Home › Illinois Estate Planning › Living Trust Cost
A living trust in Illinois costs $1,500 – $4,000 attorney-drafted, $2,500 – $6,000 for a couple’s full plan, or $100–$600 online. Illinois is also one of 13 jurisdictions with its own estate tax, and its exemption is $4 million — against a federal exemption of $15 million. Estates that owe the IRS nothing can still owe Illinois.
With a $4 million state exemption, planning here starts earlier than most states.
If your assets are in Illinois only, with no blended family and no estate-tax exposure, an online service like Trust & Will produces a complete Illinois trust in about an hour.
Disclosure: we earn a commission if you buy through the Trust & Will links here, at no extra cost to you. Complex situations belong with an attorney and we say so below.
Illinois Living Trust Cost (2026)
| What You’re Paying For | Illinois Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Online trust service | $100 – $600 | Illinois-specific documents; funding is on you |
| Simple will (attorney) | $300 – $1,000 | Does not avoid probate |
| Living trust, attorney-drafted | $1,500 – $4,000 | Individual, straightforward assets |
| Full estate plan (couple) | $2,500 – $6,000 | Trust + will + POA + directive |
| Complex / tax planning | $3,500 – $10,000+ | Irrevocable, Medicaid, business, estate tax |
| Deed transfer into trust | $150 – $400 per property | Every Illinois property needs one |
Typical flat fees reported by Illinois attorneys and legal directories, reviewed quarterly. A guide, not a quote.
What Probate Actually Costs in Illinois
- Avoids probate: — assets in the trust pass directly to beneficiaries without court involvement
- Avoids ancillary probate: — critical if you own property in other states (Indiana, Wisconsin, Florida)
- Court system: Circuit Court, Probate Division (Cook County has a dedicated Probate Division)
- Administration: Independent (standard) or supervised (rare) — 755 ILCS 5/28-1
- Small estate affidavit: Personal property ≤$150,000 (effective Aug 2025) — 755 ILCS 5/25-1
- Creditor claims period: 6 months from first publication
- Typical timeline: 6-12 months (independent admin); complex estates 2+ years
- Attorney fees: No statutory schedule — reasonable compensation standard; typically $3,000-$7,000 for simple estates
- Tenancy by the entirety: Available for married couples’ homestead property only (765 ILCS 1005/1c)
- Homestead exemption: $50,000 individual / $100,000 co-owned (effective Jan 1, 2026)
| Item | Illinois |
|---|---|
| $4,000,000 | $0 — — |
| $4,100,000 | ~$28,600 $28,600 on $100K excess ~28.6% |
| $4,250,000 | ~$71,400 $71,400 on $250K excess ~28.6% |
| $4,500,000 | ~$120,000 $120,000 on $500K excess ~24.0% |
| $5,000,000 | ~$286,000 $286,000 on $1M excess ~28.6% |
| $6,000,000 | ~$471,000 $471,000 on $2M excess ~23.6% |
| $8,000,000 | ~$680,000 $680,000 on $4M excess ~17.0% |
| $10,000,000 | ~$1,020,000 $1,020,000 on $6M excess ~17.0% |
| Speed | Faster — 6 to 12 months typical Slower — often 12-24+ months |
| Simple will | $300 – $1,000 Single person, straightforward assets |
| Revocable living trust (married couple) | $2,500 – $6,000 Married couple, joint or separate trusts |
| Full estate plan package (trust + will + POA + healthcare directive) | $2,500 – $7,000 Most families — this is what you actually need |
Full Illinois probate rules and thresholds: our Illinois estate planning guide.
What each price point buys in Illinois
- $100–$600 (online): A valid Illinois trust document, pour-over will, and directives. You do the funding — every Illinois deed transfer, every account retitling.
- $1,500 – $4,000 (attorney, individual): Custom drafting, review of how your assets are titled, and usually one deed included. Confirm that last part before you sign.
- $2,500 – $6,000 (attorney, couple): Adds marital property planning, plus credit shelter planning against the $4 million state exemption.
Does your estate even need probate in Illinois?
Before paying for anything, check whether Illinois would require full probate at all. The state’s simplified route: Personal property ≤$150,000 (effective Aug 2025) — 755 ILCS 5/25-1 Estates that fit under it can often transfer by affidavit or summary procedure, with no personal representative and no attorney — which makes a trust a convenience decision rather than a cost-avoidance one. Estates above it are where the numbers above start to bite.
Trust vs. probate in Illinois
| With a Trust | Without | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Lower — less attorney and court time | Higher — more filings, hearings, accountings |
| Timeline | Weeks to a few months | 6-12 months (independent admin); complex estates 2+ years |
| Privacy | Private | Public court record |
Online or Illinois Attorney?
| Situation | Route |
|---|---|
| Assets only in Illinois, standard estate | Online service |
| Estate near Illinois’s $4 million state exemption | Attorney |
| Property in 2+ states, blended family, business | Attorney |
The dividing line is funding, not drafting. Online documents are valid in Illinois; what they don’t do is retitle your assets. See funding your trust.
