Texas Divorce Cost Estimator

This estimator builds a Texas divorce cost range from your own numbers rather than a national average. You enter the hourly rate or flat fee you were quoted and the filing fee published by your county district clerk; the tool adds the attorney hours each contested component typically requires — children, real property, a QDRO, temporary orders, discovery, mediation, or trial — and shows the resulting low and high range with the hour bands used to produce it.

Last reviewed August 18, 2026

Reviewed by James Derick Winfrey, Attorney at Law

1. How is your attorney charging?

Quoted hourly rate (USD)

2. Court and third-party costs

Filing and service fees are set by each county. Look them up on your district clerk's published fee schedule — there is no statewide amount.

District clerk filing feeService of citationMediator fee (if mediating)

3. What does your case involve?

Children of the marriageConservatorship, possession and access, child support, and medical/dental support terms.+ 3–12 attorney hours
Real property to divideDeed preparation and recording, plus resolving the mortgage — the decree alone does not transfer title.+ 2–8 attorney hours
Retirement account to divide (QDRO)A qualified domestic relations order is drafted, entered, and submitted to the plan administrator.+ 3–8 attorney hours
A business or professional practiceCharacterization and valuation, frequently with a financial expert whose fee is separate.+ 8–40 attorney hours
Contested temporary orders hearingInterim support, possession schedule, and exclusive use of the residence.+ 6–20 attorney hours
Formal written discoveryRequests for disclosure and production, interrogatories, and reviewing the responses.+ 8–30 attorney hours
MediationPreparation plus the session itself. The mediator's fee is separate and entered below.+ 5–14 attorney hours
Final trial (case does not settle)Witness preparation, exhibits, motions, and the trial setting itself.+ 25–80 attorney hours

Your estimated range

Enter an hourly rate above to see an estimate. The tool deliberately has no default rate — it uses your numbers, not an assumed average.

This is an educational estimate, not a quote, not legal advice, and not a prediction of what any case will cost. Hour bands are illustrative planning ranges for typical Texas cases and will not match every matter. Actual fees are set out in a written fee agreement.

How the estimate is calculated

Every Texas divorce starts with the same base work: an Original Petition for Divorce, a decree, and a prove-up after the 60-day waiting period in Texas Family Code § 6.702. That base is modeled at 4–10 hours. Each component you select adds its own hour band, because each one corresponds to a discrete block of work — a hearing, a document set, or a negotiation.

Third-party costs are added separately and are not multiplied by the rate. Filing and service fees go to the county, and the mediator is paid directly. Nothing here assumes a market average, which is why the estimator returns nothing until you enter a rate.