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Estate planning checklist

Get your estate planning to-do list, in order, with why each step matters.

The checklist needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser. The notes below still explain how to use a checklist like this and which guides cover each step.

Step 1 of 13

Where do you live?

So we can use local rules.

With what you've answered so far. You can come back and answer more.

No account, no names or numbers. Nothing you pick leaves your device.

This tool organizes information and is provided as is. It isn't legal, medical, tax or financial advice. Before you sign or rely on anything, check with a licensed attorney in your state or province. Terms

Why it matters with no spouse or kids

This estate planning checklist is for people with no spouse or kids. Without them, the law still picks someone to inherit and someone to decide for you: a relative you haven't seen in years, a cousin you've never met, or the government. Each step on your list says why it matters when there's no family to fall back on.

How to use your checklist

Answering the questions

Every question is optional. Skip one and the checklist shows the general version of that step. Who inherits and who decides for you are set by your state or province, so pick yours and the checklist uses its rules where we have them.

Start at the top

The first group closes the biggest gaps: who gets what, who settles your estate, and who decides for you if you can't. The rest can wait a few weeks.

Take it to a lawyer or notary

This checklist organizes and explains. It doesn't draft anything. Rules for wills, executors and powers of attorney differ by state and province, so bring the PDF to your first meeting with a lawyer (in Quebec, a notary). The last page has lines for your questions.

Tick it off, then review it once a year

Every PDF prints the date you made it. Look at it again after a move, a death in your circle, or a falling-out, and once a year anyway. Keep the PDF to compare next time.

  • Estate planning with no family: who fills each role when there's no spouse or kids.
  • Making a will when you have no family, and what estate planning costs.
  • No one to be your executor? Friends, professionals and trust companies.
  • Who to leave money to with no family, and who to name as beneficiary if you're single.
  • What happens if you die without a will and no family, and dying without a will in Canada.
  • Power of attorney with no family, and a health care proxy with no family.

Other free tools

  • Next of kin organizer: where your papers, accounts, keys and pets are, for your executor.
  • Final wishes planner: your wishes on one sheet for the person who carries them out.
  • Emergency contact card: a wallet card and fridge sheet that say who to call.
  • Digital legacy contact walkthrough: name who can reach your Apple, Google and Facebook accounts after you die.

This checklist is general information, not legal advice.