If you’re facing the end of a marriage, you’re probably wondering how expensive the divorce process might be. Many factors contribute to the overall cost, especially the number of disputes a divorcing couple has about important issues like spousal support, property division, and child custody. The fewer issues you have to negotiate (and potentially litigate) the lower your costs should be. For that reason, couples without children (or children who are grown) tend to spend less on their divorces than couples who have to sort out child custody, parenting time, and child support.
In 2019, we surveyed our readers across the country who had recently been through a divorce. Here’s what we learned about how much a typical divorce without children costs and how long the process takes.
The Cost of Divorce Without Child-Related Disputes
Our 2019 survey confirmed that divorces with children cost substantially more on average than divorces without minor children.
Of our readers who divorced without child-related disputes, 62% chose to hire a lawyer at an average total cost of $10,100, including $8,800 in attorneys' fees. (Divorces involving children cost an average total of $15,500). But that’s the overall average. A few outlier cases with very high fees can skew the average high.
When we looked more closely at the results of our survey, we saw that 44% of child-free divorces cost less than $5,000. The median amount (the midway point at which half paid less and half paid more) was $6,000.
Couples who came to an agreement on all issues in their divorce—whether over children or any other major issue—had the lowest costs of all. They had an average of $4,100 in divorce costs.
You could end up paying significantly more—or less—than the average total costs of our readers depending on the circumstances in your case.
How Disputes Over Property and Debt Affect Divorce Costs
Even if you don’t have child support and custody to worry about in your divorce, you’ll probably have to deal with dividing the property you own with your spouse, including assets such as a home or condo, retirement accounts, savings, and maybe custody of the family pet. If you don’t have any assets together, you might have to sort out who’s responsible for paying off your debts.
In our 2019 survey, nearly two-thirds (64%) of couples divorcing without minor children disagreed about how to divide their property and debts. Having a property-related dispute increased their average total divorce costs, including attorneys’ fees, from $10,100 to $13,600. The average climbed to $18,600 if the couple went to trial and had a judge decide the property dispute.
How Disputes Over Alimony Affect Costs
In our survey, 38% of divorcing couples without children disagreed about spousal support. In those cases, the average total costs, including attorneys’ fees, were $12,400 if they settled the alimony issue and $17,700 if they went to trial.
Filing Fees and Other Divorce Costs
No matter where you live or whether you choose to hire a lawyer or represent yourself (more on that below), you’ll have to pay a fee to file your divorce paperwork with the court. Fees vary from county to county, but typically range from $100 to $350. You can find the filing fee where you live on the county court’s website or you can contact the local court clerk. If you can’t afford to pay the filing fee, you can request a fee waiver.
Other potential divorce expenses include:
- mediation costs
- tax advisor and accountant fees, and
- the cost of a real estate appraisal.
Our 2019 survey showed that divorcing couples without children spent an average of $950 on expenses other than attorneys’ fees. Your costs might be more or less than the average depending on the complexity of your case.
Beyond the legal costs directly associated with a divorce, you’ll also have to budget for the so-called “soft” costs of divorce, such as moving, setting up and maintaining a separate household, therapy, and changes in your insurance and tax status.
How Long Does a Divorce Without Child-Related Disputes Take?
The divorce process tends to move more quickly for couples without children than it does for couples who have to deal with child-related issues. Our survey revealed that divorces without children took an average of 11 months from the filing of the divorce petition to the final settlement or court order (compared to 15 months for cases involving kids).
Our survey showed—and as you might expect—that the more hotly contested issues you have to resolve in a divorce the longer it will take:
- On average, it took divorcing couples without minor kids 12 months to settle property disputes and 19 months when they had to go to trial.
- Couples without kids who argued over spousal support took an average of 13 months to settle the dispute and 18 months when they had to go to trial.
Disputes drag out your divorce when you have to negotiate a divorce settlement agreement or need a judge to resolve them at trial. It takes time for you or your lawyer to conduct formal discovery (including requests for documents and depositions), analyze evidence (which may include getting help from financial experts), and schedule pretrial conferences. You’ll also be at the mercy of over-crowded court calendars when waiting for hearing and trial dates.
Our survey results also revealed that readers were more likely to hire divorce lawyers when they had alimony and property-related disputes, which makes sense because lawyers help you understand your responsibilities and protect your rights.
But a lawyer’s time is money—your money. So the more issues you and your spouse can work out on your own, the more time and money you’ll save.
Can I Represent Myself in a Divorce Without Children?
You don’t have to hire a lawyer to get a divorce with or without children. In fact, you’re likely to be in a better position to represent yourself (also called "representation pro se") or use an online divorce service when your divorce doesn’t involve kids.
DIY Divorce
Many people represent themselves in divorce proceedings, usually to save money. If you handle your own divorce, you’ll have to:
- follow state and local divorce laws
- find and complete all of the necessary divorce forms
- serve your spouse with forms
- go to court depending on the laws in your state, and
- get a final divorce decree.
Divorce laws and forms vary from state to state. You can usually find court-approved divorce forms on your state court’s website. Here’s an example of California’s divorce forms. Many states also have self-help tools to guide you through the paperwork (again, here’s an example of California’s self-help guide).
A DIY divorce is much cheaper than hiring a lawyer but it isn’t free—you’ll still have to invest your time and energy and pay filing fees.
Online Divorce
Online divorce services are an increasingly popular option for people who want to save time and money. An online divorce service guides you through the paperwork you need for your situation and then tells you how to file it. The cost of online divorce services varies, but it’s typically in the $150 to $750 range, with extra charges for additional services (such as filing the paperwork with the court for you).
Online divorce isn’t appropriate in all situations. You might be a good candidate for this lower-cost option if:
- you’re involved in a “no-fault” divorce
- your divorce is “uncontested” (you and your spouse agree on all of the important issues in your divorce)
- you’re aware of all of your marital assets and have access to your financial records
- your spouse isn’t represented by a lawyer, and
- a power imbalance or domestic violence hasn’t been a part of the relationship.
Consulting Attorneys
Most people who hire a divorce lawyer choose to hire a “full-scope” attorney to handle their entire case from start to finish. A less expensive option is to hire a “consulting” attorney to help you with a clearly defined part of the case, such as preparing or reviewing a separation agreement.
A consulting attorney who offers “unbundled” or “limited-scope” services can help you represent yourself and avoid costly mistakes by identifying important issues and helping you with more complicated parts of your case while you handle the simpler and less time-consuming tasks yourself.
More Information and Resources on Divorces Without Children
Divorce can be expensive, time-consuming, and mentally and emotionally draining—all the more so if your situation involves significant conflict. If it does, hiring a divorce lawyer could be your best route.
But not everyone needs a lawyer for their divorce. Other options include handling it yourself, using an online service, and going to mediation (with or without a lawyer). For help choosing your path, you can check out DivorceNet’s quiz.
Learn more about the next steps in the divorce process: