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Estate planning software you buy once: what you actually own, and for how long

The only true buy-once estate planning software from a major name is Quicken WillMaker & Trust's download version: the Plus plan at $149 includes it, and the software keeps working indefinitely after your year of updates ends. If you would rather work online, LegalZoom's Basic Trust and a Trust & Will plan with the membership declined are also single payments, and both let you keep your documents. Avoid WillMaker's Starter plan if you want the download: it is online only.

By Nora Whitfield, consumer researcher (not an attorney). Published . Based on the providers' published pricing and terms. How we check.

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Quick picks

  • Software you own, family covered: The Plus plan includes the download version, which keeps working indefinitely, and covers up to five of each document for your immediate family. See WillMaker Plus
  • Online, one payment, trust package: Basic Trust is a single purchase with a full document set and nothing renewing. See LegalZoom Basic Trust
  • Online, one payment, downloads kept: Plans are one-time; decline the optional membership and you keep your digital download on the free tier. See Trust & Will plans

Ten or fifteen years ago, estate planning software came in a box. You installed it, made your will, and the program sat on your computer for whenever you needed it again. Most of that market has moved online, to accounts, memberships and yearly fees.

If you want the old model, buy once and keep it, there is still one product that offers it, and a few online services that come close. This page explains what you actually own with each, and for how long. Details come from each company’s own pages, read on the date in the facts table.

What you own, service by service

Product Pay once? What you keep after the first year
Quicken WillMaker & Trust, download version Yes Use indefinitely; legal and technical updates for 1 year
Quicken WillMaker & Trust, online version Yes Make and revise for 1 year; documents viewable 90 days after
LegalZoom Basic Will or Basic Trust Yes Your documents; nothing renews
Trust & Will, membership declined Yes The digital download on the free tier; no online editing
GoodTrust Plan once, then $39/year Downloads need an active subscription
LawDepot single document Yes May be deleted after cancellation; later access may require a fee
Rocket Lawyer No, membership Documents you made stay available in your account, but you cannot make new ones

The one real piece of software: WillMaker’s download version

Quicken WillMaker & Trust is still sold online or as a download. The download version is the closest thing left to boxed software: Use indefinitely; legal and technical updates for 1 year. When the year ends, the program keeps working on your computer, with your documents in it; you simply stop receiving legal and technical updates unless you buy a renewal at $39.99/year for more revisions, optional.

Which plan includes it:

Plan Price Download version?
Starter $109 No
Plus $149 Yes
All Access $219 Yes

Starter is online only, and it also leaves out the financial power of attorney and the trust. For the software you keep, Plus is the plan to buy. It also covers up to five of each document for your immediate family, so a couple pays once.

The limits to know before buying: WillMaker is self-help with no attorney, it cannot be used in Louisiana (Not usable in Louisiana), and its will has built-in design limits, such as no conditional gifts and a rule that Beneficiaries must outlive you by 45 days. Our WillMaker review lists them all.

Online, but still a single payment

If you prefer a guided online process, two services sell plans you pay for once and keep:

LegalZoom Basic Trust at $399 includes the trust, a pour-over will, health care directive, powers of attorney and funding documents, with nothing renewing. The Basic Will at $129 is the will alone. Avoid the Pro and Premium tiers if your goal is no recurring charges; they bundle a renewing attorney plan.

Trust & Will plans are one-time payments, with the $49/year Essentials membership optional at checkout. Decline it and you keep your digital download, but you cannot edit online without it.

Does the “update year” matter?

Less than it sounds. A will you signed is valid under the law as it stood when you signed it, and it stays valid. Legal updates matter only if you are making new documents later. If you need a new will in five years, after a marriage or a move, you can renew for that one year, or make a new will with any service.

What does matter is keeping your files. Download every document in every format offered as soon as it is final, and keep them somewhere you control. That is true of every product on this page, including the ones you “own”.

Which should you buy?

