Fifty states, six fields
The same divorce, priced and timed in every state
Nothing about a divorce is national. The filing fee runs from $83 – $94 depending on the circuit court in Virginia to $435 in California ($450 in Riverside and San Francisco) — 5.2 times the price for the same legal act. In 13 states no rule makes the judge wait after filing once both spouses agree, though North Carolina and Virginia first require time living apart; California makes you wait 6 months from service. Every figure below is sourced, and the ones we have not finished say so.
New, 28 September 2026: does filing for divorce stop your spouse selling the house? — all fifty states, read from the statute. It happens automatically in 22 states, only in some counties in 8, and not at all in 20.
What the filing-fee column is: the fee to open a plain divorce — no children, no extra counts, no deposit against costs. In the 20 states where counties set their own fees it is the range across the counties we read directly. That is why the figures here run lower than the ranges on what divorce costs in every state, which adds what the same courts charge once children, additional counts or an advance deposit are involved: Ohio’s county cost deposits reach $550 and Louisiana’s parish deposits $500 there ($600 with a rule and a TRO), and neither is the price of a plain filing.
5.2×
The spread in filing fees between the cheapest state (Virginia, $83 – $94 depending on the circuit court) and the dearest (California, $435, or $450 in Riverside and San Francisco).
20
States where the filing fee changes depending on which county you file in. A single national figure is wrong in all of them.
25
States where a self-represented filer cannot simply choose: 18 file on paper or are closed out, 3 must e-file, 4 depend on the county or parish.
1101
Official state forms catalogued, 803 carrying the revision date a clerk actually checks.
Compare all fifty
Type a state, or sort by what you care about. Each state name links to its full guide — the forms, the deadlines and the costs in detail. Sorting uses an approximate day count so the columns can be ordered; the text in each cell is the exact sourced wording, which is what you should rely on.
If you and your spouse agree on everything, see uncontested divorce, by state for each state’s agreed route, and legal separation vs divorce, by state if you are not ready to end the marriage. If you believe the marriage was never valid, see annulment, by state. For when a judge can make one spouse pay the other’s lawyer, see who pays attorney’s fees, by state.
See every state’s filing fee in one table: Divorce Filing Fees by State, 2026.
All 50 states.
| State | Filing fee | Waiting period | Residency required | E-filing, self-represented | Official forms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $192 to $324 (Marion $192, Montgomery $194, Jefferson-Birmingham $199, Baldwin $227, Madison $324) varies by county | 30 days from filing | 6 months before filing when your spouse lives outside AlabamaAla. Code § 30-2-5 | Your choice | 19 newest rev. 12/21 |
| Alaska | $250 | 30 days from filing; the court can shorten it for good causeAlaska R. Civ. P. 90.1(c) | No minimum duration — no residency waiting period | Required of you | 40 newest rev. 12/25 |
| Arizona | $261 to $436 (statewide floor $261; Pima $436 with county add-ons) varies by county | 60 days from serviceA.R.S. § 25-329 | 90 days before filing (or active-duty stationed here 90+ days)A.R.S. § 25-312 | Your choice | 34 |
| Arkansas | $165 | 30 days from filing — but where residency began recently, the 3-months-before-decree rule may control instead | 60 days before filing, and continued residence through 3 full months before the decreeArk. Code § 9-12-307(a)(1)(A) | You file on paper | 7 |
| California | $435 ($450 in Riverside and San Francisco) | 6 months from service | 6 months in the state AND 3 months in the filing county — both | Your choice | 26 newest rev. new 07/26 |
