A last will and testament is a legal document that explains who should receive your property, who will manage your estate, and how your final wishes should be carried out after your death. Without a will, state law determines how your assets are distributed.

When NCOA last looked at estate planning data in 2025, we found that only 24% of American adults had a will, a number that has been steadily declining since 2022. This is a significant gap, given that a will or trust is one of the most important steps you can take to protect your assets and your loved ones after you die.

This article covers what a last will and testament is and why it may be simpler to make than you think.

What is a last will and testament?

Your last will and testament, also called your will, is a legal document that details your wishes after death. Those wishes can range from who inherits your pet to who takes over your mortgage or the guardianship of your children.

Last Will and Testament at a Glance

• Protects your final wishes
• Names who inherits your assets
• Lets you choose an executor
• Can name guardians for minor children
• Does not avoid probate
• Can be updated as your life changes

Estate planning is something that can be done at any stage of life. If you're 18 or older and own anything—a car, a collection of keepsakes, a house—having a will helps ensure those belongings go where you intend. Your estate generally goes through probate court when you die, and a lack of a will can complicate that. Probate is the process of distributing a deceased person's assets to new owners. This process involves the clerk of court and your executor, the person you appoint to carry out your will.

If you die unexpectedly, having a will in place can ease the burden on your family members or beneficiaries. Without a will, your survivors may not know your funeral wishes. And if you set aside money to cover your own end-of-life expenses, that money may never reach your family if it isn't documented in your will.

Having a last will and testament does not help your assets avoid probate court—only trusts can do that. But having a will helps ensure that what you leave to your beneficiaries actually reaches them.

Purpose of a last will and testament

The purpose of a last will and testament is to document your wishes and make them legally enforceable. Your will is how your heirs, beneficiaries, and local probate courts know what you wanted to happen to your assets and who you wanted to receive them. You can think of a will as a legally binding record of your final instructions.

What's the difference between a living will and a trust?

A living will is closer to a medical power of attorney and advance health care directive (AHCD) than it is to a last will and testament. A will outlines your wishes after death, for your executor. A living will outlines for medical staff the emergency care you want if or when you can't speak for yourself.

Some topics a living will may cover that a last will and testament does not:

• Feeding tubes
• CPR
• Ventilators
• Artificial hydration
• Pacemakers

Will vs trust

Trusts help your assets avoid probate when you die and give you more detailed control over how your money is distributed after your death. In a trust, assets pass directly to your beneficiaries without being held up in probate court. A trust can be a useful option at many income levels. But they are particularly common for people with more complex or substantial assets.

Beyond probate, the other main difference between trusts and wills is that trusts are managed by a trustee. You, the grantor, appoint a successor trustee to manage your trust—a role that begins while you are still alive. A trust gives you a level of control over your assets that a will does not.

For example: If you are reviewing your estate plans and your adult child is going through a divorce, you might want to delay their inheritance until the divorce is settled. A trust and your successor trustee can ensure the inheritance is distributed when you choose, rather than whenever probate court deems appropriate.

Revocable trusts are more flexible, as they can be modified during your lifetime. Irrevocable trusts involve more legal complexity to change or dissolve. Some online will makers like GoodTrust let you build a trust or a will using guided software. Not sure which estate planning option is best for you? Our guide on choosing between wills and trusts can help you decide.

Other types of wills

Despite similar-sounding names, the following documents are not types of wills and are not replacements for your last will and testament:

• Living will: An advance health care directive describing your medical wishes in an emergency.
• Pour-over will: A complement to a living trust that transfers any assets not already included in your trust into it after you die.² A pour-over will is like a dustpan that sweeps remaining assets into your trust. This means you need a trust in order to have a pour-over will. Unlike trusts, pour-over wills are subject to probate.

When we surveyed older adults about why they don’t have a last will and testament, 28% of them said “I keep putting it off.”¹ But 11.6% of respondents just didn’t know where to start. 

96% of our survey respondents who built wills online felt either “very” or “somewhat confident
the online will-making software reflected their wishes.¹

How to make a will

You can make a will online or by printing out your state's will template and filling it out. When we asked respondents without a will how they planned to start estate planning, 22% said they would consult an estate planning attorney.¹ Another 12.4% said they would "try to do it on my own." Online will makers support both approaches.

With the best online will makers, guided software helps you complete the proper will and testament form for your state. Once finished, you can take it to an estate attorney for review. After that, you—and usually two witnesses who are not named in the will—get the will notarized.

