Key Takeaways:
• 71% of clients prefer flat fees over hourly billing, making tiered estate planning packages a competitive advantage that drives faster payments and higher client satisfaction
• Estate firms can capture 15-25% higher margins on flat fee work by structuring three distinct tiers: Basic ($1,500-$2,500), Custom ($3,000-$5,000), and Tax-Planned ($5,000-$15,000+)
• Success requires tracking time even on flat fee matters to calculate your Effective Hourly Rate and continuously refine pricing for profitability
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Picture this: A family walks into your estate planning practice, anxious about what protecting their legacy will cost. You mention your hourly rate of $350, and watch their eyes glaze over as they calculate how many hours of clock-watching anxiety await them. They leave promising to “think about it”—and you never hear from them again.
Sound familiar? You’re watching potential revenue walk out the door every week.
The estate planning market is massive—$18.2 billion in 2025 and growing—yet 60% of Americans still don’t have a will. That’s not a lack of demand; it’s a pricing problem. Clients don’t avoid estate planning because they don’t need it. They avoid it because they can’t predict what it will cost.
Here’s the data that should change how you think about pricing: According to Clio’s 2024 Legal Trends Report, 71% of clients would prefer to pay a flat fee for their entire case. Even more compelling? Firms billing with flat fees are collecting payments nearly twice as fast as those billing hourly. That’s not a minor efficiency gain—it’s a complete transformation of your cash flow.
The solution isn’t abandoning your expertise for a race to the bottom. It’s structuring tiered flat fee packages that give clients the price certainty they crave while ensuring your firm captures the value you deliver. Let’s break down exactly how to build “Basic,” “Custom,” and “Tax-Planned” estate packages that serve your clients and your bottom line.
Why Tiered Flat Fees Work for Estate Planning
Estate planning is uniquely suited to flat fee pricing. Unlike litigation, where case complexity can shift dramatically, estate planning work follows predictable patterns. A basic will has similar components whether it’s for a teacher in Tulsa or an entrepreneur in Austin. This predictability is your friend.
The tiered approach works because it acknowledges a fundamental truth: not every client needs the same level of service. A young couple with modest assets and two kids doesn’t need the same planning as a business owner with a blended family and multiple properties approaching the estate tax threshold. Trying to serve both with hourly billing either overcharges the simple case or undervalues the complex one.
Consider the psychology at play. When you present three tiers, you’re not asking clients to imagine an unknown cost. You’re offering them a menu where they can self-select based on their situation and budget. Research consistently shows that this kind of price anchoring makes purchasing decisions easier. Most clients gravitate toward the middle tier—which is exactly where you should price your most profitable offering.
The operational benefits compound over time. With standardized packages, your team develops muscle memory. Document assembly becomes faster. Client communications become templated. Quality improves because you’re refining the same processes repeatedly rather than reinventing the wheel for each engagement.
The Economics Behind Your Tiers
Before setting prices, you need to understand your costs. This is where many estate planning firms stumble—they price based on what competitors charge rather than what their work actually costs to deliver.
Start by tracking time even on your flat fee matters. Yes, you read that right. The goal isn’t to bill that time to clients; it’s to calculate your Effective Hourly Rate (EHR) and ensure profitability. If your Basic package is priced at $1,800 and consistently takes 8 hours to deliver, your EHR is $225. Compare that to your target hourly rate. Is it higher? You’re winning. Lower? Time to either raise prices or streamline delivery.
The average hourly rate for lawyers in 2024 was $341, according to the Legal Trends Report. But here’s what most firms miss: your EHR on well-structured flat fees should actually exceed your hourly rate. Why? Because flat fees incentivize efficiency. When you’re not billing by the hour, there’s no reward for taking longer. Every minute saved goes straight to your margin.
Let’s talk market positioning. Estate planning pricing varies dramatically by geography and expertise. Simple wills range from $300 to $1,200. Comprehensive trust packages run $2,000 to $5,000 for mid-market clients and $5,000 to $15,000+ for sophisticated tax planning. Your tiers should reflect your market position while leaving room for the value you add beyond document production.
Tier 1: The “Basic” Estate Package
Target Client Profile
Your Basic tier serves clients with straightforward situations: individuals or married couples with modest estates, no complex family dynamics, and assets well below estate tax thresholds. Think younger professionals, couples starting families, or retirees with simple financial pictures. These clients need protection, not sophistication.