| Colorado | $260 | 91 days from joint filing or service on the other spouseC.R.S. § 14-10-106 | 91 days domiciled before filingC.R.S. § 14-10-106(1)(a)(I) | Your choice | 15 newest rev. 12/25 |
| Connecticut | $360 | 90 days on the regular docket; about 30 days on nonadversarial dissolutionCGS § 46b-67 | 12 months before filing or before the decree, or domiciled here at the marriage and returned intending to stayCGS § 46b-44 | Your choice | 22 newest rev. 12/21 |
| Delaware | $175 ($165 + $10 court security assessment) | Set by the separation date — none at all on the misconduct ground13 Del. C. §§ 1503, 1505(b)(2) | 6 consecutive months before filing (or stationed here in the military)13 Del. C. § 1504 | Paper only | 13 newest rev. 12/25 |
| Florida | $397.50 – $409 by county (most $408) | 20 days from filing before any final judgment | 6 months before filing | Your choice | 29 newest rev. 10/23 |
| Georgia | $213 to $220 (Webster $213; Fulton and Gwinnett $220), on county schedules dated July 2024 or later varies by county | 31 days after service with both spouses’ written consent; 46 days if unansweredGa. Unif. Super. Ct. R. 24.6 | 6 months before filingO.C.G.A. § 19-5-2 | Depends on your county | 11 newest rev. online tool |
| Hawaii | $215 ($265 with minor children) | No hard statutory floor — typically 6–10 weeks in practice | 6 continuous months in the state AND 3 continuous months in the filing circuitHRS § 580-1 | Paper to open the case | 52 newest rev. 12/21 |
| Idaho | $207 | 21 days from service before default papers may be prepared, then 6 days after a Notice of Intent to Take Default; a separate 20-day reconciliation period exists under I.C. § 32-716Idaho CAO D Instruction 7-1; Idaho Code § 32-716 | 6 full weeks immediately before filingIdaho Code § 32-701 | Your choice | 26 newest rev. 11/17 |
| Illinois | Cook $388, Kane $369 ($459 with children), DuPage $355 varies by county | No fixed statewide floor beyond the 90-day residency rule | 90 continuous days before the court can enter judgment750 ILCS 5/401(a) | Required of you | 31 newest rev. 12/24 |
| Indiana | $157 to $177 ($157 statewide; $177 in counties with an approved ADR plan, which add $20) varies by county | 60 days from the date of filingInd. Code § 31-15-2-10 | 6 months in the state AND 3 months in the filing countyInd. Code § 31-15-2-6 | Your choice | 4 |
| Iowa | $285 | 90 days before a decree, from the later of service, last publication, or the filing of a waiver or acceptance of noticeIowa Code § 598.19 | 1 year before filing — unless the respondent lives in Iowa and is personally served there, when it does not apply at allIowa Code § 598.5(1)(k) | Required of you | 28 newest rev. 06/24 |
| Kansas | $195 (+$1.50 Johnson, +$2 Sedgwick) varies by county | 60 days from filing before the case can be heardK.S.A. 23-2708 | 60 days immediately before filingK.S.A. 23-2703 | You file on paper | 24 newest rev. 07/25 |
| Kentucky | $228, plus a county facility or library fee where adopted varies by county | 60 days living apart before any decree; with minor children, 60 days after serviceKRS 403.170(1); KRS 403.044 | 180 days next preceding the filing of the petitionKRS 403.140 | You file on paper | 19 newest rev. 12/23 |
| Louisiana | No filing fee. Parish advance deposit $240 to $500 for a plain divorce with one service (East Baton Rouge $240 to Jefferson $500; deposits up to $600 with a rule and a TRO) varies by parish | Depends entirely on the ground — none on certain fault grounds; Arts. 102 and 103 differ on whether the wait precedes filingLa. Civ. Code Arts. 102, 103 | Domiciled in Louisiana at the time of filing — no fixed number-of-months requirementCode Civ. Pro. Art. 10(A)(7) | Depends on your parish | 9 |
| Maine | $120 | 60 days after service before a final hearingMe. R. Civ. P. 113 | 6 months (plaintiff)19-A M.R.S. § 901 | Depends on your county | 15 newest rev. 12/20 |
