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The cheapest states to get divorced

Ranked by court filing fee, lowest first. Remember: your documents are free with LawCat, and filing fees can usually be waived if you can’t afford them.

#StateFiling feeResidency
1District of ColumbiaAbout $80 for the Complaint for Absolute Divorce.One spouse must have lived in DC for 6 months before filing.
2VermontAbout $90 for a stipulated (fully agreed) divorce with a Vermont-resident spouse ($295 without a complete stipulation).You must have lived in Vermont for 6 months to file, and one spouse for a year before…
3VirginiaAbout $86–$105 for the circuit court filing, plus service costs.One spouse must have been a resident and domiciliary of Virginia for 6 months before…
4South DakotaAbout $95–$100.No minimum length — you must be a bona fide South Dakota resident when you file and stay…
5WyomingAbout $70–$160 by county — among the cheapest states.One spouse must have lived in Wyoming for 60 days before filing — one of the shortest in…
6MaineAbout $120 for the filing, plus $25–$40 for service.The plaintiff must have lived in Maine for 6 months (with alternatives if you married in…
7MississippiAbout $100–$160, varying by county chancery clerk.One spouse must have lived in Mississippi for 6 months before filing.
8West VirginiaAbout $135 to the circuit clerk.One spouse must have lived in West Virginia for 1 year (or you married in WV and one…
9New MexicoAbout $137 (uniform statewide for domestic cases).One spouse must have been domiciled in New Mexico for 6 months before filing.
10KentuckyAbout $113–$250 by county (commonly about $148).One spouse must have lived in Kentucky for 180 days before filing. (KRS 403.140)
11South CarolinaAbout $150.The plaintiff must have lived in South Carolina for 1 year (or 3 months if both spouses…
12NebraskaAbout $158 for the district-court filing.One spouse must have lived in Nebraska for 1 year (or you married in Nebraska and have…
13North DakotaAbout $160 (raised from $80 in July 2025).The plaintiff must have lived in North Dakota for 6 months before filing.
14Rhode IslandAbout $160 for the Family Court divorce complaint.One spouse must have lived in Rhode Island for 1 year.
15ArkansasAbout $165.One spouse must meet Arkansas’s residency requirement (generally 60 days before filing…
16IndianaAbout $157–$177, depending on the county.One spouse must have lived in Indiana for 6 months and in the filing county for 3…
17MarylandAbout $165 for a self-represented divorce filing, plus service costs.If the grounds arose in Maryland, you only need to be a resident when you file…
18DelawareAbout $175 ($165 petition + $10 security fee).One spouse must have been a Delaware resident for 6 months before filing.
19MichiganAbout $175 without minor children, or about $255 with children.One spouse must have lived in Michigan for 180 days and in the filing county for 10 days.
20MissouriAbout $130–$250, varying by circuit/county.One spouse must have lived in Missouri for 90 days before filing.
21IowaAbout $185 for the petition.The petitioner must have been an Iowa resident for 1 year (unless the other spouse is an…
22WisconsinAbout $184.50 ($194.50 when child support or maintenance is requested).One spouse must have lived in Wisconsin for 6 months and in the filing county for 30 days.
23KansasAbout $195 in most counties.One spouse must have lived in Kansas for 60 days before filing — one of the shortest…
24OklahomaAbout $183–$262 by county, plus a co-parenting education fee when children are involved.One spouse must have lived in Oklahoma for 6 months and in the filing county for 30 days.
25IdahoAbout $207 for the petitioner.One spouse must have been an Idaho resident for 6 full weeks (42 days) — one of the…
26HawaiiAbout $215 without minor children ($265 with minor children).One spouse must have been domiciled or physically present in Hawaii for 6 months before…
27MassachusettsAbout $215 for a 1A joint petition ($200 fee + $15 surcharge).One spouse must have lived in MA for at least 1 year, OR the grounds for divorce…
28GeorgiaAbout $200–$225, plus roughly $50 if the sheriff serves the papers.One spouse must have lived in Georgia for 6 months before filing.
29North CarolinaAbout $225 for an absolute divorce, plus about $30 if the sheriff serves the papers.One spouse must have lived in North Carolina for 6 months before filing.
30ColoradoAbout $230 for the petitioner (plus about $116 for a co-petitioner or respondent).One spouse must have been domiciled in Colorado for 91 days before filing.
31AlabamaAbout $200–$350, varying by county.The plaintiff (or the defendant) must have lived in Alabama for 6 months before filing.
32AlaskaAbout $250 for a divorce or dissolution.You must be an Alaska resident when you file (no minimum length).
33MontanaAbout $250 for a dissolution.One spouse must have been domiciled in Montana for 90 days.
34New HampshireAbout $250 (a bit more with children), plus a small TurboCourt payment surcharge.Both spouses domiciled in NH, or the petitioner domiciled here with the other spouse…
35PennsylvaniaVaries widely by county, roughly $170–$350+.One spouse must have lived in Pennsylvania for at least 6 months before filing.
36TennesseeAbout $200–$400, varying by county (higher with children).If the grounds arose out of state, one spouse must have lived in Tennessee for 6 months…
37IllinoisVaries by county, roughly $250–$390 for the petitioner.One spouse must have lived in Illinois for 90 days before the judgment. (750 ILCS 5/401)
38LouisianaVaries by parish — clerks commonly require an advance cost deposit of about $250–$500+.One spouse must be domiciled in Louisiana; venue must be the correct parish (this is…
39NevadaAbout $250–$330, varying by county (Clark County joint petition is about $299).Only 6 weeks of residency by one spouse — the shortest in the country — plus a…
40New JerseyAbout $300 for the Complaint for Divorce; $325 when there are minor children (adds the $25 Parents’ Education Program fee).One spouse must have lived in NJ for at least 12 months before filing (except for the…
41OhioAbout $200–$420, varying by county.One spouse must have lived in Ohio for 6 months (and usually 90 days in the county)…
42TexasAbout $250–$400, varying by county.One spouse must have lived in Texas for 6 months and in the filing county for 90 days.…
43OregonAbout $301 per party for a dissolution.One spouse must have lived in Oregon for 6 months (unless you were married in Oregon).
44ArizonaAbout $280–$365, varying by county (Maricopa petition is about $349).One spouse must have been domiciled in Arizona for 90 days before filing.
45UtahAbout $325 (plus a small document-prep fee if you use the state’s guided interview).One spouse must have lived in a single Utah county for 3 months before filing.
46New YorkAbout $335 total ($210 index number + $95 Request for Judicial Intervention + $30 Note of Issue).One spouse must generally have lived in NY for at least 1 year with a NY connection…
47WashingtonAbout $314–$364, varying by county.No length-of-residency requirement — you only need to be a Washington resident when you…
48ConnecticutAbout $360 court entry fee, plus roughly $40–$75 for a marshal to serve.Generally one spouse must have lived in Connecticut for 12 months before the divorce is…
49MinnesotaAbout $375–$405, varying by county.One spouse must have lived in Minnesota for 180 days before filing.
50FloridaAbout $408–$409 for the dissolution filing, plus about $10 to issue the summons.At least one spouse must have lived in Florida for 6 months before filing (proved by a…
51CaliforniaAbout $435–$450 first-appearance fee (each spouse who appears pays; a few counties add small surcharges).You must have lived in California for 6 months and in the county where you file for 3…

Filing fees are approximate 2026 figures; confirm with your court.

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General information ranked from official 2026 sources; not legal advice. LawCat is not a law firm.