Steps to make a will

• Gather your documents, including the deeds and titles to any property you own.
• Collect the contact information and addresses of your executor and intended beneficiaries.
• Sit down with your will, either a printed version or an online will maker.
• Fill out the fields. Even printed templates include the required language so you are not starting from scratch.

Get as far as you can before involving an attorney. Some people can complete their will without a lawyer, using an attorney for review only. It all depends on your assets and the state you live in. When we surveyed people who used online will makers, 60% said they were "very confident" that the documents reflected their wishes.¹ Most online will makers also offer attorney access for an additional fee, so you may not need a separate appointment.

What’s included in a will?

Standard wills have about 18 parts, many of which can be completed in just a few words. The fewer assets and dependents you have, the more straightforward the process. Wills vary by state, but here is an overview of what you can expect:

• Family identification: Your spouse's and children's names, or a declaration that you have no spouse or children, so your executor does not need to seek them out. This is also where you name guardians for any minor children.
• Exclusion: Anyone you wish to leave out of the will.
• Expenses and taxes: This section addresses funeral expenses and debts. Some states fill this part out for you, though you name the personal representative, or the person who will handle paying your debts. The title varies by state.
• Special bequests: This is where you list smaller belongings you want to leave to specific people, a china set, a piece of jewelry, a meaningful book. Include the location of these items.
• Personal property: A catch-all section for assets not named in special bequests. List large assets and their locations here.
• Digital assets: Describe how you want your social media accounts handled. Note whether you want your death announced, your accounts converted into memorial pages, deleted, or left as-is. Include relevant passwords and log-in information.
• Residual estate: This section details how the proceeds of your life insurance policies and property sales will be distributed among your beneficiaries. List each beneficiary and their relationship to you. Beneficiaries can include friends and others outside your immediate family. Proceeds can be divided however you choose, as long as the total equals 100%.
• Predecease: Some states include a section that addresses what happens if a beneficiary dies before you, typically directing that assets be distributed among surviving beneficiaries.
• Nomination of personal representative: A section describing what your personal representative, or executor, is authorized to do. You provide their name, relationship to you, and address. You may also name a backup executor.
• Pet care directives: Some wills include a section for pets that survive you. List the name and address of the intended caretaker here.
• Special wishes: This section covers requests such as organ or tissue donation, funeral preferences, or any other specific final wishes.
• Signatures: Pages for your signature, your witnesses' signatures, and the notary's signature and seal.

What's required to make a will?

There is no income threshold to make a will. If you own something you wish to pass on, you can make a will. Having documentation of that ownership nearby—deeds, titles, etc.—is helpful as you work through the process.

If you are mentioning your home in your will, include the deed or its location. Include the titles of any vehicles, boats, or other property you plan to list. While your loved ones may find it helpful to know your mortgage lender and utility companies, bill payment instructions are not included in your will.

To make a will, you need:

• Someone to name as executor
• A list of the assets you want included in the will
• The names and contact information of your intended beneficiaries, both people and organizations
• Deeds and titles for owned property
• Access to a printer (available at libraries and print shops)
• An attorney, for review
• A notary
• The proper number of witnesses for your state, usually two

What a will doesn’t do

Wills cover things you own, so you cannot leave anything you rent to someone else. You also cannot leave a car, condo, or house to someone if it is not paid off. If you have outstanding debts, your will should explain how and where your executor can address them. Debts are paid from your estate first, and whatever remains is what your executor distributes to your beneficiaries.

A will does not prevent your assets from going through probate after you die. But it does ensure they come out of probate and go to the people you named. Trusts are the estate planning documents that allow assets to bypass probate court.

Only 34% of our survey respondents felt they needed help from a lawyer when making their will online.¹

A will is considered legally valid once it has been reviewed by an attorney and signed by a notary and the required witnesses. Handwritten wishes that lack those signatures are not legally enforceable. Wills that use vague or unclear language may also not be valid.

The same applies to changes written in the margins of an existing will. If you wish to update your estate plans, you will need to either redraw them entirely—with new attorney, notary, and witness signatures—or have an official addendum prepared, witnessed, notarized, and stored with the original will.

What are the consequences of not having a will?

The consequences of dying without a will fall on your surviving loved ones. When you die without a will, it is called "dying intestate." Intestate succession laws determine what happens to your assets if you did not leave a will or trust behind to document your wishes.²

You may have fully intended to leave certain assets to certain people, but if those wishes are not written and notarized in a will, they are not legally enforceable. Probate court will handle the distribution. Depending on the laws in your state, your loved ones may never receive what you intended for them.