Other Illinois rules that affect the plan
- Does NOT reduce Illinois estate tax: — trust assets are still part of your taxable estate
- Can reduce estate tax: — assets transferred irrevocably are removed from the taxable estate (critical with the $4M cliff)
- Credit shelter trust: — preserves the first spouse’s $4M Illinois exemption (essential because IL has no portability)
- ILIT: — keeps life insurance proceeds outside the estate entirely (life insurance counts toward the $4M threshold)
- Medicaid Asset Protection Trust: — can protect assets from Illinois Medicaid recovery if established 5+ years before applying
- Estate tax: $4M exemption (cliff effect), graduated rates up to 16%
- No portability: at the state level
- Filing: Form 700 with IL Attorney General, due 9 months after death
- Common law: (separate property) state
- TOD deeds: Available for residential real property (755 ILCS 27/)
- Trust income tax: 4.95% + 1.5% replacement tax = 6.45%
- Personal property: $150,000 or less (increased from $100,000 effective August 15, 2025)
Recent Illinois Changes Worth Knowing
- August 2025 — Small Estate Affidavit Threshold Increased: Personal property limit raised from $100,000 to $150,000 (755 ILCS 5/25-1). More families can now transfer personal property without opening a probate estate.
- January 2026 — Homestead Exemption Tripled (Public Act 104-120): The creditor homestead exemption increased from $15,000 to $50,000 per individual ($100,000 co-owned). The most significant increase in decades.
- Pending — HB 1457: Would raise the estate tax exemption from $4 million to $12,060,000, aligning with the former federal level. Status: introduced in the 104th General Assembly.
- Pending — HB 2368: Would replace the cliff-effect credit method with a straightforward graduated rate structure (5%/10%/16%/22%) and true $4M deduction. Would eliminate the cliff effect entirely. Status: introduced in the 104th General Assembly.
- Federal — One Big Beautiful Bill Act (July 2025): The federal estate tax exemption is now permanently set at $15 million per individual. Illinois remains at $4 million. The gap continues to grow — making state-level planning more important than ever.
Living trust costs in nearby states
Attorney pricing and probate rules shift at the state line — compare Illinois with Wisconsin, Indiana, Missouri, Iowa.
When to Hire An Illinois Attorney
Online stops being the right answer when the estate has moving parts: property in more than one state, a blended family, a business, or anyone you intend to exclude.
- Get two or three flat-fee quotes. Identical work varies by $1,000+ inside one metro.
- Ask what’s included. Deed transfers run $150–$400 each and are often quoted separately.
- Don’t buy complexity you don’t have.
Three ways to pay less in Illinois
- Price the state tax exposure first. With a $4 million Illinois exemption, an estate anywhere near that line should be quoted for credit shelter planning, not a basic trust — the cheap package solves the wrong problem.
- Count the deeds before comparing prices. At $150–$400 apiece, with properties in multiple counties each needing their own recorded transfer, a quote including one deed can beat a cheaper quote including none.
- Check the simplified threshold first. Personal property ≤$150,000 (effective Aug 2025) — 755 ILCS 5/25-1 If your estate clears that, you may be buying convenience rather than savings.
Official sources: illinoisattorneygeneral.gov · ilga.gov · ilga.gov · ilga.gov
FAQ
How much does a living trust cost in Illinois?
$1,500 – $4,000 attorney-drafted, $2,500 – $6,000 for a couple’s full estate plan, or $100 to $600 through an online service. Add $150 to $400 per property for the deed transfers that fund it.
Does a living trust avoid Illinois estate tax?
No. A revocable trust is tax-neutral; it avoids probate, not the Illinois estate tax. With a $4 million exemption, reducing that liability takes specific planning such as a credit shelter trust or an ILIT.
Can I make my own living trust in Illinois?
Yes — online services produce valid Illinois documents. The risk is funding: a trust that doesn’t hold title to your home doesn’t avoid probate for it.
Can a small estate skip probate in Illinois?
Often, yes. Illinois’s simplified threshold: Personal property ≤$150,000 (effective Aug 2025) — 755 ILCS 5/25-1 Estates under it may transfer without full administration, which changes whether a trust is worth paying for.
How long does probate take in Illinois?
6-12 months (independent admin); complex estates 2+ years A funded trust typically distributes in weeks to a few months instead, and without the public court file.
If the online route fits your situation, Trust & Will’s trust plan covers Illinois and takes about an hour.
More: Living trust costs nationwide · Illinois estate planning guide · Funding your trust
Last updated: August 2026. Educational information, not legal advice or a quote.