How Much Does a Will Cost in Ontario? 2026 Prices and How to Make a Will in Canada

In Ontario, a simple lawyer-drafted will has averaged about $503, and a package with a will and powers of attorney about $720, according to Canadian Lawyer's 2021 Legal Fees Survey; the national averages were $624 and $957 ^[1]. Online will services list individual wills from about $129 to $139 as of November 2026 ^{[13] [14]}, while a handwritten will costs nothing but carries the most risk. Wills with trusts, business assets or blended-family planning are quoted individually and cost more.

This guide covers what each type of will costs, how to sign one so it is valid in Ontario and other provinces, which provinces accept handwritten wills, and when doing it yourself is risky. It is general information, not legal advice, and is current as of November 2026.

How much does a will cost in Ontario and across Canada?

The most detailed public figures for lawyer-drafted wills come from Canadian Lawyer magazine's 2021 Legal Fees Survey, which reports average fees from responding firms ^[1]. Its most recent published fee report, based on a 2024 survey of 347 firms, found that real estate and wills and estates fees at national firms rose an average of 23% compared with 2020/2021 data, and 64% of firms planned to raise fees again ^[2]. Treat the 2021 averages below as a starting point.

Source notes: lawyer figures are 2021 averages before tax and disbursements ^[1]. Online prices are as listed on provider websites in November 2026 and can change ^{[13] [14]}. Legal fees in Ontario attract 13% HST ^[15].

Regional averages also differed. The 2021 survey reported simple wills at about $563 in the West and $656 in the East, with reported ranges of roughly $150 to $1,000 ^[1]. A power of attorney on its own averaged $177 in Ontario and $248 nationally ^[1].

What do mirror wills, wills with trusts and estate packages cost?

Mirror (spousal) wills. Couples often sign matching wills that leave everything to each other and then to the same beneficiaries. Lawyers usually quote these as a pair, typically for less than two separate wills, but no published survey isolates the price, so ask for a couple's quote. Online, one provider lists a two-person package with wills and powers of attorney at $349 ^[13].

Estate-planning packages. In Ontario, a typical package is a will plus two powers of attorney: one for property and one for personal care. The province explains that an attorney for property handles financial affairs such as bills and investments, while an attorney for personal care makes decisions about health care, housing and similar matters ^[4]. You can make these documents yourself with the free government kit or have a lawyer prepare them ^[4]. The 2021 survey put the package at about $720 in Ontario ^[1].

Wills with trusts. A will that sets up a trust for minor children, a spendthrift beneficiary or a family member with a disability takes more drafting and advice. These are usually quoted after a consultation rather than at a flat rate.

Estate administration is separate. Executors later pay legal fees to handle the estate, which averaged $4,136 in Ontario in 2021 for a file including probate ^[1], plus Ontario's Estate Administration Tax of $15 for every $1,000 of estate value above $50,000 ^[5]. On a $240,000 estate, the province's own example works out to $2,850 ^[5].

How much does a notarial will cost in Quebec?

Quebec recognizes three forms of will: notarial, holograph and made in the presence of witnesses ^[11]. A notarial will is drawn up by a notary and signed in front of the notary and a witness (two witnesses in certain cases) ^[12]. The notary keeps the original, it is entered in the Chambre des notaires du Québec's register of testamentary dispositions, and it does not need to be probated ^{[11] [12]}.

Éducaloi, a Quebec legal information organization, says notarial wills typically cost several hundred dollars in professional fees ^[12]. By contrast, holograph wills and wills made before witnesses must be probated after death, and Éducaloi notes probate costs can exceed $1,500 ^[12]. Notaries set their own fees, so request a quote.

Are online wills legal in Canada?

An online service is a drafting tool. The will it produces is valid only if you sign and witness it according to your province's law. In Ontario, the Succession Law Reform Act says its court-validation power is subject to the Electronic Commerce Act, which means a purely electronic will is not accepted ^[3]. You print the will and sign it on paper. British Columbia is different: its Wills, Estates and Succession Act allows electronic wills and electronic signatures ^[7].

Online wills can work well for people with straightforward estates. Their limits show up when your situation needs judgment rather than a template, as described below.

How do you sign a will so it is valid in Ontario?

Under Ontario's Succession Law Reform Act [3]:

• It must be in writing. A will is valid only when it is in writing.
• Signature at the end. You (or someone signing at your direction and in your presence) must sign at the end of the will. The Act is flexible about exactly where the signature sits, as long as it is clear you meant it to give effect to the document.
• Two witnesses at the same time. You must make or acknowledge your signature in front of two or more witnesses who are present together, and they must sign in your presence.
• Remote witnessing. Witnesses can attend by live audio-visual technology if at least one of them is a lawyer or paralegal licensed by the Law Society of Ontario, and the signing is contemporaneous.
• Do not use beneficiaries as witnesses. A gift to a witness, or to a witness's spouse, is void unless a court finds there was no undue influence or at least two other qualifying witnesses signed.
• Age. A will made by someone under 18 is generally not valid, with exceptions for people who are or have been married, some members of the Canadian Forces, and sailors at sea.

Other provinces have similar rules with different details. In British Columbia, you can make a will from age 16, and witnesses must be 19 or older ^[7].

Which provinces accept holograph (handwritten) wills?

A holograph will is written entirely in your own handwriting and signed by you, with no witnesses. Ontario accepts them ^[3]. A fill-in-the-blank form with handwriting added is not wholly handwritten, so it does not qualify as a holograph will.

Check the rules in your own province or territory before relying on a handwritten will.

What makes a will invalid?

Common reasons a will fails, or ends up in court, include:

• Signing mistakes. Missing witnesses, witnesses who were not present at the same time, or a typed will with no witnesses at all ^[3].
• A beneficiary as a witness. In Ontario this can void that person's gift ^[3].
• Partly typed holographs. A holograph will has to be wholly in your handwriting ^{[3] [8]}.
• Revocation. In Ontario a will is revoked by a later valid will, a properly signed written revocation, or destroying it with the intention of revoking it ^[3].

Ontario changed two important rules on January 1, 2022. First, marriage no longer automatically revokes a will; the provision that did so was repealed ^[3]. If you marry, your old will stays in force until you change it. Second, the Superior Court of Justice can now order that a document that was not properly signed is valid, if it sets out the deceased's testamentary intentions ^[3]. That power applies when the person died on or after January 1, 2022, and it requires a court application, which adds time and cost for the family.

Separation also matters. Ontario already treated a former spouse as having died before the will-maker after a divorce. Since 2022, the same applies to separated married spouses in defined circumstances, such as living apart for three years before the death or having a valid separation agreement or court order ^[3].

When is a DIY or online will risky?

A template rarely handles these situations well:

• Blended families. Balancing a current spouse and children from an earlier relationship requires careful drafting, and leaving everything to a spouse may unintentionally disinherit stepchildren or your own children.
• Business owners. Shares in a private corporation, partnership interests and buy-sell agreements need to line up with the will.
• Property in more than one province or country. Different rules can apply to land in each place, which can complicate probate.
• A dependant with a disability. In Ontario, a true absolute discretionary trust, often called a Henson trust, is not counted as an asset for Ontario Disability Support Program purposes ^[6]. By contrast, other trusts count toward a combined $100,000 limit, and trust payments above set amounts can be treated as income ^[6]. Getting the wording right protects benefits.
• Minor children. Naming a guardian and setting the age at which children inherit both need clear language.

In these cases, a lawyer's fee is usually small compared with the cost of an estate dispute. Browse wills and estates lawyers or see Ontario wills and estates lawyers.

How do you make a will in Canada, step by step?

1. List your assets and debts. Include real estate, bank and investment accounts, registered plans and life insurance, and note which already have named beneficiaries.
2. Choose your executor. Pick someone organized and willing, plus a backup.
3. Decide who gets what. Think about specific gifts, the residue of your estate, and what happens if a beneficiary dies before you.
4. Name guardians for minor children and decide whether their share should be held in trust.
5. Choose your method. Handwritten, online service, notary in Quebec, or a lawyer. Complex situations point to a lawyer.
6. Sign correctly. Follow your province's witnessing rules exactly, and do not use beneficiaries or their spouses as witnesses ^[3].
7. Make your powers of attorney at the same time so someone can act if you become incapable ^[4].
8. Store it safely and tell your executor where it is. In Quebec, notarial wills and lawyer-prepared wills are entered in professional registries ^[12].
9. Review it after major life events, including marriage, separation, divorce, a birth or a move to another province.

How do you find a wills lawyer and compare fees?

Ask for a flat-fee quote that says whether it covers the will, both powers of attorney, meetings and the signing appointment, and whether HST is included. LawyersList profiles show fee information and free-consultation policies where lawyers have provided them. You can compare wills and estates lawyers in Toronto or Vancouver, and read our broader guide to what a lawyer costs in Canada.