publishes no percentage for the attorney and none for the personal representative. What it does fix is the court: $375.00 to open an estate, whichever route you use.
The representative takes reasonable compensation, and can renounce what a will offers before qualifying in order to take that instead. The attorney row is a stated absence written into the code itself — the section where a fee provision would sit reads Reserved. Notice runs through a citation rather than a creditors’ advertisement, and the register of probate names the newspaper. The bond is an amount equal to a sworn estimate of the personal estate, and the estate is separately charged for filing an account, banded by value and multiplied by the years the account covers.
G.L. c.262, §40 — Massachusetts General Laws, published by the Massachusetts Legislature · Verified 5 Aug 2026
Informational only, not legal advice. Figures verified on the date stamped. Details: /disclaimer/
Work it out on your own number
Massachusetts sets no percentage on either professional fee, so there is no schedule to work. What the calculator can give you is the court side — one flat figure to open, and a banded charge later if an account is filed.
| Petition to open an estate — formal or informal probate, intestacy, appointment, supervised administration | $375.00 |
| Statement of voluntary administration — the small-estate route | $200.00 |
| General probate petition, petition for counsel fees, or representation of insolvency | $150.00 |
| Inventory, account, closing statement, small estate closing statement, will for safekeeping, or any petition about a bond | $75.00 |
| Subsequent letter | $25.00 |
| Attorney | reasonable |
| Personal representative | reasonable |
This one depends on two things — the gross value accounted for and the number of years the account covers — so we show the schedule and a worked example instead of a single answer. Nothing at $1,000.00 or less; $75.00 up to $10,000.00, capped at $170.00 however long the account runs; then per year, $100.00 up to $100,000.00, $150.00 up to $600,000.00, $200.00 up to $1,000,000.00, $400.00 up to $2,000,000.00, $750.00 up to $5,000,000.00, $1,500.00 up to $7,500,000.00, $2,500.00 up to $10,000,000.00, and $3,500.00 above that.
Worked through: an account of $400,000.00 covering one year costs $150.00; the same account covering three years costs $450.00. An account of $900,000.00 over four years costs $800.00. A long administration therefore costs more at the register than a short one holding the same assets.
Selling real or personal estate is charged the same way, from $100.00 where the gross value is $100,000.00 or less up to $1,000.00 above $1,000,000.00.
The account fee only arises where an account is actually filed, so a straightforward administration may never meet it. Neither professional fee can be computed from an estate value in Massachusetts, because no percentage exists to compute.
What each part costs
Every row is one figure, one source, one date. Where Massachusetts fixes no price, the row says so instead of guessing.
| Fee | Amount or formula | Set by | Source | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attorney feeCounsel paid out of the estate | No statutory scheduleMassachusetts sets no attorney fee schedule and no percentage — the section that would hold one is reserved and empty. What the code does say is about litigation. If a personal representative, or a person nominated as one, defends or prosecutes a proceeding in good faith, that person is entitled to receive from the estate the necessary expenses and disbursements, including reasonable attorney fees incurred. Good faith is the test, and it applies whether the proceeding succeeds or fails. Ordinary administration work is a private fee agreement between the representative and the lawyer. | Private agreement; litigation costs by statute on good faith | G.L. c.190B, §3-720 §3-721, where a fee provision would sit, reads Reserved | 5 Aug 2026 |
| Personal representativeExecutor or administrator | No percentage scheduleMassachusetts publishes no formula. A personal representative is entitled to reasonable compensation for services. Two choices sit alongside that. Where the will sets the compensation and there was no contract with the deceased about it, the representative can renounce what the will offers before qualifying and take reasonable compensation instead. And the right to all or part of the compensation can simply be given up, with a written renunciation of fee filed with the court. | Reasonable compensation, or the will unless renounced | G.L. c.190B, §3-719 Massachusetts Uniform Probate Code | 5 Aug 2026 |
| Court filing feePetition to open an estate | $375.00One figure covers formal probate of a will, adjudication of intestacy with appointment of a personal representative, informal probate or informal appointment, appointment of a successor, and supervised administration. A statement of voluntary administration — the small-estate route — is $200.00. A general probate petition, a petition for counsel fees, or a representation of insolvency is $150.00. Rendering an inventory or account, a closing statement, or a small estate closing statement is $75.00, as is filing a will for safekeeping or any petition about a bond. A subsequent letter is $25.00. Filing the account itself is charged on the gross value accounted for and per year covered — see the schedule above. | Statute, statewide, registers of the Probate and Family Court | G.L. c.262, §40 | 5 Aug 2026 |
| Newspaper publicationPublication of the citation | Published only if neededPublished only if needed. Notice runs in a newspaper only where the petitioner uses publication rather than one of the other two methods; otherwise there is nothing to buy. Massachusetts runs notice through a citation rather than a creditor advertisement. The court fixes a return date and issues a citation, and the petitioner must get notice of that date to every interested person. Publication is one of three ways to do it: mailing a copy of the citation at least 14 days before the return date, delivering it personally at least 14 days before, or publishing it once in a newspaper designated by the register of probate with general circulation in the county where the proceeding is pending, at least 7 days before the return date. The register picks the newspaper, not the family. Proof that notice was given is filed on or before the return day, and the court may allow a different method or timing for good cause. The newspaper sets its own rate. | The newspaper, designated by the register | G.L. c.190B, §1-401 The sections that invoke this one were not read; this page does not say which proceedings require notice | 5 Aug 2026 |
| BondPersonal representative’s bond | An amount equal to a sworn estimate of the personal estate
|
A sworn estimate, adjustable by the court | G.L. c.190B, §3-604 | 5 Aug 2026 |
A long administration costs more at the register than a short one. The account fee is multiplied by the number of years the account covers, so the same $400,000 estate pays $150.00 on a one-year account and $450.00 on a three-year one.
