Rated 4.9 Excellent on Trustpilot · ICAEW Accredited
We’ve made probate something you can do yourself
YouCanDoProbate was built by people who saw how stressful and overpriced probate had become, and decided there had to be a better way. Today, that better way helps ordinary people apply for probate properly, at their own pace, without high solicitor fees.
Built by a Chartered Accountant and software developer
ICAEW accredited
Unlimited UK-based expert support
Rated 4.9 Excellent on Trustpilot
Why we exist
We didn’t think that was fair
Losing someone is hard enough without a confusing, costly process making it harder. But for most people, that’s exactly what applying for probate has meant. Thousands of pounds to a solicitor, or stressful months trying to make sense of it alone. The anxiety is the same either way. The uncertainty never quite goes away.
We didn’t think that was fair.
Probate is, at heart, an administrative task. Gathering information about an estate, completing the right forms correctly, and submitting them to the right place. Nothing about that should cost thousands of pounds. And nothing about it should leave ordinary people lost and stressed at one of the hardest times in their lives.
So we built a third option. One that gives you the accuracy and support of a professional, for one fair fixed price, without leaving you to figure it all out yourself.
That belief still drives everything we do.
Our story
A personal experience that became a better platform
YouCanDoProbate began with a personal experience.
When our co-founder Jonathan Friedman, a Chartered Accountant and software developer, was appointed executor of his father’s Will, he expected it to be straightforward. It wasn’t. Even with a financial background, he was struck by how complicated, opaque, and unnecessarily stressful the whole process turned out to be.
Solicitors and banks charged high fees, sometimes a share of the estate on top. Doing it alone meant wrestling with calculations, tax rules, and forms with no real guidance. Online forums were full of people describing the same frustration. Stressful months of paperwork, or thousands of pounds paid out, for what is essentially an administrative job.
Jonathan saw the gap. As an accountant, he understood that probate really is a matter of gathering information and completing the right forms. As a developer, he knew it could be turned into something genuinely simple and affordable.
“Solicitors and banks have charged too much, for too little, for too long.”
Jonathan Friedman, co-founder
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Building it together
Two people who cared about getting it right
To turn the idea into a reality, Jonathan partnered with James Zonko, an experienced designer and app developer. Where Jonathan focused on financial and legal accuracy, James focused on the human side. How it feels to use the platform when you’re grieving and out of your depth.
That partnership shaped everything. The result is a clear, step-by-step walkthrough that guides you by the hand, gathers the right details, and makes sure nothing is missed. No legal knowledge required.
“Applying for probate can seem daunting. We’ve simplified everything, untied the red tape, and created a straightforward walkthrough. Following the steps means you do everything right and don’t miss anything.”
James Zonko, co-founder
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Our mission
Probate done properly, without the professional bill
Our aim is simple. To help you apply for probate yourself, at a time and pace that suits you, in the easiest way possible, and at a price that’s genuinely fair.
You enter the same details you’d give a solicitor. The platform applies the exemptions, calculates the estate and any inheritance tax, chooses the right forms, and completes them for you. Ready to print, sign, and post. You’re supported throughout by friendly, UK-based experts.
It’s a proven way for ordinary people to handle probate themselves. Done properly, with support, without an expensive professional bill.
What makes us different
Four things that set us apart
Built by an accountant, not a marketing team
The platform is grounded in real financial and probate expertise. The difficult parts (the calculations, the exemptions, the tax) are handled correctly because the person who built it is a Chartered Accountant who knows exactly what correctly means.
One fair fixed price
£499 including VAT. No hidden extras. No percentage of the estate. The only additional cost is the official Probate Registry fee, paid directly to HMCTS. And that’s the same fee you’d pay regardless of which route you chose.
Real human support, included as standard
Unlimited help by phone, email, live chat, and support ticket from our UK-based team. Not a chatbot. Not an overseas call centre. Real people who understand probate, available whenever you need them.
Trusted and independently accredited
Accredited for compliance by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, and rated 4.9 Excellent on Trustpilot. Our credibility is independently verified, not self-declared.
In their words
The people who matter most tell the story best
Beat a £1,000 quote
“Having been quoted over £1,000 from a solicitor, the cost of using YouCanDoProbate was such a saving. As an 80 year old with very basic IT skills, I found the process straightforward and easy to understand.”
Mrs Sally Baxter
Verified Trustpilot review
Help when it mattered
“I couldn’t have completed this application without their help. You have to supply a solicitor with the same information anyway, so why not use YouCanDoProbate for a fraction of the cost and do it yourself?”
Mrs L Whitfield
Verified Trustpilot review
Guided every step
“I can’t thank my advisor enough for all his patience and help. He guided me every step of the way, and I’m thrilled with this excellent service.”
Rona Lamont
Verified Trustpilot review
A better way is here
There’s now a realistic way to apply for probate without a solicitor, and without the hardship of doing it entirely alone. You don’t have to pay high solicitor fees, and you don’t have to face probate alone, to get it right.