| Maryland | $165 | None on irreconcilable differences — no waiting period and no separation requirementMd. Family Law § 7-103(a)(2) | 6 months before filing where the grounds arose outside Maryland; where they arose in Maryland, current residence is enoughMd. Family Law § 7-101 | Your choice | 20 newest rev. 10/25 |
| Massachusetts | $215 ($220 for a 1B complaint) | 1B: 6 months from filing before a hearing can even be held. 1A joint petition: no six-month floorMGL c.208 § 1B | 1 year before filing, OR domiciled here now with the cause arising here while the spouses lived here togetherMGL c.208 § 5 | Your choice | 15 |
| Michigan | $175 ($255 with minor children) | 60 days from filing with no minor children; 6 months from filing with minor children under 18 | 180 days in Michigan and 10 days in the filing countyMCL 552.9 | Your choice | 15 newest rev. varies |
| Minnesota | $390 plus a county law library fee (Hennepin $402; Ramsey, Dakota and St. Louis $405; 83 counties unread) varies by county | No fixed statutory waiting period for most divorces | 180 days immediately before filing (residence, domicile, or military stationing)Minn. Stat. § 518.07 | Your choice | 22 |
| Mississippi | $148 to $168 varies by county | 60 days on file before the case can be heard on the consent trackMiss. Code § 93-5-2 | 6 months immediately before filing, actual and bona fideMiss. Code § 93-5-5 | You file on paper | 10 |
| Missouri | $97.50 to $177.50 deposit against costs, not a fee, with no children (Buchanan $97.50; Jackson $144.50; St. Louis County $148.50; St. Louis City $177.50); up to $197.50 with children (Clay) varies by county | 30 days after filing before a judge can enter judgmentRSMo 452.305 | 90 days immediately before filing (or a service member stationed here)RSMo 452.305 | Closed to you | 13 newest rev. 12/2025 |
| Montana | $170 | None on a joint petition; if one spouse files, 21 days after serviceM.C.A. § 40-4-105(3) | 90 days of maintained domicile before filingM.C.A. § 40-4-104(1)(a) | You file on paper | 38 newest rev. 9/21 |
| Nebraska | $200 | 60 days, running from service or Voluntary Appearance — not from filingNeb. Rev. Stat. § 42-363 | 1 full year of actual residence with intent to make a permanent homeNeb. Rev. Stat. § 42-349 | You file on paper | 40 +1 court guide; 11 at Rev. 05/2026 |
| Nevada | $284 (Washoe County, Reno) to $299 (Clark County, Las Vegas); the two counties confirmed varies by county | No statutory waiting period | 6 weeks before the case is filedNRS 125.020(2) | Your choice | 21 |
| New Hampshire | $280.00 | None where a permanent agreement is attached — the decree is effective the day it is signedFamily Division Rule 2.29(A) | On the day of filing: both spouses live here, OR the petitioner lives here and the other spouse can be personally served here, OR the petitioner has been domiciled here a full yearRSA 458:5 | You file on paper | 18 |
| New Jersey | $300 | None stated for the no-fault ground; none at all on adultery | 1 full year before filing; on adultery, residence since the cause arose is enoughN.J.S.A. 2A:34-10 | Your choice | 19 newest rev. 11/24 |
| New Mexico | $137 | No fixed statutory waiting period before a decree can be signed | 6 months immediately before filing, plus genuine domicileNMSA 40-4-5 | You file on paper | 26 |
| New York | $210 to file ($335 total for an uncontested divorce) | 40 days — waivable by the defendant signing the Affirmation of Defendant (UD-7) | Any ONE of four tests: 2 years continuous; or 1 year plus a marriage/residence nexus; or the grounds arose here and both live here; or married here, lived here, and 1 year continuous | Your choice | 26 newest rev. 12/23/25 |
| North Carolina | $225.00 | None beyond the one-year separation itself | 6 months before filingN.C. Gen. Stat. § 50-6 | Your choice | 11 newest rev. 12/23 |
| North Dakota | $160 / $100 varies by county | No minimum waiting period in the divorce chapterN.D.C.C. ch. 14-05 (checked) | 6 months immediately before filing OR 6 months immediately before the decree is enteredN.D.C.C. § 14-05-17 | Your choice | 34 newest rev. 10/25 |
