Estate planning as a couple requires a coordinated approach. Both partners need their own documents, your plans need to work together — especially around child guardianship and who inherits what — and doing both at once is significantly more cost-effective than handling them separately.
We evaluated the top online will services specifically for couples — looking at couples' pricing, how well their interfaces handle joint planning, guardian designation for children, and the quality of both wills working together as an estate plan.
Joint Wills vs. Mirror Wills: What Couples Need to Know
Before choosing a service, understand this important distinction:
Mirror wills are two separate wills — one for each partner — that are identical in structure (you leave everything to your spouse, who leaves everything to you, with the same contingent beneficiaries). Each spouse can update their will independently without affecting the other's. Most estate planning attorneys and online services recommend this approach.
Joint wills are a single document covering both spouses. They're generally discouraged because once one spouse dies, the surviving spouse typically cannot change the will — creating serious problems if circumstances change. Avoid services that only offer joint wills.
All services on our list produce proper mirror wills (or "couples' plans" that are functionally mirror wills). None require a joint will format.
Top Will Services for Couples
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Trust & Will's couples' package is the standout value in estate planning for couples. For $149, both partners get: last will and testament, financial power of attorney, healthcare directive, and HIPAA authorization. That's $74.50 per person — significantly cheaper than buying two individual plans.
The couples' plan is designed for coordinated estate planning: you answer questions together, designate each other as primary beneficiaries, name the same contingent beneficiaries (adult children, charities), and create matching guardian designations for minor children. Everything stays consistent across both documents.
For couples who also want a living trust, Trust & Will's $199 trust package can accommodate both partners in a joint revocable trust — a common and effective structure for married couples.
Get Trust & Will Couples' Plan →Rocket Lawyer's monthly subscription covers an unlimited number of documents — including wills for both partners, powers of attorney, healthcare directives, and any other legal documents you need. If a couple also needs a lease review, employment contract, or business document, one subscription handles everything.
The attorney consultation included in the subscription is particularly valuable for couples with complex situations: blended families, children from prior relationships, business ownership, or significant retirement assets. Being able to ask a real attorney a question before finalizing your documents is worth the subscription premium.
Start Rocket Lawyer Free Trial →Fabric's free will creation is especially relevant for young couples with children who need to designate guardians and get basic estate documents in place quickly. Each partner can create their own will at no cost, and Fabric's interface is specifically designed around parenting scenarios — guardian designations are prominent and well-explained.
The limitation: Fabric doesn't offer a coordinated couples' planning experience the way Trust & Will does. You create two separate wills independently. For the price (free), it's an excellent starting point, but upgrading to Trust & Will when your financial picture becomes more complex is a natural next step.
Get Started with Fabric →LegalZoom doesn't have a dedicated couples' package like Trust & Will, but their document quality and attorney review options make them a strong choice for couples with more complex needs. If one or both partners have children from a prior relationship, own a business, or have significant retirement accounts, LegalZoom's optional attorney review is valuable.
Couples can create two wills on LegalZoom and often find bundle pricing available during checkout. Their living trust package ($279–$599) handles joint revocable trusts for married couples.
Visit LegalZoom →What Couples Should Include in Their Estate Plan
Essential Documents for Both Partners
- Last Will and Testament — Separate will for each partner designating the other as primary beneficiary
- Financial Power of Attorney — Each partner authorizes the other to handle finances if incapacitated
- Healthcare Directive — Each partner's medical treatment preferences
- Healthcare Proxy — Each partner names the other as healthcare decision-maker
- Guardian Designations (if you have minor children) — Critical and often the most important part
Optional but Recommended
- Joint Revocable Living Trust — If you own real estate or have assets over $150,000, a living trust avoids probate for your heirs
- Beneficiary Designation Review — Make sure 401(k)s, IRAs, and life insurance policies name the right beneficiaries
- Letter of Instruction — Non-legal document with practical information for your executor
Special Scenarios for Couples
Blended Families
If either partner has children from a prior relationship, estate planning is significantly more complex. You need to balance providing for your current spouse with protecting the inheritance rights of children from prior relationships. Online services can handle basic scenarios, but complex blended family situations warrant an attorney review at minimum.
Unmarried Couples
Unmarried partners have zero automatic inheritance rights under most state laws. Without a will explicitly naming your partner as a beneficiary, your assets pass to blood relatives — not your partner. This makes estate planning more important for unmarried couples than married ones. Trust & Will and Rocket Lawyer both handle unmarried partner designations without issue.
Community Property States
If you live in Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, or Wisconsin — community property states — your assets are treated differently. Most online services handle community property automatically when you input your state, but it's worth understanding the basics. Our living trust vs will guide covers community property implications.