What to Include
A well-structured Basic package typically includes: Last Will and Testament (or simple pour-over will), General Durable Power of Attorney, Healthcare Power of Attorney/Healthcare Proxy, Living Will/Advance Healthcare Directive, and HIPAA Authorization forms. Some firms include a single real property transfer deed at this tier; others list it as an add-on.
The key is defining your scope precisely. Your engagement letter should specify exactly what’s included and—equally important—what triggers an upgrade to a higher tier. Blended families? That’s Custom. Business interests? Custom. Multiple properties? Add-on fees or Custom tier.
Pricing Strategy
Price Range: $1,500-$2,500 for individuals; $1,800-$3,000 for couples
At this tier, you’re competing against online document services that offer wills for $100-$400. Don’t try to match their price—match their convenience while emphasizing your value. Those services can’t provide legal advice, can’t ensure documents comply with your state’s requirements, and can’t answer the 3 AM question about whether the documents actually work.
Your pricing should deliver a target EHR of $250-$350. If your Basic package takes 6 hours to deliver (including client meetings, document drafting, revision, and execution), a $2,100 price point yields a $350 EHR. That’s sustainable profitability that funds your firm’s growth.
Delivery Efficiency Tips
Standardize your intake questionnaire—gather comprehensive information before the first meeting. Use document automation software to generate first drafts from client responses. Batch your Basic tier work on specific days to maintain focus. Create a client portal where documents can be reviewed and signed electronically. Every efficiency improvement directly increases your EHR.
Tier 2: The “Custom” Estate Package
Target Client Profile
Your Custom tier serves clients with complexity that requires thoughtful planning beyond basic documents. This includes homeowners who want to avoid probate, parents with minor children needing trust provisions, blended families with specific distribution goals, clients with beneficiaries who shouldn’t receive assets outright (spendthrift issues, special needs), or anyone with assets in the $1M-$5M range who needs more sophisticated structuring.
What to Include
A Custom package typically includes everything in Basic plus: Revocable Living Trust, Pour-Over Will, Trust Certification, Trust Funding Guidance (and often assistance with 1-2 property transfers), Beneficiary Designation Review and Recommendations, and more detailed Healthcare Directives.
The trust component is crucial. Many online services sell trust documents but leave “funding” to the client—transferring assets into the trust. Most clients never complete this step properly, rendering their trust essentially useless. When you include funding guidance (or actual assistance), you’re providing enormous value that justifies premium pricing.
Pricing Strategy
Price Range: $3,000-$5,000 for individuals; $3,500-$5,500 for couples
This tier is your profit center. It should represent 50-60% of your estate planning revenue. Price it attractively relative to your Tax-Planned tier to encourage self-selection here. The difference between Basic and Custom should feel like a significant value upgrade; the difference between Custom and Tax-Planned should feel like a different universe of service.
Your target EHR at this tier should be $275-$400. If your Custom package takes 12-15 hours to deliver comprehensively, a $4,200 price point with 14 hours of work yields a $300 EHR. Track this closely—Custom tier profitability makes or breaks many estate practices.
Scope Management
This tier requires careful scope definition. Document your standard trust provisions and what customizations are included versus extra. Specify how many trust funding transfers are covered. Create clear upgrade paths: “Complex business succession planning is included in our Tax-Planned tier” rather than trying to cram everything into Custom.
Build change order provisions into your engagement letter. When clients realize mid-engagement that they need different planning—newly inherited assets, suddenly complicated family dynamics—you should have a clear process for adjusting scope and pricing.
Tier 3: The “Tax-Planned” Estate Package
Target Client Profile
Your Tax-Planned tier serves clients approaching or exceeding estate tax thresholds, those with complex business interests, significant charitable intent, multi-generational planning goals, or complicated family situations requiring sophisticated legal structures. These are clients where the planning fee is a rounding error compared to the tax savings you’ll deliver.
Consider the current environment: With estate tax exemptions potentially changing and a 40% federal estate tax rate on amounts above the threshold, clients in this tier face genuine financial exposure. Your planning doesn’t just organize their affairs—it can save their heirs hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars.
