Solicitor or YouCanDoProbate?

How we compare against using a solicitor.

What a solicitor does, what it costs, how long it takes, and how YouCanDoProbate compares. No spin. Just the facts.

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The reality

If you are thinking of instructing a solicitor, these are the realities most people only discover afterwards.

Solicitors do an important job, and for certain complicated estates they're genuinely the right choice. But for most standard probate applications, the cost, the timeline and the loss of control aren't explained at the outset.

How much it actually costs

The quote may look reasonable until you add VAT, disbursements, the Probate Registry fee and the hourly rate for anything that takes longer than expected. What started as a fixed fee rarely stays that way.

How long you have to wait

Solicitor-led probate typically takes six to eighteen months from your instruction, and frequently longer. You hand everything over and then wait. Most of that time nothing is happening on your behalf.

You're no longer in control

Once you instruct a solicitor, the timeline is theirs not yours. Chasing updates, waiting for callbacks, not knowing where things are. The process moves at their pace, not yours.

You're still doing most of the work anyway

Yes. The estate information always comes from you. The bank balances, the property valuations, the gift records. A solicitor works from what you provide. You do the gathering. They do the paperwork. At significant cost.

What if something takes longer than quoted?

Most solicitor quotes are either fixed fees that exclude significant extras, or hourly rates with no ceiling. If your estate is more complex than expected, or correspondence takes longer, the cost grows. You rarely know by how much until the bill arrives.

Is a percentage of the estate really fair?

Banks and some solicitors charge 1% to 5% of the estate value. On a £300,000 estate that is £3,000 to £15,000. The size of the estate has no bearing on the amount of work involved.

You don't need
to pay thousands

YouCanDoProbate solves every one of those problems.

YouCanDoProbate was built specifically to remove every one of the reasons people feel trapped into using a solicitor. Here is how.

One fixed price of £499.

No hourly rates. No percentage of the estate. No hidden extras. No VAT on top. The only additional cost is the £526 Probate Registry fee paid directly to HMCTS, the same fee your solicitor would charge on top of their bill.

Most customers receive their Grant within weeks.

Once your forms are posted, most customers receive their Grant within four to eight weeks. Not months. Weeks. You work through the platform at your own pace and post when everything is ready.

You stay in control throughout.

You are the executor. You work through the platform at your own pace. You decide when to do it. You post the forms yourself. The application is yours from start to finish.

The platform does the technical work with your information.

You still gather the estate details. That never changes regardless of which route you take. But instead of handing them to a solicitor and paying thousands, you enter them into the platform and it does everything else automatically.

One price. No surprises.

£499 includes everything. The platform, all your forms, every calculation, every exemption and unlimited UK-based expert support. Nothing is added on afterwards. Nothing is billed by the hour.

No percentage. Ever.

YouCanDoProbate never charges a percentage of the estate. It does not matter whether the estate is worth £50,000 or £500,000. The price is £499. The same for everyone.

It's the same amount
of work either way

Whatever route you choose, the information comes from you.

The bank statements. The property valuations. The gift records. The beneficiary details. Whether you use a solicitor or YouCanDoProbate, you collect all of this yourself. A solicitor normally works from the information you provide rather than gathering it themselves. Some offer full estate administration and will collect it for you, but that costs considerably more.

What the fee buys is the technical work that follows. The form selection, the calculations, the tax determination, the exemptions, the form completion. YouCanDoProbate does exactly that. Automatically. For £499.

How we compare

The same amount of work. A very different cost.

Here is how YouCanDoProbate compares to a solicitor on every measure that matters.

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How we compare

YouCanDoProbate

High street solicitor

Typical cost

£499 fixed

£1,500 to £10,000+

Percentage of estate taken

Never

Sometimes

Forms completed for you

Estate calculations

Exemptions applied

Inheritance tax worked out

You still gather the information

Unlimited support included

Varies, often billed

Work at your own pace

Typical Grant timeline

3 to 6 weeks from posting

12 weeks or more

No legal knowledge needed

Not required

Scroll right to see full table

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Still not sure about something? Call us on 0800 689 1447 · Monday to Saturday, 9am to 6pm

We are always completely transparent

Solicitors are not always the wrong choice. For some estates they are exactly right.

