How much does probate cost in Colorado?

Colorado probate filing fees vary by county and type of administration. According to Colorado court fee schedules, costs may include court filing fees, certified copy fees, publication notice fees, recording or title fees, and possible professional fees. Verify county payment instructions before filing.

How long does probate take in Colorado?

The timeline varies by type: Formal Probate typically takes 6-12+ months, Simplified Probate takes Varies, and Small Estate Procedure can often be completed in Varies.

Do I need an attorney for probate in Colorado?

Attorney requirements vary by probate type and local practice. Attorney review is recommended for formal administration and whenever you are unsure which procedure applies.

Colorado Probate Guide

County-specific probate filing-office contacts, filing fees, required forms, and step-by-step estate settlement guidance for executors in Colorado.

Find Your County

Do I Need Probate?Free assessment tool Estate ChecklistStep-by-step tasks GlossaryLegal terms explained Resource MapCourts, forms, code

Colorado Probate Guides

View all guides

COJun 10, 2026-13 min read

Colorado Probate Guide

How the Colorado probate process works: District Court and Denver Probate Court venue, informal vs formal probate, deadlines, costs, and the $88,000 small estate path.

COJun 10, 2026-12 min read

How to Avoid Probate in Colorado

How to avoid probate in Colorado: beneficiary deeds, joint tenancy, POD and TOD accounts, living trusts, and the $88,000 small estate affidavit.

COJun 10, 2026-9 min read

Colorado Small Estate Affidavit

Colorado's small estate affidavit (JDF 999) lets successors collect a personal estate of $88,000 or less for 2026 deaths, 10 days after death, no court filing.

COJun 10, 2026-12 min read

Colorado Probate Timeline

Colorado probate timeline with statutory deadlines: 10-day will lodging, 120-hour wait, 3-month inventory, 4-month creditor period, and the 3-year limit.

COJun 10, 2026-12 min read

Colorado Personal Representative Duties

Colorado personal representative duties in order: letters, the 30 day notice to heirs, the 3 month inventory, creditor notice, and the closing statement.

COJun 10, 2026-12 min read

Colorado Advance Directives and Medical Power of Attorney

How Colorado advance directives work: the living will, medical durable power of attorney, CPR directive, and MOST form, plus proxy rules when no document exists.

Browse Colorado guide topics

Jump to court, executor, tax, planning, property, and probate-avoidance guides that match your next task.

Full guide library

Probate Basics

Forms & Court

Colorado Small Estate Affidavit

Executor Duties

Colorado Personal Representative Duties

Taxes & Deadlines

Planning Documents

Avoiding Probate

How to Avoid Probate in Colorado

Colorado Probate Self-Help and Online Resources

Colorado probate source navigation starts with state court, form, agency, legal-help, or referral links that are already tracked in Settled state data. These links are state-level starting points, not county-specific filing instructions.

Which Colorado probate source should you use?

Start with the state court, form, or self-help source for general Colorado probate context.
Use county filing-office, clerk, register, or court pages for local filing locations, local forms, fee schedules, and records portals.
Use legal-help, law-library, or referral links as research or referral paths, not as a substitute for counsel.
Verify current filing steps with the county office, court, clerk, register, legal-aid source, or counsel before filing.

Colorado probate resource questions

Are these Colorado probate resources county-specific?

No. This map shows state-level source links from Settled data. Use it with the Colorado county page and the county office handling the estate before filing.

Which Colorado source should I use first?

Start with the official court, form, or agency source for the task, then confirm local requirements with the county filing office, clerk, register, or office that accepts the filing.

Does the Colorado Probate Resource Map replace attorney review?

No. The map is source navigation. It helps families find current public sources, but it does not decide eligibility, prepare filings, or replace advice from counsel.

Colorado probate resource map by source type

Statewide process, forms, and code sources3

State court, form, statute, agency, and self-help sources for general probate and estate-settlement questions.

Statewide process, forms, and code sources

State court, form, statute, agency, and self-help sources for general probate and estate-settlement questions.

Colorado Judicial Branch - Self-Help: Open an Estate (JDF probate forms and instructions)
State-level source record in Settled data, accessed 2026-06-10.
Colorado Judicial Branch - Self-Help Forms library
State-level source record in Settled data, accessed 2026-06-10.
Colorado Legal Services
State-level source record in Settled data, accessed 2026-06-10.