What to Include
A comprehensive Tax-Planned package typically includes everything in Custom plus: Advanced Trust Strategies (Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts, Qualified Personal Residence Trusts, Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts, etc.), Generation-Skipping Trust Planning, Charitable Giving Structures (Charitable Remainder Trusts, Donor-Advised Fund integration), Business Succession Planning and Buy-Sell Agreement Review, Family Limited Partnership or LLC structuring, Gift Tax Return Preparation Coordination, and Ongoing Annual Review Sessions.
Many firms at this tier also include coordination with the client’s other advisors—CPAs, financial planners, insurance professionals—to ensure the plan integrates with their broader financial strategy.
Pricing Strategy
Price Range: $7,500-$15,000+ (can reach $25,000+ for very complex situations)
At this tier, you’re pricing based on value delivered, not just time invested. A comprehensive tax-planned estate that saves a family $500,000 in estate taxes is worth far more than your fee, regardless of hours spent.
Some firms successfully use hybrid pricing at this tier: a base flat fee for core planning plus hourly billing for unusual complexity or ongoing advisory work. This protects you when engagements expand significantly while still giving clients cost predictability for the foundational work.
Your target EHR at this tier should be $350-$500+. The higher margin compensates for the expertise required and the risk of matters taking longer than anticipated. If your average Tax-Planned engagement takes 30 hours and you price at $12,000, your EHR is $400—excellent for sophisticated work.
Value Communication
At this tier, you must articulate value explicitly. Clients aren’t comparing you to LegalZoom; they’re comparing you to doing nothing or working with another sophisticated estate attorney. Frame your fees in context: “Your current estate would incur approximately $400,000 in estate taxes. Our planning approach reduces that exposure to approximately $125,000. The $10,000 planning fee represents a 35:1 return on investment.”
Don’t be afraid to walk away from clients who treat Tax-Planned work as commodity pricing. These engagements require your highest expertise and attention. Discounting devalues your work and attracts clients who don’t appreciate what you provide.
Building Your Add-On Menu
Not everything fits neatly into tiers. Create an à la carte menu for services that enhance any package without justifying a tier upgrade:
Additional Property Transfers: $250-$500 per property (recording fees extra)
Pet Trust Provisions: $300-$500
Guardian Nominations for Adult Disabled Children: $750-$1,500
Digital Asset Planning: $200-$400
Annual Review Sessions: $300-$600 per session
Document Updates (non-substantive changes): $150-$300 per document
Add-ons accomplish two goals: they capture revenue from services that fall outside standard packages, and they create natural upselling opportunities. When presenting your Custom package, you can note that pet trust provisions are available as an add-on for clients with four-legged family members.
Implementation: Making Tiered Pricing Work
Technology Infrastructure
Successful flat fee practices run on technology. You need robust document automation to deliver Basic and Custom packages efficiently. You need legal billing software that handles flat fees properly—tracking time for internal analysis while presenting clean flat fee invoices to clients. You need client portals for document sharing and electronic signatures.
The integration matters as much as the individual tools. Your intake system should flow into your document automation which should feed your billing system which should sync with your accounting software. Manual data entry between systems destroys the efficiency gains that make flat fees profitable.
The Consultation Process
Your initial consultation is where tier selection happens. Design it to efficiently qualify clients into the appropriate package. Use a comprehensive intake questionnaire before the meeting to gather financial, family, and asset information. During the consultation, explain how your tiered system works and guide clients toward the appropriate package.
Frame the tiers as solutions to different problems, not levels of quality. “Our Basic package is designed for clients with straightforward situations who need solid legal protection. Our Custom package adds trust-based planning for clients who want to avoid probate and have more control over distributions. Our Tax-Planned package serves clients whose assets and goals require sophisticated tax planning.”
Never let a client self-select into a tier below what they need. If a client with $4M in assets and a blended family wants your Basic package to save money, explain clearly why it won’t serve them—and be willing to decline the engagement if they insist. Serving clients inappropriately damages your reputation and creates malpractice exposure.
Engagement Letters
Your engagement letters must be crystal clear about what’s included and excluded. For each tier, specify the exact documents included, the number of revision rounds covered, whether trust funding assistance is provided (and for how many assets), what triggers tier upgrades or add-on fees, and your process for scope changes.
Include material deviation clauses: “If information discovered during planning reveals complexity not apparent during our initial consultation, we will discuss tier adjustment before proceeding.” This protects you when a “simple” estate turns out to involve undisclosed business interests or complicated family situations.
Training Your Team
Everyone who speaks with clients needs to understand your tier structure. Paralegals answering phones should know which questions to ask to preliminarily identify appropriate tiers. Associate attorneys must understand scope boundaries and when to escalate to partners. Office managers must understand billing procedures for flat fee matters.
Create internal documentation explaining each tier, common client scenarios, and frequently asked questions. Role-play difficult pricing conversations. The investment in training pays dividends through smoother client experiences and fewer scope disputes.
Measuring Success and Iterating
Implementing tiered pricing isn’t a one-time event—it’s an ongoing optimization process. Track these metrics monthly:
Effective Hourly Rate by Tier: Track actual hours against flat fees for each tier. If your EHR falls below targets, either raise prices or improve efficiency.
Tier Distribution: Monitor what percentage of clients select each tier. If 80% choose Basic, your Custom tier might be priced too high or insufficiently differentiated.
Scope Creep Frequency: Track how often engagements exceed their tier boundaries. Frequent creep suggests your intake process needs refinement or your scope definitions are too narrow.
Collection Speed: Compare time-to-payment for flat fee versus any remaining hourly matters. Flat fees should collect significantly faster—if they don’t, examine your invoicing process.
Client Satisfaction: Survey clients after engagement completion. Flat fee clients typically report higher satisfaction due to price predictability—confirm this holds true for your practice.
Review pricing quarterly and adjust annually at minimum. Markets shift, your efficiency improves, and your expertise grows. Your pricing should reflect these changes.
Positioning Against Competitors
Your tiered flat fee structure is a competitive advantage. Market it explicitly:
Against Hourly Billing Firms: “Unlike hourly billing where you don’t know your final cost until you receive the bill, our flat fee packages let you budget with confidence. You’ll know exactly what your estate plan costs before we begin.”
Against Online Services: “Those $99 online wills look attractive until you realize they can’t give legal advice, won’t customize to your state’s requirements, and leave you on your own to figure out if you’ve done it right. We provide real attorneys, personalized guidance, and documents that actually work.”
Against Other Flat Fee Firms: Differentiate on scope, service quality, or specialization. If you focus exclusively on estate planning, emphasize expertise over general practitioners. If you include services others charge extra for, highlight that value.
Put your pricing on your website. This feels scary, but it’s strategically smart. Price-transparent firms attract clients who’ve already accepted your pricing, reducing initial consultations with tire-kickers. You’re self-selecting for clients who value what you offer at the price you charge.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Mistake 1: Underpricing Your Basic Tier
Firms often price Basic too low to “compete” with online services, then wonder why they can’t afford to deliver quality. Your Basic tier isn’t competing with LegalZoom—it’s the entry point to a relationship with a qualified attorney. Price it to be profitable on its own terms.
Mistake 2: Fuzzy Scope Boundaries
When tier boundaries aren’t clear, you’ll spend hours debating whether specific requests are “included” or extra. Define boundaries in writing and reference them when questions arise.
Mistake 3: Ignoring Time Data
“We’re on flat fees now, so we don’t need to track time.” Wrong. Time data is how you calculate EHR, identify inefficiencies, and adjust pricing. Track every engagement.
Mistake 4: One-Size Pricing
A single flat fee for “estate planning” serves no one well. It either overcharges simple situations (losing those clients to competitors) or undercharges complex ones (killing your profitability). Tiers exist for good reasons.
Mistake 5: Failing to Enforce Boundaries
When clients push for “just one more thing” included in their flat fee, saying yes trains them to expect free scope expansion. Stick to your engagement letter. Offer add-on pricing graciously, but don’t give away your margins.
The Future of Estate Planning Pricing
The shift toward flat fees isn’t slowing down—it’s accelerating. Firms are billing 34% more cases on a flat fee basis compared to 2016, according to recent data. Estate planning is leading this transition because the work is so well-suited to predictable pricing.
AI and automation will make this evolution even more pronounced. As document assembly becomes more efficient, firms stuck on hourly billing will face a painful choice: bill fewer hours for the same work or try to justify unchanged hours for faster work. Flat fee firms simply become more profitable as efficiency improves.
Forward-thinking firms are already exploring subscription models for ongoing estate maintenance—annual reviews, document updates, and advisory access bundled into predictable monthly fees. This represents the next evolution beyond tiered flat fees: recurring revenue that smooths cash flow and deepens client relationships.