We will say this clearly before anything else. There are situations where a solicitor’s involvement is genuinely the right call and we would always recommend one if that is the case.

When you cannot use the platform

Domiciled outside of England or Wales

A surviving spouse domiciled outside of England or Wales

Contested probate or disputed Wills

The deceased made gifts with reservation of benefit.

You need to claim Business Asset Relief (on assets other than unquoted shares)

You need to claim Agricultural Relief

Heritage Assets Conditional Exemption

Assets held in trust for the deceased.

See full eligibility details

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Still not sure about something? Call us on 0800 689 1447 · Monday to Saturday, 9am to 6pm

See all our reviews

Fantastic service

Fantastic service. Extremely clearly laid out, very intuitive and lots of online help. I used the contact twice: once promptly answered via email, the second via a booked appt – again very polite and incredibly helpful. I took my time over entering and double-checking details but, from beginning to end (IHT done and probate in hand) took 10 weeks including turnaround time for documents. Great value for money and strongly recommended.

Simon Bennett

The process was simple and the support…

The process was simple and the support provided spot on.

Sue Byrne

This is a fabulous piece of software…

This is a fabulous piece of software and wonderful support. I have never had to go through the process before and the software made it simple and manageable. When I had a question, they were very very quick to respond and gave me all the time I needed and super advice which saved me time and money. Fabulous company, I highly recommend.

customer

I would highly recommend

I only wish I’d found this service earlier., it has been invaluable. It made what felt a daunting task manageable in a time of great stress and upset. The phone support was also brilliant. I would highly recommend.

Josephine Butler

This made a very difficult time and…

This made a very difficult time and task painless. I had a few queries which were answered very efficiently. The whole process from start to finish and obtaining probate was 6 weeks.

LCc

An excellent service!

This is an excellent service. As well as the clear and logical website to step you through the process, there is first class one-on-one support from experts on probate. Using youcandoprobate saved me thousands of pounds of legal expenses!

Firebladeboy

My dad passed away in December and to…

My dad passed away in December and to save money, because his Estate appeared quite straightforward I opted to take on the role of Executor. Everything has been absolutely fine, time consuming but okay however I was concerned about the IHT element and ensuring the calculations were correct for when the Probate application was submitted. I looked online for assistance and came across YouCanDoProbate. Their website and customer reviews convinced myself and my sister that this would be a good option to finalise everything. We had saved a lot of money by not using solicitors so £499 to ensure everything was accurate would be money well spent. The platform is brilliant, it guides you through every element and you cannot move on until it is completed so removes any risk of errors. It takes you through every step required to complete the Probate application and the completed form is ready for you to download, print and send off. Without a doubt the best decision made in managing my Dad’s Estate and money well spent. Highly recommend YouCanDoProbate to anyone undertaking the role of Executorship.

Lisa Unsted

Highly recommend this company

Highly recommend this company. The intuitive software is easy to use and the friendly and professional telephone support is excellent. On the advise of the team I posted off my documents as I had considered using the government online form assuming it may be quicker! However Probate was granted in 15 days from when I posted my documents. Thank you to all the team at You Can Do Probate for making a stressful and emotional task much easier to navigate without the need of expensive solicitors! Nb The only improvement that I feel would be beneficial is the function to print the breakdown of all the values and calculations

Makes everything really simple

Makes everything really simple. Got probate granted in 2 weeks!

Andre

Doing probate is pretty complicated and…

Doing probate is pretty complicated and I found YCDProbate simplified the procedure. Moreover, if you follow the process right through (take your time!) you can be very confident you have not missed anything of importance. Now here’s the best part: if you have questions, they really will be answered within 24-48 hours, and answered well. Go for it.

So easy

So easy, why would you use a solicitor?!

Robert Ryan

Excellent service received from You…

Excellent service received from You Can Do Probate. The staff were very helpful and friendly.

Lesley Sylvester

AFFORDABLE FIXED PRICE

Forms filled in for you

No expertise needed

Unlimited UK support

Save money, time and stress with YouCanDoProbate

One time payment

£499

including VAT

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Additional costs: The probate registry fee of £526 (for all estates over £5,000) and any additional official copies at £2 each. (Payable directly to HM Courts and Tribunals Service by cheque or postal order, enclosed with your application forms).