Compare States
Pick any two states and compare probate rules, estate taxes, community property, advance directive requirements, and more. Every figure comes from our state guides and their sources.
Small estate threshold
$208,850
$75,000
Simplified probate available
Yes
Yes
State estate tax
None
None
State inheritance tax
None
None
Community property
Yes
Yes
Advance directive signing
2 witnesses, notary required. Minimum age 18.
2 witnesses, notary required. Minimum age 18.
Death certificate
$24 per certified copy. Filed within 8 days of death.
$20 per certified copy. Filed within 10 days of death.
Cremation rules
24-hour wait. Permit required.
48-hour wait. Permit required.
Transfer on death deed
Yes: revocable transfer on death (TOD) deed
Yes: transfer on death deed
Organ donor registry
RegisterMe.org
DonateLifeTexas.org
Medical aid in dying
Yes
No
Every figure above comes from the matching state guide. Each guide cites the statute, lists the date the section was last reviewed, and logs every change. Open the guides for the full picture.
Each state guide goes deep. Every section has its own source citation and last-verified date.
Comparing States
Any two states side by side across the things that actually differ: probate timelines and small estate limits, estate and inheritance taxes, will and witness requirements, advance directive rules, and cremation and burial law. It pulls from the same data as the full state guides, so the comparison and the guides can't disagree.
Mostly three situations. You're planning a move, often in retirement, and want to know what changes. Your family is split across two states and you're figuring out where documents should be anchored. Or someone died owning things in two states and you're trying to understand which rules apply to what.
The state where they were domiciled, meaning their true permanent home, governs the estate: the probate court there takes charge, and its intestacy rules apply if there's no will. The big exception is real estate, which is governed by the state where the land sits, which is why out-of-state property often triggers a second ancillary probate.
It rarely invalidates it, but it often degrades it. Wills validly signed in your old state stay valid, while executor residency rules, spousal share rules, and tax exposure can all shift. Health care directives travel worst, since hospitals recognize their own state's forms fastest. Compare the two states here, then read your new state's full guide.
Browse all 51 guides →Honestly, sort of. States without an estate or inheritance tax, with generous small estate limits and fast probate, are objectively easier on the people you leave behind. But nobody should pick a home for its death taxes alone: income tax, property tax, and where your actual people live matter more, and domicile is about where your life genuinely is, not where your paperwork says. Compare the two states you're actually torn between and look at the whole picture.