  • You want software on your computer that you control: WillMaker Plus, download version.
  • You want a guided trust package, bought once: LegalZoom Basic Trust.
  • You want a guided plan with a long refund window and kept downloads: Trust & Will, membership declined.
  • You need one document and nothing else: a single document from LawDepot, knowing its terms on refunds and deletion; or FreeWill, which is free. Our WillMaker vs LawDepot page compares the two do-it-yourself options.

Before you buy

  1. Check your state: WillMaker does not cover Louisiana.
  2. Choose the plan with the download if you want software you keep.
  3. Make every document in the first year, while updates are included.
  4. Save copies of every file outside the program too.
  5. Sign properly and store the originals safely.
Quicken WillMaker & Trust: what it publishes
ItemPublished valueChecked
Will, one person $109 Starter plan: wills, health care directives, final arrangements.
Living trust, one person $149 Plus plan: adds the living trust, power of attorney, transfer-on-death deed and the download version.
All Access plan $219 Adds smaller documents and a one-year subscription.
Will, couple No surcharge: up to 5 of each document for immediate family No joint wills: each spouse makes a separate will under the same plan.
Free revisions 1 year from purchase
Ongoing yearly cost $39.99/year for more revisions, optional Documents stay accessible for 90 days after the revision period ends.
State limits Not usable in Louisiana Also not for people whose permanent residence is outside the United States.
Online version access Make and revise for 1 year; documents viewable 90 days after
Download version access Use indefinitely; legal and technical updates for 1 year Plus and All Access only. Data cannot move between the online and download versions.
How documents are finalized Wills witnessed; living trusts and financial powers of attorney notarized Health care directives are witnessed, notarized or both, depending on the state. Every document comes with state-specific signing instructions.
Beneficiary survival period Beneficiaries must outlive you by 45 days Built into every WillMaker will; otherwise the gift goes to the alternate.
Not published before sign-up: A refund policy (none found on willmaker.com; nolo.com blocked automated reading on Nov 15, 2026); What the "1 Yr Subscription" in the All Access plan covers beyond the plan itself.
LegalZoom: what it publishes
ItemPublished valueChecked
Will, one person $129 Basic will: will only, with 30 days of revisions.
Pro will, individual $149 Adds health care and financial documents and 30 days of attorney calls.
Premium will, individual $299 Adds a year of attorney calls and a year of revisions.
Will, couple $229 Basic will.
Pro and Premium will, couple $249 Pro; $399 Premium Same inclusions as the individual tiers.
Living trust, one person $399 Basic trust, includes a pour-over will.
Premium trust, individual $549 Adds a year of attorney calls and a year of revisions.
Living trust, couple $499 Basic trust. Premium trust for a couple is listed separately.
Premium trust, couple $649
Attorney plan renewal (Pro will) $25/month after 30 days Charged automatically to the card on file; cancel online or by phone.
Ongoing yearly cost $199/year attorney plan after year one Premium will and trust only; continues automatically, cancel online or by phone. Basic plans have no renewal on the pricing page.
Refund window 7 days after your estate plan is completed Within 60 days of purchase if the order is not yet completed. Completed means available to download or received in the mail.
Attorney plan refunds Within 30 days, unless you have had a consultation
Personal attorney plan on its own $199/year, or $119 every 6 months Includes attorney review and unlimited revisions of LegalZoom estate planning documents, and family coverage for a spouse and dependent children.
Renewal reminder About a week before billing, "as a courtesy only" The contract says a missed or unsent reminder does not excuse the charge.
How to cancel the attorney plan Online in My Account, or by phone
State limits Says its wills and trusts are accepted in all 50 states
Couple trust One joint living trust with two pour-over wills
Free revisions 30 days on Basic and Pro; 1 year on Premium
Pro will, couple $249
Premium will, couple $399
Deed transfer into the trust $249, plus state filing fees Standard package: title research, deed preparation and filing with the county recorder. Express is $289.
Not published before sign-up: What a revision costs after the free revision period ends, outside the attorney plan.
  • Their own pages disagree: The will page says the Pro will's attorney plan renews at $25/month and is fulfilled through Legal Advantage Plus; the Legal Plan Contract's fee schedule lists Legal Advantage Plus at $14.99 per month. (page A, page B; noted ).
Trust & Will: what it publishes
ItemPublished valueChecked
Will, one person $199 Will plan.
Will, couple $299 Will plan.
Living trust, one person $499 Trust plan, includes a pour-over will.
Living trust, couple $599 Trust plan.
Ongoing yearly cost $49/year Essentials membership, optional: you can choose "No, thanks" at checkout. Auto-renews if you add it.
Attorney support add-on +$299 Shown on both the will and trust plans.
Attorney-drafted plan (complex needs) From $1,499 For special-needs children, estates of $15M+, businesses with 3+ employees or complex blended families.
Pro membership $299/year Only from account settings after checkout. Adds attorney support, an estate tax report and premium support.
Editing your plan after purchase Needs the Essentials membership The free tier keeps the digital download and Plan Strength score; "edit your plan at any time" is an Essentials benefit.
Refund window 30 days from purchase Help-centre "satisfaction guarantee". Part of the price may be withheld if attorney, notary, concierge or deed services were used.
Membership refunds None for an active, paid membership
Attorney add-on refund Full refund within 14 days if no appointment was used
Upgrading a will plan to a trust $300, the difference between plans
Mobile notary with 2 witnesses (Snapdocs) $170 to $210 $170 will plan, one person; $180 couple; $190 trust, one person; $200 joint trust; $210 separate trusts for a couple. Optional partner service.
Deed transfer into the trust (Bundle) $140 per deed, plus recording fees Optional partner service; deed notarization is +$100. Trust & Will says it earns a referral commission.
State limits All 50 states; no trusts in Louisiana Not available in U.S. territories.
Payment plans Available through Klarna
Disputes Mandatory arbitration and a class-action waiver Stated at the top of the terms of service (section 22).
Your plan data and AI Not used to train external AI models Applies to its own AI features; not to third-party AI agents you connect yourself.
Who owns what you enter You keep ownership of your estate plan content
Legal status Not a law firm; does not give legal advice Stated in the footer of every help-centre page. Attorney services come from independent, state-licensed attorneys under a separate agreement.
Not published before sign-up: Whether the Essentials membership is pre-selected at checkout (the help centre only says you can choose "No, thanks"); Whether the +$299 attorney support on the pricing page is a one-time charge (the refund policy calls it an "individual" purchase; the Pro membership with attorney support is $299 a year).
  • Their own pages disagree: The terms of service say all purchases are final and refunds are discretionary, case by case. The help-centre refund policy promises a 30-day satisfaction guarantee and says refund requests inside 30 days are processed automatically. (page A, page B; noted ).

Questions people ask next

Is Quicken WillMaker still sold on CD or as a yearly edition?

It is now sold as one product with three plans, online or as a download, rather than a boxed yearly edition. The download version comes with the Plus and All Access plans.

Can I keep using WillMaker after my year ends?

Yes, with the download version: WillMaker says you can use it indefinitely, with legal and technical updates for one year. The online version is different: you can make and revise documents for a year, and they stay viewable for 90 days after unless you renew.

Do I need legal updates after the first year?

Only if you are making new documents. A will you signed under the law at the time stays valid. If your state changes its rules later and you want to make a new will, buy a renewal that year, or start fresh.

What about LawDepot's single-document price?

LawDepot sells single documents for $7.50 to $119, one-time, but it does not publish the will's own price, and its terms say it has no obligation to refund one-time purchases. It is a template service, not software you keep.

Sources

  1. WillMaker plans, pricing and FAQ
  2. WillMaker legal manual: what the WillMaker will cannot do
  3. LegalZoom living trust page
  4. Trust & Will help centre: membership tiers
  5. LawDepot pricing

This page is general information, not legal advice. Laws differ by state and change; talk to a licensed attorney about your situation.