Settled pairs these Colorado source links with county pages, forms, first-step guides, transfer guides, and source notes so families can move from statewide context to the local office that handles the estate.

Types of Probate in Colorado

Colorado offers several probate procedures depending on estate value and circumstances.

Most Common

Formal Probate

Court-supervised administration for estates that do not qualify for a shortcut.

Timeline: 6-12+ months
Attorney: Recommended

Simplified

Simplified Probate

A shorter court process that may be available for qualifying estates.

Timeline: Varies
Attorney: Recommended

Small Estates

Small Estate Procedure

A limited shortcut for qualifying small estates.

Timeline: Varies
Attorney: Optional

Not sure which applies? Take the assessment →

Colorado Probate Filing Offices by County

64 counties with detailed data

Showing 36 of 64 counties. Search by county name or show the full list.

Colorado Estate Law Overview

Colorado Estate Tax Info

Colorado has no estate tax for current deaths and no inheritance tax, and it has no probate tax - probate filings carry only flat docket fees. Colorado does have a flat state income tax.

State Estate Tax

Inheritance Tax

Yes

State Income Tax

Federal estate tax info

Federal estate tax only applies to estates exceeding $15,000,000 (2026).

Who Inherits Without a Will?

Intestate succession determines who receives probate property when a Colorado resident dies without a valid will.

View spouse inheritance rules

No surviving descendant or parent of the decedent100%

The surviving spouse receives the entire intestate estate when the decedent leaves no descendant and no parent (C.R.S. § 15-11-102(1)(a)).

All of the decedent's surviving descendants are also descendants of the surviving spouse, and the spouse has no other surviving descendant100%

The surviving spouse receives the entire intestate estate when every surviving descendant is shared and the spouse has no descendants from another relationship (C.R.S. § 15-11-102(1)(b)).

No descendant of the decedent survives, but a parent of the decedent survivesFirst $300,000 (base; $442,000 for deaths in 2026 as adjusted), plus 3/4 of any balance

C.R.S. § 15-11-102(2); dollar amount adjusted under C.R.S. § 15-10-112 ($442,000 for decedents dying in 2026 per the Department of Revenue table).

All of the decedent's surviving descendants are also descendants of the surviving spouse, but the spouse has one or more surviving descendants who are not descendants of the decedentFirst $225,000 (base; $332,000 for deaths in 2026 as adjusted), plus 1/2 of any balance

C.R.S. § 15-11-102(3); dollar amount adjusted under C.R.S. § 15-10-112 ($332,000 for decedents dying in 2026).

One or more of the decedent's surviving descendants are not descendants of the surviving spouse (for example, children from a prior relationship)First $150,000 (base; $221,000 for deaths in 2026 as adjusted), plus 1/2 of any balance

C.R.S. § 15-11-102(4); dollar amount adjusted under C.R.S. § 15-10-112 ($221,000 for decedents dying in 2026). If more than one circumstance applies, the one producing the largest spouse share is used.

View order of inheritance (no spouse)

1DescendantsThe share not passing to a surviving spouse or designated beneficiary, or all if neither survives; per capita at each generation
2Parents (and descendants of deceased parents alongside them)If no descendant survives, the estate is divided into equal shares among surviving parents and deceased parents who left surviving descendants; each surviving parent takes a share, and a deceased parent's share passes per capita at each generation to that parent's descendants
3Descendants of parents (siblings and their descendants)If no descendant or parent survives, the estate passes per capita at each generation to the surviving descendants of the decedent's deceased parents
4Grandparents (and descendants of deceased grandparents alongside them)If no descendant, parent, or descendant of a parent survives, the estate is divided among surviving grandparents and deceased grandparents who left surviving descendants, with a deceased grandparent's share passing per capita at each generation to that grandparent's descendants
5Descendants of grandparents (aunts, uncles, cousins)If no descendant, parent, descendant of a parent, or grandparent survives, the estate passes per capita at each generation to the surviving descendants of the decedent's deceased grandparents

Colorado Homestead Protection

Colorado homestead protection is a statutory creditor exemption, not an unlimited constitutional homestead system and not a probate allowance. Under C.R.S. § 38-41-201 (as amended by SB 22-086, effective April 7, 2022), every homestead occupied as a home is exempt from execution and attachment up to $250,000 of equity, or $350,000 if the homestead is occupied by an owner, an owner's spouse, or an owner's dependent who is elderly (age 60 or older) or disabled.

