How much does probate cost in Utah?
30 Jul 2026
Utah publishes no percentage schedule. One section entitles both the estate’s attorney and the personal representative to reasonable compensation for their services.
What is fixed by law is the court’s own charge: $375 to open a probate estate. An estate of $100,000 or less in personal property can be collected by affidavit with no court case at all. Everything else here is what the law does set — the notice schedule, the bond floor, and the threshold.
Utah Code §75-3-718(1) — Utah State Legislature · Verified 30 Jul 2026
Informational only, not legal advice. Figures verified on the date stamped. Details: /disclaimer/
Work it out on your own number
Utah has no statutory formula to work, so no calculator can return a fee figure for it. What the law does fix is on this page.
The calculator works the statutory math in the states whose legislatures publish a schedule. Utah is not one of them — its fee is reasonable compensation, decided case by case, and a percentage returned for Utah would be invented rather than read.
What each part costs
Every row is one figure, one source, one date. Where Utah fixes no price, the row says so instead of guessing.
| Fee | Amount or formula | Set by | Source | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attorney feeOrdinary services | No statutory scheduleSection 75-3-718(1) entitles the estate’s attorney to reasonable compensation for services. Where a petition seeks approval of that compensation and no interested person objects, the amount sought in the petition is reasonable compensation. On an objection the court fixes it. | Statute — reasonable compensation | Utah Code §75-3-718(1) | 30 Jul 2026 |
| Personal representative feeThe executor or administrator | Reasonable compensationThe personal representative is paid under the same section as the attorney, on the same terms. Unopposed, the figure asked for in the petition is the figure allowed; opposed, the court sets it. There is no percentage anywhere in the section. | Statute — reasonable compensation | Utah Code §75-3-718(1) | 30 Jul 2026 |
| Court filing feeOpening a probate estate | $375The district court fee schedule lists Estate Personal Rep at $375, which is the fee under section 78A-2-301(1)(a) for a civil petition not governed by another subsection. Moving an out-of-state probate into Utah is $35. Annual accountings by guardians and conservators carry their own separate scale. | Statute, statewide — not set by county | Utah Code §78A-2-301(1)(a) and (1)(m) | 30 Jul 2026 |
| Newspaper publicationNotice to creditors | Not fixed by statuteThe law sets the schedule, not the price: the notice runs once a week for three successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county, and for three weeks on the statewide legal notices website. The newspaper sets its own charge, so the cost varies by county and by paper. | The newspaper | Utah Code §75-3-801(1)(b) | 30 Jul 2026 |
| BondPersonal representative’s bond | A floor, not a ceilingWhere a bond is required and the will or the order does not fix the amount, the person qualifying files a sworn statement with the clerk giving their best estimate of the value of the decedent’s personal and real estate and of the income expected from it over the next year, and files a bond for not less than that estimate reduced by secured claims. The clerk may permit a further reduction for estate assets deposited with a domestic financial institution in a way that prevents their unauthorised disposition. | Statutory floor | Utah Code §75-3-604, read with §75-3-603 | 30 Jul 2026 |
The most important sentence in Utah’s fee law is not a number. Where a petition asks the court to approve the attorney’s or the personal representative’s compensation and no interested person objects, the statute makes the amount asked for in that petition reasonable compensation. In an unopposed estate the figure is set by what is requested, not by a schedule and not by the court. Any site printing a Utah percentage is printing another state’s law.
What changes YOUR number in Utah
- What “reasonable compensation” means here
- There is no percentage to apply. Both the attorney and the personal representative are entitled to reasonable compensation for the services actually performed, under one section, on identical terms.
- Nobody objecting is what decides it
- If compensation is put to the court by petition and no interested person objects, the amount in the petition is reasonable compensation. Where there is an objection, the court fixes the amount on the quality, quantity and value of the services and the circumstances in which they were rendered. That is the whole test — there is no schedule underneath it.
- What is actually fixed by law
- The court’s own charge: $375 to open a probate estate, set by statute and the same in every county. Moving a probate already open in another state into Utah is $35.
- The bond is a floor
- Where a bond is required, Utah sets it at not less than the sworn estimate, reduced by secured claims. That is the opposite of a cap — the amount can be set higher, not lower. A reduction for assets deposited with a financial institution is something the clerk may permit, not something that happens automatically. The premium itself is a private surety rate, not a figure set by law.
- The notice is optional in form, and it starts the clock
- Section 75-3-801(1)(a) says the personal representative may publish notice to creditors, not must. But publication is what starts the three-month bar on creditor claims, running from the date of first publication, so most estates publish.
- Publication cost varies
- Utah sets no price for the notice. The charge depends on the county and the paper.
Personal property of $100,000 or less can be collected by affidavit
Where the entire estate subject to administration, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $100,000, a successor can collect the personal property by affidavit 30 days after the death — with no court case at all.
- Limit $100,000, measured on the whole estate subject to administration wherever located, less liens and encumbrances.
- 30-day wait after the death.
- No application or petition for a personal representative pending or granted.
- The affidavit is not filed with the court — it is presented to whoever holds the property.
- Up to four vehicles or boats transfer through the Motor Vehicle Division on the same affidavit.
- Water company shares transferred under section 73-1-10 are excluded.
Real property does not qualify. A house or land cannot pass by this affidavit however small the estate is. If real property has to change hands, the $100,000 threshold does not help and a probate case is the route.
Utah Code §75-3-1201(1) — Utah State Legislature · Verified 30 Jul 2026
Three tools, in the order most people need them
Utah probate cost questions
Does Utah set probate attorney fees by statute?
No. Section 75-3-718(1) entitles the attorney to reasonable compensation for services and publishes no percentage. Where compensation is put to the court by petition and no interested person objects, the amount sought is reasonable compensation.
How much does the personal representative get paid in Utah?
Reasonable compensation for the services performed, under the same section as the attorney. There is no percentage schedule in Utah law, so any figure has to be worked out from the services, not from the size of the estate.
What does it cost to open a probate case in Utah?
$375, the same in every county. That is the fee for a civil petition under section 78A-2-301(1)(a), listed on the district court fee schedule as Estate Personal Rep. Moving an out-of-state probate into Utah is $35.
How much is the newspaper notice in Utah probate?
Utah sets no price. Section 75-3-801(1)(b) sets only the schedule: once a week for three successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county, and three weeks on the statewide legal notices website. Creditors then have three months from first publication.
Can a small estate avoid probate in Utah?
Personal property can, where the estate subject to administration is $100,000 or less after liens and encumbrances, 30 days have passed, and no personal representative has been applied for or appointed. Real property does not qualify.
Sources & verification
Every figure on this page was checked against the official source on the date shown. Statutory figures are re-checked annually.
- Attorney fee and personal representative fee — Utah Code §75-3-718(1) le.utah.govVerified 30 Jul 2026 · annual statutory re-check
- Court filing fee — Utah Code §78A-2-301(1)(a) and (1)(m) le.utah.govVerified 30 Jul 2026 · the served section is marked superseded from 1 January 2027, so this figure is re-checked on that date as well as annually
- Publication schedule — Utah Code §75-3-801(1)(b) le.utah.govVerified 30 Jul 2026 · annual statutory re-check
- Bond — Utah Code §75-3-604, read with §75-3-603 le.utah.govVerified 30 Jul 2026 · annual statutory re-check
- Small-estate threshold — Utah Code §75-3-1201(1) le.utah.govVerified 30 Jul 2026 · annual statutory re-check
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 Utah. Full terms: /disclaimer/
Every state, one standard: How much does probate cost? →
Nearby and often compared: Nevada, Montana, California and Texas
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