Extreme examples of the fallout of not having a will include:

• Your children may be assigned to a court-appointed guardian. In cases where the other parent is unreachable or has died, the court will appoint a guardian for your surviving children. Someone you verbally designated—a godparent, for example—may be able to petition the court to become the legal guardian. But if that person is not named in your will, a separate legal process will be required, particularly if the court-appointed guardian contests it.
• Your family may pay your funeral expenses out of pocket. Wills go through probate, which means any funds you set aside for end-of-life expenses may not be accessible for six months or more. Once probate concludes and your estate is distributed, your family will be reimbursed. But without a will, that reimbursement may never come.
• Your home may become “heirs’ property,” putting generational wealth at risk. If you intended for a specific person to inherit your home but did not document that in a will, probate court may classify the property as heirs' property. This is a difficult and often contentious situation to reverse. For Black families especially, homes labeled as heirs' property have historically contributed to significant losses of generational wealth.³

How much does a will cost?

Because many states make their will templates available online at no cost, the primary expenses involved in making a will are printing, attorney review, and notarization. In many cases, an attorney's office will also have a notary on staff, so you may not need to travel far for either service. Independent notary offices are also available, and notaries can be found at many FedEx and UPS locations.

Online will makers streamline the process and some include attorney review for an additional fee. Prices vary, but the online will makers we tested range from $39–$200. Some charge a monthly fee; others charge a flat annual rate. Add-ons such as additional forms, attorney access, or digital document storage can increase the cost. Attorney access through the online will makers we reviewed ran up to $300 extra.

Can I write my own will?

Yes, you can write your own will. That is exactly what online will makers are designed for. Guided estate planning software, like the providers we tested for our best online will makers review, walks you through a form specific to your state. Some of our estate planning testers completed their wills in as little as 21 minutes.

When we surveyed people who used online will makers, 58% said they never felt they needed help from a lawyer at any point in the process.¹ "It was so easy," said one respondent. "You just read everything and take it step by step. There is a fee, but it's not like paying an attorney. And it's all legal." Another respondent described the process as "simple and much less expensive than getting a lawyer."

If you prefer not to use online software, your county court's website likely has a version of your state's will and testament template available to download and print. Fill it out and obtain the required signatures. Note that many online will makers are not available in Louisiana due to the state's unique legal framework.

It is helpful to have your deeds, titles, and contact information nearby when you begin. You can also review our estate planning checklist for additional guidance.

Frequently asked questions 

Do you need a lawyer to write a will?
Not necessarily. You can work with an attorney throughout the entire process, or you can use an online will maker to prepare your will and bring in an attorney only at the end for review. Either approach can result in a legally valid document.

How often should you update your will?
You should update your will whenever someone named in it is born or dies, or whenever you gain or lose significant assets. If you move to a new state, you will need to update your will to comply with that state's requirements. Even if nothing changes, it is a good idea to review your will every five years or so.

How to update a will without a lawyer
You cannot fully update a will without some attorney involvement. You can save on costs by using an online will maker to make your updates and only bringing in an attorney at the end for review, rather than paying billable hours for the attorney to draft the document. But your will is not legally valid until an attorney, a notary, and the required witnesses have signed off. The number of witnesses you need may vary by state.

Where to store a will?
Store your will somewhere your loved ones can access it, such as a safe or a safety deposit box. A fireproof safe offers added protection. You should also keep a digital scan of your will, along with signed copies for your executor and any other trusted people you choose.

Can I write my own will and have it notarized?
You can write your own will, but it will not be legally binding until an attorney and the required witnesses (usually two) have signed it. If you happen to be a notary yourself, you cannot notarize your own will.

Photo copyright Gail Niemczyk for NCOA use only

Sources

1. NCOA Estate Planning Survey. 500 respondents. Conducted using Pollfish. Launched March 2026

2. Kagan, J. Understanding Pour-Over Wills: How They Integrate with Trusts. Updated August 30, 2025. Investopedia. Found on the internet at https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/pour-overwill.asp

3. Rothstein, L. The Role of Heirs Properties in Eroding the Wealth of Black Families. Working Economics Blog—Economic Policy Institute. July 6, 2023. Found on the internet at https://www.epi.org/blog/heirs-property/