Will writer vs solicitor — what's the difference?

When you start looking for someone to draft your will, you will quickly run into a question that the industry itself has not always done a brilliant job of explaining: should you use a will writer or a solicitor? The two professions overlap in their core service — drafting a legally valid will — but differ significantly in how they are regulated, what else they can do, and what you should expect to pay. This guide explains the difference honestly, including where each is the better choice.

What is a solicitor? A solicitor is a qualified lawyer who has completed a law degree (or equivalent), the Solicitors Qualifying Examination, and a period of qualifying work experience. Solicitors are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), bound by the SRA Code of Conduct, must carry mandatory professional indemnity insurance of at least £2 million per claim, and are backed by the SRA Compensation Fund — a pool of money that compensates clients in the rare event a solicitor steals or mishandles client money. Solicitors can do everything a will writer can do, plus they can give wider legal advice, conduct litigation, and act as solicitor of record in court proceedings.

What is a will writer? A will writer is a specialist drafter of wills, lasting powers of attorney, trusts and related documents. Will writers are not solicitors and cannot give wider legal advice, conduct litigation or act in court. The will-writing industry in England and Wales is currently unregulated by statute — there is no government-issued licence to be a will writer — but reputable will writers belong to one of two professional bodies: the Society of Will Writers (SWW) or the Institute of Professional Will Writers (IPW). Both bodies require members to pass an examination, complete continuing professional development, follow a code of conduct, carry professional indemnity insurance (typically £2m+) and submit to a complaints process.

Will Guard is a member of the Society of Will Writers and carries £2 million of professional indemnity insurance. Every consultant in our team has passed the SWW examination and undertakes a minimum of 16 hours of continuing professional development each year.

Differences in price. The most visible difference is cost. A typical high-street solicitor charges £200 to £400 plus VAT for a single will and £350 to £600 plus VAT for mirror wills, while a Society of Will Writers member will typically charge £90 to £200 for a single will and £150 to £300 for mirror wills. The reasons for the price gap are real: solicitors carry higher overheads, more expensive insurance, regulatory levies and SRA compliance costs. But for a straightforward will, the underlying drafting work is essentially identical, and many solicitor firms now outsource their will writing to the same SWW members you could instruct directly.

Differences in expertise. A general high-street solicitor will draft wills competently but is unlikely to spend most of their working week on them. A specialist will writer drafts wills every single day. For a complex tax-planned will involving a sophisticated trust structure or international assets, a specialist private client solicitor (often STEP-qualified — Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners) will have deeper expertise than a typical will writer. For an ordinary will — single, mirror, or moderately complex with one trust — a Society of Will Writers member will be every bit as capable.

Differences in service. Will writers tend to compete on personal service and convenience. Most will writers offer free home visits, evening and weekend appointments, and fixed-fee pricing as standard. Most high-street solicitors expect you to come into their office during business hours, charge a separate fee for home visits, and (although fixed fees are increasingly common) often quote on an hourly basis for anything beyond the simplest will. If you are housebound, work shifts, or simply prefer to discuss your estate at your own kitchen table, a will writer will often suit you better.

Differences in regulation. Solicitors are regulated by statute under the Legal Services Act 2007 and the Solicitors Act 1974, with the SRA as their statutory regulator. Will writers are regulated by their professional bodies under voluntary codes — strict and well-enforced in the case of the SWW and IPW, but ultimately not statutory. The Legal Services Board reviewed will-writing regulation in 2013 and recommended bringing it under statutory control, but the recommendation has not yet been implemented by the Lord Chancellor. In practice this means: if you instruct an SWW or IPW member, you have meaningful protection through the body's complaints procedure, but you do not have access to the SRA Compensation Fund.

When to choose a solicitor. If your estate is genuinely complex — significant business interests, multiple properties in multiple jurisdictions, a planned trust structure for tax mitigation, a non-domiciled spouse, contested family circumstances, or a likely Inheritance Act claim — a specialist private client solicitor (ideally STEP-qualified) is worth the higher fee. If you want one professional to handle your will, your conveyancing, your divorce and your business affairs together, a solicitor's broader scope makes sense. If you are particularly nervous about regulation and want the additional comfort of the SRA Compensation Fund, a solicitor is the better choice.

When to choose a will writer. For most ordinary estates — single homeowner, married couple with children, modest savings, perhaps one trust to ringfence the family home — a Society of Will Writers member will draft a will of identical legal quality to a high-street solicitor for half the price, will come to your home in the evening or on a Saturday, and will give you the time to discuss what actually matters. For lasting powers of attorney, will reviews and basic estate planning, the value gap is even larger.

Red flags to watch for either way. Whichever route you choose, look out for: high-pressure sales tactics, especially on doorstep visits; quotes that bundle in expensive 'lifetime membership' or perpetual storage subscriptions; inflated 'asset protection trust' packages costing thousands of pounds; promises that putting your home into a trust will guarantee it cannot be touched for care fees regardless of timing (the Care Act 2014 rules on deliberate deprivation are strict); and any will writer or solicitor who is not willing to give you a written fixed-fee quote before work begins.

The honest summary. A will written by a competent SWW-member will writer is just as legally valid, just as well drafted, and very nearly always significantly cheaper than the equivalent from a high-street solicitor. For complex or unusual estates, a specialist solicitor is the right call. The most important thing is not which type of professional you instruct — it is that you instruct one of them, and that you do it before you need to.