Cheap Divorce: The Lowest-Cost Ways to End a Marriage
Updated · By the Law Figures editors
General information, not legal advice. Laws differ by state and change, so check the sources below or ask a lawyer licensed in your state before you act. Legal disclaimer
On this page
A cheap divorce is almost always an uncontested one: both spouses agree on property, debts and, if there are children, custody and support, so no one pays lawyers to fight. The lowest-cost route is filing the court's own forms yourself and paying only the filing fee, which many courts waive for people who can't afford it. Mediation or a lawyer hired for limited tasks costs more but can still be far less than a contested case.
| Route | What you pay for | Works best when |
|---|---|---|
| Do it yourself with court forms | Filing fee, service, parenting class if required | You agree on everything and have few assets |
| Fee waiver | Nothing for court fees, if approved | Your income is low enough under your state's rules |
| Online document service | A flat price for filling in forms, plus court fees | You agree and want help with paperwork, not advice |
| Mediator | Hourly or flat sessions, often split | You mostly agree but need help on a few points |
| Limited-scope lawyer | Only the tasks you hire for | You want a lawyer to review the deal or draft one document |
| Each spouse hires a lawyer, settles | Hourly fees for both sides | There's real property, a pension or a business |
Filing fees are set by each state and sometimes each county. Your court's website or self-help center lists them, along with the forms.
Estimate your cost
Put in what you expect to pay a lawyer or mediator by the hour, any flat fees, and the court costs.
Divorce cost estimator
- Hourly work
- $1,500
- Flat fees
- $0
- Costs
- $400
- Estimated total
- $1,900
Run it twice, with the low and the high end of the hours the lawyer quotes. An estimate, not a quote.
The defaults are an example: 5 hours at $300 for a lawyer to review the agreement, plus $400 in court and service costs, $1,900 in all. Set the hours to zero for a pure do-it-yourself case and you'll see the cost is mostly the filing fee.
Hiring a lawyer for just part of it
Under ABA Model Rule 1.2(c), which states have adopted in their own forms, a lawyer can limit the scope of the work if the limit is reasonable and you give informed consent. That lets you hire a lawyer to review your settlement, draft the property agreement or go to one hearing, and handle the rest yourself. Ask for the scope and the fee in writing.
An online document service isn't a law firm. It can fill in forms, but it can't tell you whether the deal is fair or how your state's law treats your situation.
Where cheap divorces get expensive later
- Retirement accounts. Splitting a 401(k) or pension usually needs a separate court order. See our guide to what a QDRO is.
- The house. If one spouse keeps it, the other is still on the mortgage until it's refinanced.
- Debts. The divorce decree doesn't bind your creditors. A joint credit card stays joint.
- Taxes. Who claims the children and who pays on a sale of property should be in writing.
- Default judgments. If one spouse never answers, the other can sometimes get a judgment without their input. Don't ignore papers.
Questions to ask before choosing a route
- Do we agree on everything, including retirement accounts and the house?
- Is there a waiting period in our state, and how long?
- Do we qualify for a fee waiver?
- Does our court have a self-help center that reviews forms?
- Would an hour with a lawyer to review the agreement be worth it? See also our guide to an amicable divorce.