$250,000 of equity, or $350,000 if the homestead is occupied by an owner, owner's spouse, or owner's dependent who is elderly (60 or older) or disabled (C.R.S. § 38-41-201(1)-(2), as amended by SB 22-086 in 2022)

Creditor Protection

Size limits & qualifications

Inside city limits: No acreage limit

Outside city limits: No acreage limit

Property types: Dwelling occupied as a home, House and lot or lots, Manufactured home, mobile home, trailer, or trailer coach (C.R.S. §§ 38-41-201.6 and 38-41-205), Farm of any number of acres

Restrictions on leaving homestead in will

With spouse, no minor children:

No state-level homestead devise restriction; review the elective share (C.R.S. §§ 15-11-201 to 15-11-214), exempt property and family allowance, title, and creditor issues separately.

With minor children:

No devise restriction; minor or dependent child rights arise through the family allowance and exempt property allowance, and surviving minor children succeed to the homestead creditor exemption under C.R.S. § 38-41-204.

Exempt Property

Colorado provides two estate allowances for surviving spouses and dependent children - the exempt property allowance and the family allowance - plus separate creditor exemptions for debtor property under C.R.S. § 13-54-102 and the homestead exemption under C.R.S. § 38-41-201. Colorado did NOT adopt the Uniform Probate Code's separate 'homestead allowance'; C.R.S. § 15-11-402 expressly states that the homestead exemption statutes do not create an allowance.

View exempt items

Estate Exempt Property Allowance (surviving spouse or dependent children)

The surviving spouse is entitled to cash or other estate property worth the adjusted amount over any security interests (C.R.S. § 15-11-403(1)(b)). If there is no surviving spouse, the decedent's dependent children are entitled jointly to the same exempt property. It has priority over all claims except administration costs and reasonable final disposition and funeral expenses (paid per C.R.S. § 15-12-805), and it abates as necessary to permit payment of the family allowance.

$30,000 base; $44,000 for deaths in 2026 as adjusted ($43,000 for deaths in 2025), in excess of any security interests

Homestead Exemption (creditor)

Equity in an occupied homestead is exempt from execution and attachment under C.R.S. § 38-41-201 (amounts raised by SB 22-086, effective April 7, 2022). When a person dies seized of a homestead leaving a surviving spouse or minor children, they are entitled to the homestead exemption (C.R.S. § 38-41-204). See homestead-law.json.

$250,000, or $350,000 if the owner, spouse, or dependent is elderly (60+) or disabled

Household Goods (creditor)

Household goods owned and used by the debtor or the debtor's dependents are exempt to the extent of $6,000 in value (C.R.S. § 13-54-102(1)(e)).

$6,000

Motor Vehicles (creditor)

Up to two motor vehicles or bicycles kept and used by the debtor are exempt in the aggregate value of $15,000, increased to $25,000 for a debtor (or dependent) who is elderly or disabled (C.R.S. § 13-54-102(1)(j)).

Up to two motor vehicles or bicycles, $15,000 aggregate ($25,000 if elderly or disabled)

Other Personal Property (creditor)

C.R.S. § 13-54-102 exempts additional categories (wearing apparel, jewelry, books and family pictures, tools of trade, professional library, retirement plans, life insurance proceeds, and others) subject to statutory dollar caps. Verify the current cap for each item against the live statute before publishing a specific figure.

Statutory item caps; verify current amounts

Family Allowance

Reasonable allowance; the personal representative may determine it without court order up to a lump sum of $30,000 base ($44,000 for deaths in 2026 as adjusted) or periodic installments of $2,500/month base ($3,667/month for deaths in 2026) for one year - A reasonable allowance in money out of the estate for the maintenance of the surviving spouse and of minor children the decedent was obligated to support and children in fact being supported, during administration (C.R.S. § 15-11-404(1)).