The bond amount is not the bond cost. Massachusetts sizes the bond at the sworn estimate of the personal estate. What the estate pays is a premium to the surety on that amount, and no statute sets the premium.
How the Massachusetts sources are linked. The Legislature publishes the General Laws with a stable address for each section, so every source above opens the exact section we read. The site carries amendments passed before 6 January 2026; anything later is in the 2026 Session Laws and is not in this text.
What can change the bill — allowances, waivers and one-off charges
- Statement of voluntary administration — $200.00.
- General probate petition, petition for counsel fees, or representation of insolvency — $150.00 each.
- Inventory, account, closing statement, small estate closing statement, will filed for safekeeping, or any petition about a bond — $75.00 each.
- Subsequent letter — $25.00.
- Filing the account itself — banded by the gross value accounted for and charged per year covered; see the schedule above. An account of $400,000.00 covering three years costs $450.00.
- Selling real or personal estate — from $100.00 where the gross value is $100,000.00 or less, up to $1,000.00 above $1,000,000.00.
- You may not have to pay at all. An account of $1,000.00 or less carries no filing fee, and a voluntary personal representative takes no fee for the work.
- Where a proceeding is defended or prosecuted in good faith, the representative is entitled to the necessary expenses and disbursements out of the estate, including reasonable attorney fees, whether the proceeding succeeds or fails.
G.L. c.262, §40; G.L. c.190B, §3-720 and §3-1201 — Massachusetts General Laws · Verified 5 Aug 2026
What changes YOUR number in Massachusetts
- If the will names a fee, it can bind you
- In Massachusetts, an executor who accepts without renouncing is held to it. Where the will sets the compensation and there was no contract with the deceased about it, the representative may renounce what the will offers before qualifying and take reasonable compensation instead. The right to all or part of the compensation can also simply be given up, by filing a written renunciation of fee with the court.
- The attorney absence is written into the code
- Section 3-721, where a fee provision would sit in the Massachusetts Uniform Probate Code, reads Reserved. This is not a gap in our research: the code itself declines to fix a rate. Ordinary administration work is a private fee agreement, and anyone quoting you a Massachusetts statutory attorney percentage is quoting another state.
- Good faith buys your costs, win or lose
- A personal representative — or a person merely nominated as one — who defends or prosecutes a proceeding in good faith is entitled to the necessary expenses and disbursements from the estate, including reasonable attorney fees. The test is good faith, not success.
- The register picks the newspaper
- Where notice goes by publication, the citation runs once in a newspaper designated by the register of probate, with general circulation in the county where the proceeding is pending, at least seven days before the return date. The family does not choose the paper and therefore does not shop the rate.
- Publication is the fallback, not the default
- Notice of the return date can go by mail at least fourteen days ahead, by personal delivery at least fourteen days ahead, or by publication at least seven days ahead. Where every interested person can be reached by post, there is no advertisement to buy at all.
- The account fee has two variables
- Value and time both drive it. Below $1,000 there is no fee. Between $1,000 and $10,000 it is $75.00 a year with a hard cap of $170.00 however long the account runs. Above that the cap disappears and the annual figure steps up with the value of the estate.
- Depositing assets can shrink the bond
- Where estate assets are deposited with a domestic financial institution in a way that stops them being moved without authority, the court reduces the bond by the value of what is deposited. The court can also increase or reduce the bond, release the surety, or allow a substitute bond on the petition of the representative or any interested person.
Massachusetts has two routes — one with a $25,000 limit, one with no figure at all
Estates under $25,000.00 may qualify for voluntary administration. It is open where someone domiciled in the state dies leaving an estate made up entirely of personal property, worth not more than $25,000.00 apart from a motor vehicle the deceased owned, which sits outside the count. The second route, summary administration, has no dollar figure in it at all.
- Any interested person may act on the voluntary route, but not until 30 days after the death, and only if nobody has filed a petition to appoint a personal representative.
- They file a sworn statement listing every known asset and its estimated value, the people who would inherit, and the surviving joint owners, with the original will if there is one. The register dockets it and issues an attested copy. Filing that statement costs $200.00.
- The voluntary personal representative pays funeral and last-illness expenses first, then the debts in statutory order, distributes what is left — and takes no fee for the work.
- Summary administration has no ceiling. Where the whole estate, after liens and encumbrances, does not exceed what the family is allowed plus the exempt property, the costs of administration, reasonable funeral expenses and the reasonable and necessary medical and hospital expenses of the last illness, the representative may distribute straight away to the people entitled, without giving notice to creditors, and then file a closing statement.
- Whether an estate qualifies for summary administration therefore depends on what it owes, not on what it is worth. A larger estate with heavy last-illness bills can qualify where a smaller one does not.
- Neither route provides for real property.
- Where the deceased received medical assistance, notice to the division is required and the claim deadlines change.
G.L. c.190B, §3-1201 and §3-1203 — Massachusetts General Laws · Verified 5 Aug 2026
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Massachusetts probate cost questions
How much does an executor get paid in Massachusetts?
There is no percentage. A personal representative is entitled to reasonable compensation for services. Where the will fixes the compensation and there was no contract with the deceased about it, the representative may renounce what the will offers before qualifying and take reasonable compensation instead. The right to compensation can also be given up entirely by filing a written renunciation of fee with the court. A voluntary personal representative on the small-estate route takes no fee at all.
Does Massachusetts set probate attorney fees by statute?
No, and the code says so by omission: the section where a fee provision would sit reads Reserved. What the code does provide is that a representative, or a person nominated as one, who defends or prosecutes a proceeding in good faith is entitled to necessary expenses and disbursements from the estate, including reasonable attorney fees, whether the proceeding succeeds or fails. Ordinary administration work is a private fee agreement.
What does it cost to file for probate in Massachusetts?
Three hundred and seventy-five dollars to open an estate, and that one figure covers formal probate of a will, adjudication of intestacy with appointment, informal probate or appointment, appointment of a successor, and supervised administration. The small-estate statement of voluntary administration is two hundred dollars. Filing an account later is charged separately, banded by the value accounted for and multiplied by the number of years the account covers.
Does an executor need a bond in Massachusetts?
Where one is required and no amount is named in the will, the order or the petition, the person qualifying swears a best estimate of the value of the personal estate and bonds for an amount equal to that estimate. Real estate is not in the base. Depositing estate assets with a domestic financial institution in a way that prevents unauthorised movement reduces the bond by the value deposited, and the court can increase, reduce or release it on petition. When a bond is required at all is governed by a separate section we have not read, so this page does not state it.
Does Massachusetts have a small estate affidavit?
It has voluntary administration, open where the estate is entirely personal property worth no more than twenty-five thousand dollars apart from one motor vehicle, thirty days after the death, and only where nobody has petitioned to appoint a personal representative. There is also summary administration, which has no dollar limit: it applies where the estate after liens does not exceed the family allowances, exempt property, administration costs, funeral expenses and last-illness medical bills. That one turns on what the estate owes rather than what it is worth.
Sources & verification
Every figure on this page was checked against the official source on the date shown. The Massachusetts Legislature publishes the General Laws with a stable address for each section. The site carries amendments passed before 6 January 2026.
- Attorney fee, and the reserved section — G.L. c.190B, §3-720 malegislature.govVerified 5 Aug 2026 · §3-721 confirmed Reserved on the chapter index in the same session · annual statutory re-check
- Personal representative’s compensation and renunciation — G.L. c.190B, §3-719 malegislature.govVerified 5 Aug 2026 · Massachusetts Uniform Probate Code · annual statutory re-check
- Register’s fee schedule — G.L. c.262, §40 malegislature.govVerified 5 Aug 2026 · full section read · no CPI clause and no surcharge appears in the section · annual statutory re-check
- Publication of the citation — G.L. c.190B, §1-401 malegislature.govVerified 5 Aug 2026 · the sections that invoke this one were not read, so this page does not state which proceedings require notice
- Bond — G.L. c.190B, §3-604 malegislature.govVerified 5 Aug 2026 · §3-603, on bond without sureties, was not read · annual statutory re-check
- Voluntary administration — G.L. c.190B, §3-1201 malegislature.govVerified 5 Aug 2026 · the MassHealth paragraph applies to deaths on or after 1 Sep 1992
- Summary administration — G.L. c.190B, §3-1203 malegislature.govVerified 5 Aug 2026 · the qualifying line is a comparison, not a ceiling, so no figure is published · §3-1204 was not read
Researched and verified by John Terra · Methodology
This page is information, not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws and fee schedules change; every figure here was verified on the date stamped beside it. For advice about your own situation, consult an attorney licensed in Massachusetts. Full terms: /disclaimer/ · Privacy
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