| Ohio | $200 to $550 cost deposit (Franklin $275, Delaware $385, Hancock $550) varies by county | Dissolution: the final hearing must fall between 30 and 90 days after filing, and the case can be dismissed after day 90. Divorce: nothing final before 42 days after serviceR.C. 3105.64; Ohio Civ.R. 75(K) | 6 months in Ohio; file in a county where you have lived 90 days or another proper venueR.C. 3105.03; Ohio Civ.R. 3(C) | Your choice | 21 |
| Oklahoma | $245.89 to $258.39 varies by county | 90 days where there are minor children — waivable only for good cause and only if neither spouse objects; no fixed floor otherwise | 6 months immediately before the petition is filed (or 6 months on a U.S. military post in the state)43 O.S. § 102 | You file on paper | 14 |
| Oregon | $301 | No fixed statutory waiting period after filing | 6 continuous months before filing — unless the marriage took place in Oregon, when current residence is enoughORS 107.075 | Your choice | 23 newest rev. 09/25 |
| Pennsylvania | $93.00 – $398.00, Potter to Bucks — ask your Prothonotary varies by county | 90 days after service on mutual consent; 1 year of separation otherwise23 Pa.C.S. § 3301(c), (d) | 6 months before filing, bona fide resident23 Pa.C.S. § 3104(b) | Your choice | 19 |
| Rhode Island | $120.00 | 3 months after the trial and decision before the Final Judgment becomes final and operative on irreconcilable differences or a fault ground — 20 days on the 3-year separation groundR.I. Gen. Laws § 15-5-23 | 1 year as a domiciled inhabitant residing continuously — satisfied instead if the defendant meets the same test and is servedR.I. Gen. Laws § 15-5-12 | Your choice | 13 newest rev. 09/23 |
| South Carolina | $150 | 2 months before a reference and 3 months before a final decree, counted from filing — but NOT on the one-year-separation ground, which is South Carolina’s own no-fault ground: there the hearing may be held and the decree issued once responsive pleadings are filed or the respondent is in defaultS.C. Code § 20-3-80 | 1 year (plaintiff) — or 3 months where both spouses live in South CarolinaS.C. Code § 20-3-30 | You file on paper | 20 newest rev. 12/15 |
| South Dakota | $97 | 60 days from service — applies to all three tracks | Resident at the time the action is filed — no fixed number of days required by statuteSDCL § 25-4-30 | You file on paper | 25 newest rev. 07/26 |
| Tennessee | $234.50 (Davidson) to $356.50 (Shelby) with no minor children, $309.50 to $431.50 with minor children: a $125 clerk cost ($200 with children) plus litigation tax and local charges varies by county | 60 days without a minor child; 90 days with one | 6 months before filingTenn. Code Ann. § 36-4-104 | Depends on your county | 4 newest rev. 01/21 |
| Texas | $350 – $401 $350 statewide; DRO counties add up to $51 where there are children | 60 days from the date the suit was filed — "the court may not grant a divorce before the 60th day"Tex. Family Code § 6.702(a) | 6 months domiciled in the state AND 90 days resident in the filing countyTex. Family Code § 6.301 | Your choice | 27 newest rev. 11-2021 |
| Utah | $350 | 30 days, and the same period applies to every divorceUtah Code Title 81 | 90 days in the county where the case is filed — county, not just the stateUtah Code § 81-4-402(1) | You file on paper | 17 |
| Vermont | $295.00 / $90.00 / $180.00 by filing route | The decree is a decree nisi and becomes absolute only 90 days after entry; 1 year of residency is also needed before the final hearing15 V.S.A. §§ 554, 592 | 6 months to file; 1 year before the final hearing15 V.S.A. § 592 | Your choice | 19 |
| Virginia | $83 – $94 depending on the circuit court varies by county | No wait after filing; 1 year living apart first (6 months with no minor children and a separation agreement)Va. Code § 20-91(A)(9)(a) | 6 months before filing, actual bona fide resident and domiciliaryVa. Code § 20-97 | Closed to you | 11 newest rev. 07/24 (instructions) |
| Washington | $364 | 90 days — the same floor for every case, agreed or notRCW 26.09.030 | No minimum duration — residence or domicile is enough | Your choice | 22 newest rev. 10/23 |
| West Virginia | $135 | No final hearing until the time to answer has run: 20 days after service, 30 by publicationW. Va. R. Prac. & P. Fam. Ct. 21(c) | 1 uninterrupted year where the marriage took place elsewhere; otherwise current residency | You file on paper | 17 newest rev. 12/24 |
| Wisconsin | $273, or $293 where the petition requests support or maintenance; Milwaukee County adds $7.50 varies by county | 120 days — no final hearing before 120 days after service (filing alone) or after filing (joint petition)Wis. Stat. § 767.335(1) | 6 months in the state AND 30 days in the filing countyWis. Stat. § 767.301 | Your choice | 22 newest rev. 12/22 |
| Wyoming | $160 | 20 days from the date the complaint is filed — "a divorce decree shall not be entered less than twenty (20) days from the date the complaint is filed"Wyo. Stat. § 20-2-108 | 60 days immediately before filing — or the marriage took place in Wyoming with one spouse living here sinceWyo. Stat. § 20-2-107 | You file on paper | 76 newest rev. 12/25 |
Where these numbers come from
Six fields, four different levels of certainty. Here is which is which.
- Filing fee and official forms — read straight out of the cost table and form table on each state guide, where they were authored as those values. 48 of 50 fees; 1,101 form records.
- E-filing access for a self-represented filer — from our fifty-state e-filing audit, which read each court system’s own e-filing rules. Eighteen states will not let a self-represented person open a divorce by e-filing, three require it, and in four it depends on the county or parish.
- Residency and waiting period — these are written in prose, not tables. A pattern was used to surface candidate sentences and then every one of the hundred was read by hand and the value typed from the sentence. The citation shown is the one the source gives; where a source states a rule without citing it, no citation is shown rather than one we supplied. 43 of 50 residency values and 30 of 50 waiting-period values carry a citation.
- Eight waiting periods were not stated on our own guides. Rather than leave holes or guess, each was checked against the statute. Two of the eight found a fact missing from our own page, and both are now corrected: Wyoming’s 20-day floor on entering a decree (Wyo. Stat. § 20-2-108) and South Carolina’s two-months-to-reference, three-months-to-decree rule (S.C. Code § 20-3-80).
- The fee-waiver threshold is not on this page. It is the sixth field and it is unfinished. We would rather show five fields than print a sixth we have not read state by state.
What this table cannot do. Court fees and rules change, and in 20 states the filing fee depends on your county, so a single figure is an indication and not a quote. Always confirm with the clerk of the court you are actually filing in. This is published information, not legal advice, and we are not a law firm.
Dataset version 1.0.0, content hash 513f9d43c885c06d, generated 2026-09-14. Every mistake we have found and fixed is listed, with its severity, on our corrections page.
Need the detail for your state?
Every state has a full guide: the forms with revision dates, the real cost table, and a deadline calculator that exports to your calendar.
Dating this page honestly. It was first published on 13 September 2026, and the sources named on it were read in the course of writing it. That is a publication date, not a re-check date — we have not re-read every source since, and we are not going to print a “sources last checked” stamp for a check that did not happen. When this page is next swept against its sources, the stamp will change and say so.