The firms that master tiered flat fee pricing now will be best positioned to evolve their pricing models as the market continues to shift. Start where you are, track obsessively, and iterate relentlessly.
Your Next Steps
Implementing tiered flat fees isn’t a weekend project—but it doesn’t have to be overwhelming either. Start with these concrete steps:
This Week: Pull data on your last 20 estate planning engagements. Calculate actual hours spent and resulting EHR. This baseline reveals whether your current pricing is sustainable.
This Month: Draft your three-tier structure. Define scope, pricing, and boundaries for each. Get input from your team on what works and what doesn’t in your current process.
This Quarter: Pilot your tiered packages with new clients. Track results meticulously. Refine based on real-world experience before rolling out firm-wide.
The estate planning clients of tomorrow will expect flat fee transparency as the default, not the exception. Firms that adapt now build competitive advantages that compound over time. Those that don’t will find themselves competing on hourly rates in a market that’s moving firmly in another direction.
Your clients want to know what their estate plan will cost. Give them the answer before they have to ask.
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Sources
Clio. “2024 Legal Trends Report.” Clio, 2024.
IBISWorld. “Estate Lawyers & Attorneys in the US Industry Analysis.” IBISWorld, 2025.
Thomson Reuters. “State of the Legal Market Report.” Thomson Reuters Institute, 2024.
Wells Fargo. “Legal Specialty Group Survey.” Wells Fargo, 2024.
LawVision. “2024 Strategic Pricing Survey.” LawVision Group, 2024.
Nolo. “How Much It Costs to Make a Will and Estate Planning Documents.” Nolo, 2024.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How do we handle clients whose situations turn out more complex than initially assessed?
A: Build tier transition clauses into your engagement letters from day one. When complexity emerges—undisclosed business interests, complicated family dynamics, assets you weren’t told about—you should have a clear process: pause work, explain why the situation requires a higher tier or add-on services, provide updated pricing, and get written agreement before proceeding. Never absorb unexpected complexity into your flat fee; it trains clients to withhold information and destroys your profitability. Frame the conversation around serving them properly: “To do this right, we need to upgrade your plan to include X.”
Q: Should we still track time even though we’re billing flat fees?
A: Absolutely—this is non-negotiable for profitable flat fee billing. Time tracking on flat fee matters serves a completely different purpose than hourly billing: it lets you calculate your Effective Hourly Rate (EHR), identify which engagement types are most profitable, spot inefficiencies in your delivery process, and make data-driven decisions about pricing adjustments. Without time data, you’re flying blind. You might think your Basic tier is profitable when it’s actually underwater. Modern legal billing software makes tracking time simple even when you’re not billing by the hour.
Q: What’s the best way to present tiered pricing to clients during consultations?
A: Frame each tier as a solution to different client situations, not levels of quality. Present all three tiers briefly, then guide clients toward the appropriate option based on what you’ve learned about their circumstances. Say something like: “Based on what you’ve shared about your family situation and assets, our Custom package would serve you best because it includes trust-based planning that will help you avoid probate and give you more control over distributions.” Avoid letting clients self-select into lower tiers that won’t actually meet their needs—this creates liability for you and poor outcomes for them.
Q: How often should we review and adjust our tiered pricing?
A: Conduct a comprehensive pricing review annually, but monitor key metrics quarterly. Track EHR by tier, tier distribution among clients, scope creep frequency, and collection speed. If your EHR is consistently 20% below target, that’s a signal to raise prices or improve efficiency—don’t wait a full year to act. Many firms implement annual price increases on January 1st, giving clients advance notice and aligning with calendar-year budgeting. For significant pricing changes, give 60-90 days notice to existing clients and consider grandfathering in-progress engagements at existing rates.
Q: How do we compete with online document services that charge a fraction of our Basic tier price?
A: Don’t try to match their price—match their convenience while emphasizing value they can’t provide. Online services sell documents; you sell outcomes. They can’t give legal advice, can’t ensure state-specific compliance, can’t catch problems in how clients fill out forms, and can’t answer questions when circumstances change. Your marketing should address the hidden costs of “cheap” estate planning: documents that don’t work as intended, families left without guidance during difficult times, and problems that emerge only when it’s too late to fix them. Emphasize that your $1,800 Basic package includes personalized attorney guidance, state-compliant documents, proper execution supervision, and someone to call with questions—value that’s worth far more than the price difference.
