California personal representative compensation

California executor fee calculator

Prob. Code § 10800 sets statutory (ordinary) compensation as 4% of the first $100,000, 3% of the next $100,000, 2% of the next $800,000, 1% of the next $9,000,000, and 0.5% of the next $15,000,000.

Sources reviewed August 9, 2026. Sources rechecked October 17, 2026. This page last revised October 17, 2026.

1. Where and when

StateCaliforniaFixed to this page. Open the navigator to compare another state.

2. Compensation base

Asset 1

DescriptionValue$Not entered. A blank amount is not counted as zero.Enforceable liens or mortgage$Not entered. Enter 0 if there is no lien.OwnershipThis is real property

Asset 2

DescriptionValue$Not entered. A blank amount is not counted as zero.Enforceable liens or mortgage$Not entered. Enter 0 if there is no lien.OwnershipThis is real propertyWill it be sold during administration?Some court charges are assessed on sale proceeds and exclude real property that is kept, so this changes the amount.

Ownership determines whether an asset usually enters probate. Choose “Not sure” when title or beneficiary status has not been confirmed.

value of the estate accounted for$§ 10800(b): total appraisal value of inventory property, plus gains over appraisal on sales, plus receipts, less losses; encumbrances are not deducted. Leaving it blank keeps the compensation undecided rather than assuming a number.

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Your working estimate

California estate snapshot

Gross probate propertyNot yet counted

Court charge$435The court’s Statewide Civil Fee Schedule effective January 1, 2026, item 124, lists $435 as the total due for the first petition for letters of administration or letters testamentary, including Government Code §§ 70650(a), 70602.5 and 70602.6. The appendix retains the standard charge for San Bernardino and specifies a higher collected charge in Riverside and San Francisco. This calculator uses the standard $435 and excludes the higher Riverside and San Francisco charges. Publication, certified copies, later petitions and other administration expenses are extra.

Scheduled executor compensationCase accounting neededEnter the compensable value above and this schedule is applied to it, band by band.Prob. Code § 10800 sets statutory (ordinary) compensation as 4% of the first $100,000, 3% of the next $100,000, 2% of the next $800,000, 1% of the next $9,000,000, and 0.5% of the next $15,000,000. Above $25,000,000 the amount is 'a reasonable amount to be determined by the court' — so the top band is NOT a fixed percentage. The base is 'the value of the estate accounted for' (appraisal value plus gains on sales plus receipts, less losses, without regard to encumbrances).

This route check is general information, not legal advice. It does not test every eligibility condition, creditor issue, will provision, local fee, or asset-title fact.

How California sets executor compensation

Above $25,000,000 the amount is 'a reasonable amount to be determined by the court' — so the top band is NOT a fixed percentage. The base is 'the value of the estate accounted for' (appraisal value plus gains on sales plus receipts, less losses, without regard to encumbrances).

The calculator applies the California schedule to the value you enter, measured against the figures shown in the estate's court accounting. Cal. Prob. Code § 10800 prices ordinary services only; any other allowance rests on a different section of the Probate Code, which this page does not quote. The California section quoted here does not say how a fee set by the will interacts with this schedule, so read the will with the Superior Court before relying on the figure.

The figure the California schedule is applied to

The rate is only half of the answer; the other half is the number the rate is applied to, and in California that number is specific. The reviewed rule measures compensation against the value of the estate accounted for. § 10800(b): total appraisal value of inventory property, plus gains over appraisal on sales, plus receipts, less losses; encumbrances are not deducted.

How the California schedule composes, worked through

Each band's rate applies only to its own slice; worked at two amounts:

$300,000 value of the estate accounted for
Band of the base	Rate	Compensation
on the first $100,000	4%	$4,000
on the next $100,000	3%	$3,000
on the next $800,000	2%	$2,000
Total on this base		$9,000

$800,000 value of the estate accounted for
Band of the base	Rate	Compensation
on the first $100,000	4%	$4,000
on the next $100,000	3%	$3,000
on the next $800,000	2%	$12,000
Total on this base		$19,000

Illustrations at round numbers, not a quote for a real estate.

Compensation source

Statute

Cal. Prob. Code § 10800

California Probate Code § 10800 - Compensation of personal representative

The section’s own words

Four percent on the first one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000). (2) Three percent on the next one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000). (3) Two percent on the next eight hundred thousand dollars ($800,000). (4) One percent on the next nine million dollars ($9,000,000). (5) One-half of one percent on the next fifteen million dollars ($15,000,000).

What this means: Above $25,000,000, section 10800(a)(6) provides 'a reasonable amount to be determined by the court', so the schedule is not a fixed percentage at the top band. The base is 'the value of the estate accounted for' (10800(b)): appraisal value of inventory property, plus gains over appraisal on sales, plus receipts, less losses, without reference to encumbrances.

California Legislature · Effective January 1, 2002. · Rechecked October 3, 2026

Sources rechecked October 17, 2026: California source list · how sources are checked · report a correction

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