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Solicitor or YouCanDoProbate? Here’s how to decide honestly
What a solicitor offers, where the costs really sit, and how YouCanDoProbate gives you the same technical accuracy and support for one fair fixed price of £499 including VAT.
Solicitors aren’t the wrong choice. For complex estates, they may be exactly right.
Let’s be honest from the start. For genuinely complex estates (trusts, disputes, unusual tax positions, overseas assets, contested Wills) professional legal advice is appropriate. And we’ll always say so when that applies. But for most estates, hiring a solicitor means paying a lot for a process that’s more administrative than legal.
What solicitors do well
A good solicitor takes the work off your hands
A good probate solicitor will handle all the technical work, completing forms, running estate calculations, and applying the right exemptions and tax rules. They take the task off your hands once you’ve provided the information. And they can advise on genuinely complex matters like trusts, disputes, unusual tax positions, or foreign assets.
If your estate falls into that complex category, a solicitor may genuinely be the right choice.
Where solicitors cost more than most people need
For most estates, you’re paying for more than you actually need
Here’s the catch. For the majority of estates, probate isn’t a legal puzzle. It’s an administrative one. Yet solicitors charge legal-level fees regardless. Here’s what most people pay:
High-street solicitors
Typically £1,500 to £5,000 or more for a straightforward estate
Percentage-based fees
1 to 3 percent of the estate value is common. On a £300,000 estate, that’s £3,000 to £9,000
Banks
Often charge 2 to 4 percent of the estate value, among the most expensive options available
Unexpected extras
Many firms add hourly charges on top of flat fees
And here’s something most people don’t realise until they’re already into the process. You still have to do the legwork yourself. A solicitor doesn’t find the bank statements, the property valuations, the gift records, or the beneficiary details. You collect all of that and then hand it over.
“Having been quoted over £1,000 from a solicitor, the cost of using YouCanDoProbate was such a saving.”
Mrs Sally Baxter · Verified Trustpilot
The insight that changes everything
The real question isn’t who collects the details
Good to know
Whether you use a solicitor or do it yourself, you still have to gather the same information about the estate. That part is always yours to do.
One of our customers put it perfectly: “You have to supply a solicitor with the information anyway, so why not use YouCanDoProbate for a fraction of the cost and do it yourself?” Mrs L Whitfield, Verified Trustpilot.
So the real question isn’t who collects the details. It’s who does the difficult technical part once the details are in.
With YouCanDoProbate, that’s us. You enter the same information you’d give a solicitor. The platform applies the exemptions, calculates the estate and any inheritance tax, identifies the right forms, and completes them all. Ready to print, sign, and post.
“You have to supply a solicitor with the information anyway, so why not use YouCanDoProbate for a fraction of the cost and do it yourself?”
Mrs L Whitfield · Verified Trustpilot
Side-by-side comparison
YouCanDoProbate vs a solicitor, the honest comparison
YouCanDoProbate
Solicitor
Typical cost
£499 fixed
£1,500 to £30,000+
Percentage of estate taken
Never
Sometimes
You gather the estate information
Forms completed for you
Estate calculations handled
Inheritance tax and exemptions
You act as executor
You stay in control of timing
Typical timeline
Weeks
6 to 18 months
Support when you need it
Unlimited, included
Billed by the hour
Estate administration service
Not included
Available, extra cost
You get all the strengths of a solicitor’s technical service, without the high fees and without a share of the estate.
When to choose a solicitor instead
We’d rather you make the right decision than just choose us
A solicitor may genuinely be the better choice if the estate involves:
Assets held in trust
A contested Will or beneficiary dispute
Business Asset Relief or Agricultural Relief claims
Overseas assets or an unclear domicile position
National Heritage assets
Significant debts or creditor claims against the estate
If any of these apply, or you’re simply not sure, talk to our team first. We’ll give you honest guidance on whether the platform is right for you. No obligation at all.
The same technical work. A fraction of the cost.
For most estates, you don’t have to pay high solicitor fees to get probate done correctly. You gather the same information either way. So let YouCanDoProbate do the difficult technical part, for one fair fixed price.
