Online Will vs Solicitor vs Will Kit: Which Should You Use?
What is the best way to make a will in the UK?
Making a will online, going to a solicitor, or filling in a will kit at your kitchen table all end in the same place: a paper document signed in front of two witnesses. The differences are cost, speed, how much advice you get, and who does the drafting. This guide compares the three routes honestly, including where each one is genuinely the better choice.
The three routes at a glance
| Route | Typical cost (single will) | Typical time | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online will service | £90 to £200, often plus an annual update subscription | 30 to 60 minutes, plus review wait if offered | People who want a guided form and some hand-holding |
| Solicitor | £150 to £500 or more; London firms higher | One to three weeks including appointments | Complex estates, trusts, business assets, blended families |
| DIY will kit | £10 to £40 one-off, no subscription | About an hour, entirely at your own pace | Straightforward estates and clear wishes |
Route 1: online will services
Online will services walk you through a structured questionnaire and generate the will from your answers. The better ones have a professional check the draft before it is issued, and they are a legitimate, popular middle ground: cheaper than a solicitor, more guided than a kit. Two things to check before you pay. First, the subscription model: several services charge a yearly fee for “unlimited updates”, which suits people whose circumstances change often but quietly adds up for everyone else. Second, what happens to your document if you stop paying or the service closes; you should always hold a signed paper original yourself.
One legal point matters more than any feature list: the online part is only the drafting. Whatever the service produces must be printed and signed in wet ink before two witnesses, exactly like any other will. Our guide to whether online wills are legally valid covers the execution rules in detail.
Route 2: a solicitor
A solicitor is the only route that gives you regulated legal advice, and for some situations that advice is the product: trusts for children from a previous relationship, business or agricultural property, assets overseas, a dependant you intend to exclude, or any doubt about capacity. A solicitor also carries professional indemnity insurance, so if negligent drafting causes loss there is recourse. The trade-offs are price and time, and neither is a reason to avoid a solicitor when the complexity is real. Our guide on when you genuinely need a solicitor lists the trigger situations, and we repeat them on every product page we sell.
Route 3: a DIY will kit
A will kit gives you the professionally drafted template plus plain-English guidance, and you do the completing. It is the cheapest route, there is no account or subscription, and you keep an editable document. The honest caveat: nobody checks your work, so the kit must be good enough that correct completion and correct signing are hard to get wrong. That means all the required clauses present, step-by-step instructions, and clear witnessing guidance, the test we set out in our will template checklist.
WillSafe's last will and testament template (£39.99) takes this route: every required clause, a visual signing ceremony guide, a pre-completion checklist, and an editable Word document plus typeset PDF for England and Wales. Couples can use the mirror wills template kit for two matching wills.
How to choose between them
- ✓Straightforward estate, clear wishes, comfortable following instructions: a will kit does the job at the lowest cost.
- ✓Straightforward estate but you want a guided form or a review step: an online will service is a reasonable middle ground; check the subscription terms first.
- ✓Trusts, business assets, foreign property, blended family, excluded dependants, capacity concerns: see a solicitor. No template or web form should talk you out of advice you actually need.
- ✓Not sure which side of the line you fall: our free do I need a will quiz and the full will cost guide help you decide before spending anything.
Frequently asked questions
Is an online will legal in the UK?+
Yes, provided it ends up as a properly executed paper document. Whether a will is drafted by an online service, a solicitor or from a template makes no difference to validity. Under section 9 of the Wills Act 1837 the will must be in writing, signed in wet ink by the testator in the presence of two independent adult witnesses, who each sign in the testator's presence. A will that only exists on screen, or is signed electronically, is not valid in England and Wales.
How much does an online will cost in the UK?+
Most online will-writing services charge between £90 and £200 for a single will, and many charge an optional annual subscription for unlimited updates. A DIY will kit is typically £10 to £40 as a one-off. A high-street solicitor usually charges £150 to £500 or more for a single will, with London firms towards the top of that range.
What is the difference between an online will service and a will kit?+
An online will service asks you questions in a web form and generates the will for you, sometimes with a human review step. A will kit gives you the template itself plus guidance, and you complete it in your own words at your own pace. The service route offers more hand-holding; the kit route costs less, involves no account or subscription, and leaves you holding an editable document you can reuse when circumstances change.
When should I use a solicitor instead of an online will or will kit?+
Use a solicitor when the estate or family situation is genuinely complex: trusts, business or agricultural assets, foreign property, a blended family where you want to balance competing claims, concerns about capacity or undue influence, or deliberately excluding someone who could claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. In those cases professional advice is worth every penny.
Do online wills need witnesses?+
Yes. Every will made in England and Wales needs two witnesses, however it was drafted. The witnesses must be adults, present together when you sign, and neither they nor their spouses or civil partners may be beneficiaries. A beneficiary who witnesses forfeits their gift under section 15 of the Wills Act 1837.
Decided the kit route fits?
The WillSafe Single Will Kit includes a complete will template for England and Wales, plain-English instructions, a visual witnessing guide and an editable Word document. Download in under a minute.
Related guides
Self-help information only. WillSafe UK is operated by Richard Wood, trading as WillSafe. We are not solicitors and do not provide legal advice. This guide covers England & Wales only. For complex estates, blended families, business assets, or foreign property, consult a qualified solicitor. See our full disclaimer.