The Estate Planning Guide Est. 2026

How Much Does a Living Trust Cost in Montana?

By The Estate Planning Guide Editorial Team Researched against primary sources

Published June 11, 2026 Updated September 23, 2026 8 min read

Quick answer

No Montana law sets what a living trust costs, and we found no published source for Montana trust-drafting prices as of September 2026 that is not a law firm, an online document seller, or a site paid to refer customers to one. Because Montana follows the Uniform Probate Code and has no state estate or inheritance tax, Montana sets no statutory percentage probate fee and no attorney-fee figure — so a trust is more about privacy and out-of-state property than saving big fees.

⚠️ Educational information only — not legal, tax, or financial advice.

The figures on this page are the ones a statute or a named, dated publisher sets. Laws, fees, thresholds, and prices differ by state and change often, and your own situation may change the result. Before you act, confirm the current numbers and rules for Montana with a licensed professional — an attorney, tax advisor, or licensed agent as appropriate. Reading this page does not create a professional relationship.

What a living trust actually costs in Montana

There are three ways to set up a revocable living trust in Montana. What each includes differs; what each costs is not set by law and is not published by any independent source we could find:

How it’s prepared Price in Montana What the engagement or the service’s terms state
Attorney-drafted Not set by law; no independent published source found as of September 2026 Whatever the written engagement letter lists. It is the engagement, not a market convention, that fixes the scope.
Online service Not set by law; no independent published source found as of September 2026 Whatever the service’s own published terms list.
DIY template Not set by law; no independent published source found as of September 2026 The document alone. Drafting and funding are the purchaser’s to do.

We found no published source for this figure as of September 2026. The Montana trust prices that are published come from law firms, online document sellers, or sites paid to refer customers to them. None is an independent publisher, so none is cited here.

No Montana statute sets what a living trust costs. Montana trust law governs how a trust is created and administered; it fixes no drafting charge. What is fixed by law is the probate side of the comparison, below. A trust holds assets outside probate only to the extent those assets are retitled into it, and deed preparation — the step that retitles real estate — is a separate charge wherever the trust is drafted.

What drives the price within Montana

No Montana statute sets any of these, and we found no independent published source for how much each moves the price as of September 2026. They are the items a drafting engagement is made of:

  • A joint trust for a married couple, against a single-person trust, against two separate trusts.
  • A new deed drafted and recorded for every property retitled into the trust, and a separate one in each other state where property is held.
  • A blended family, a special-needs beneficiary, a business interest, or estate-tax exposure.
  • Whether the price covers the trust document alone or a package with a pour-over will and powers of attorney.

What probate costs in Montana by comparison

A funded living trust holds assets outside probate. The figure it is measured against is therefore the cost of Montana probate itself.

Montana uses informal probate under the Uniform Probate Code and sets no statutory fee percentage, so attorney and personal-representative compensation is measured as reasonable rather than as a share of the estate. MCA §72-3-1101(1)(a) makes the collection-by-affidavit procedure available where the value of the property does not exceed $100,000, and (1)(b) requires that 30 days have elapsed since the death.

We found no published source for what probate costs in total in Montana as of September 2026. The ranges that are published come from law firms, online document sellers, or sites paid to refer customers to them, so none is cited here.

For the full breakdown, see How Much Does Probate Cost in Montana?.

How Montana probate cost compares to trust cost

Montana sets no statutory percentage probate fee, and the state provides a TOD deed for real estate — so the fee differential is narrow. A trust's documented effects here are ancillary-probate avoidance, privacy, and incapacity management.

A living trust operates on two things: assets retitled into it pass outside probate, and the trust document governs management if the grantor becomes incapacitated. Those are the documented functions; the figures above are what each costs in Montana.

Montana-specific things to know

Montana has adopted the Uniform Trust Code (MCA §72-38-101 et seq.), so its trust law is modern and predictable. Montana is not a community-property state, and it levies no state estate or inheritance tax.

Funding. A trust only avoids probate for assets you actually retitle into it — recording a trust-transfer deed for Montana real estate and changing the owner on bank and brokerage accounts. Unfunded trusts are the most common (and expensive) mistake. A trust holds outside probate only the assets actually retitled into it; assets left in the grantor’s own name pass through probate whether or not a trust exists.

What affects the price in Montana

We found no published source for Montana trust pricing as of September 2026, so this page states no range and no price drivers beyond what the work itself consists of, above. The one price on this page that is fixed by law is the probate court’s, in the section above, with the statute that fixes it cited there.

What determines whether a trust applies in Montana

In Montana the operative factors are out-of-state real property, privacy, and incapacity planning. In-state homes can pass by TOD deed.

The circumstances in which a living trust has a documented effect:

  • Real estate, particularly in more than one state — property in another state otherwise requires a separate ancillary probate there.
  • Privacy — a probated will becomes a public court record; a trust does not.
  • Incapacity — a trust governs management during life; a will takes effect only at death.
  • Staged distributions — a trust can direct payment over time; a will distributes at closing.

Where an estate consists of assets that already pass by beneficiary designation or joint ownership, those assets bypass probate without a trust. For the documented differences between the two instruments, see Will vs. Trust: How They Differ.

What the record shows

Item Montana
Price of a living trust Not set by law; no independent published source found as of September 2026
Governing statutes MCA Title 72, ch. 3 (Uniform Probate Code); MCA §72-38-101 et seq. (Montana Uniform Trust Code); MCA §72-3-1101 (small-estate affidavit)
State authority Montana Judicial Branch Self-Help Law Program (courts.mt.gov)

A trust holds outside probate only the assets actually retitled into it; an unfunded trust leaves those assets in probate. The Montana probate figures this is measured against are set out above with their citations. No figure is published here for what a trust costs to draft: we found no independent published source as of September 2026.

Living trust costs in other states

Compare Montana with living trust pricing in other states:

This page sets out what Montana law fixes about a living trust and the probate it is measured against, as of September 2026. It is not legal or financial advice; statutes and thresholds change and depend on your situation. Confirm current figures and rules with a licensed Montana attorney. It states no drafting price, because we found no independent published source for one. Sources: Montana Judicial Branch Self-Help Law Program (courts.mt.gov); MCA Title 72, ch. 3 (Uniform Probate Code), MCA §72-38-101 et seq. (Montana Uniform Trust Code), MCA §72-3-1101 (small-estate affidavit).

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