This tool provides general cost estimates for informational purposes only. It is NOT legal advice. Costs vary significantly based on individual circumstances. Consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for specific guidance.
2026 cost estimates for divorce in Pennsylvania, including attorney fees, court costs, and other expenses.
As of June 29, 2026, a divorce in Pennsylvania costs on average $8,400, typically $4,650-$14,000 for a moderate-complexity case, based on sourced attorney-fee and court-cost data. Typical attorney rates run $205 to $410 per hour. A moderate-complexity case typically takes 3-6 months to resolve. Common related costs include court filing fee ($100-$400) and service of process ($50-$100).
Data verified: June 29, 2026
| Complexity | Low | Median | High | Typical Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple | $1,400 | $2,800 | $4,700 | 1-3 months |
| Moderate | $4,650 | $8,400 | $14,000 | 3-6 months |
| Complex | $15,400 | $22,600 | $36,000 | 6-18 months |
Last verified: June 2026
$205 – $410/ hour
Median: $310/hr
3-6 months
For moderate complexity cases
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</script>Divorce costs form around two variables that compound each other: how much the spouses disagree on, and how many separate issues (property division, child custody, child support, alimony) are in dispute. An uncontested divorce with no minor children and no real estate can resolve with a single court filing fee and a document-preparation charge. Once custody or asset division is contested, cost accumulates from discovery (formal document exchange), mediation sessions billed hourly, and — in the most complex cases — expert witnesses such as forensic accountants (business or investment valuation) and custody evaluators.
Attorney billing in divorce is typically hourly rather than flat-fee, because the number of court appearances and negotiation rounds is not knowable in advance. A retainer is paid upfront and drawn down as the attorney bills time; complex cases often require replenishing the retainer more than once. Court filing fees and mediation fees are set by the state or county and apply regardless of which attorney is hired.
Take a moderate-complexity divorce matter in Pennsylvania. The recorded median total is $8,400, with reported quotes clustering between $4,650 and $14,000. Each statutory line below is sized against that median.
Added together the itemised lines come to $700–$2,600, which leaves roughly $5,800–$7,700 of the Pennsylvania median as professional time — the part that differs between quotes. One further recorded fee is not itemised above and is not in that total.
At $8,400, the median divorce cost in Pennsylvania runs 5% below the $8,798 national average across all 50 states and DC.
Pennsylvania carries 3 rows — simple, $1,400–$4,700 at $155–$310/hr over 1-3 months; moderate, $4,650–$14,000 at $205–$410/hr over 3-6 months; complex, $15,400–$36,000 at $285–$515/hr over 6-18 months — on 4 shared citations. They put it below the midpoint of the table without reaching the bottom quarter.
$8,400 is a median, not the middle of the band — $3,750 above the $4,650 floor, $5,600 under the $14,000 ceiling. Every rank below is out of 51.
Pennsylvania occupies the 27th row of 51 for a divorce. Its $8,400 median trails the $8,550 table midpoint by $150, which is 2% — close enough that a single firm's quote can straddle both figures.
Arizona ($8,550) and Wisconsin ($8,300) bracket Pennsylvania inside a $250 window — narrow enough that 27th is close to arbitrary.
Arizona, Wisconsin, Wyoming record medians within three percent of Pennsylvania's $8,400. A divorce quote anywhere in that group is describing effectively the same market.
Pennsylvania ranks 22nd of 51 on hourly rate at $310 an hour and 27th on total cost — 5 places apart, enough that the rate is a slightly optimistic guide to the total.
| Rank | State | Median | Against Pennsylvania |
|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | Minnesota | $9,350 | +$950 |
| 22 | Georgia | $8,950 | +$550 |
| 23 | Nevada | $8,950 | +$550 |
| 24 | Texas | $8,900 | +$500 |
| 25 | Oregon | $8,850 | +$450 |
| 26 | Arizona | $8,550 | +$150 |
| 27 | Pennsylvania | $8,400 | — |
| 28 | Wisconsin | $8,300 | −$100 |
| 29 | Wyoming | $8,250 | −$150 |
| 30 | Missouri | $8,100 | −$300 |
| 31 | Florida | $8,000 | −$400 |
| 32 | Ohio | $8,000 | −$400 |
| 33 | Iowa | $7,950 | −$450 |
The rows within ten percent are lopsided: 10 below Pennsylvania against 5 above. $150 up or $100 down moves Pennsylvania a row, so a downward revision would cost the state far more places than an equivalent upward one would gain — the 27th position is propped up by a thin divorce field above it and a crowded one beneath.
Climbing five places would mean passing Georgia, Nevada, Texas, Oregon, Arizona and adding $550 to the $8,400 recorded here.
Five places down means passing under Wisconsin, Wyoming, Missouri, Florida, Ohio: $400.
$4,500 short of Hawaii ($12,900), $2,350 clear of Alabama ($6,050).
The $8,400 median divided by the $310 median rate implies roughly 27 billable hours. The peer median is 30 hours: Pennsylvania reaches its total in 3 fewer implied hours, because the rate rather than the workload carries more of it.
The 8.1x step from the simple to the complex tier breaks down as 4.9x the hours against 1.67x the rate — 12 hours at $230 becomes 59 hours at $385. Hours dominate, but the rate contribution is large enough to notice.
From $4,650 to $14,000 the moderate band is $9,350 wide, close to the $9,550 peer median. End to end that is 30 hours at $310.
Per month of elapsed time the two tiers are close: about $1,867 a month across the 3-6 months recorded for a moderate matter, and $1,883 a month across the 6-18 months recorded for a complex one.
By implied hours Pennsylvania falls to 50th of 51 at 27 hours, 23 places below its 27th on cost — the divorce total arriving on less recorded work.
42% up the $4,650–$14,000 band sits the $8,550 table midpoint, buying 28 hours at $310 against the 27 the local divorce median implies — 1 hour apart.
| Measure | Pennsylvania | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Moderate median | $8,400 | 27th |
| Hourly median | $310 | 22nd |
| Implied hours | 27 | 50th |
| Simple median | $2,800 | 31st |
| Complex median | $22,600 | 22nd |
$310 an hour puts Pennsylvania between Utah ($315) and Arizona ($305) — not the divorce cost pairing.
No other tracked state records $310 as its median rate, so the figure identifies Pennsylvania on its own within this dataset.
$8,400 buys 37 hours at $230, 27 at $310, 22 at $385.
| Rank | State | Median rate |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | Texas | $315 |
| 21 | Utah | $315 |
| 22 | Pennsylvania | $310 |
| 23 | Arizona | $305 |
| 24 | Wisconsin | $305 |
Pennsylvania moves up the table as complexity rises: 31st at the simple tier, 27th at moderate, 22nd at complex, a 9-place climb. The state's position on the headline moderate figure understates where it sits once a matter is contested.
$2,800 is 31st of 51 on a straightforward divorce, under Georgia ($2,800) and over Tennessee ($2,800), $100 under the $2,900 tier midpoint.
$22,600 is 22nd of 51 once contested, between Florida ($22,800) and Illinois ($22,050), $800 off the $21,800 tier midpoint.
The lower two bands run into each other — the simple tier tops out at $4,700 against a moderate floor of $4,650 — but there is a clear gap of $1,400 between the moderate ceiling of $14,000 and the complex floor of $15,400. In Pennsylvania the jump into contested work is a step, not a slope.
| Tier | Pennsylvania | Rank | Tier midpoint | Implied hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| simple | $2,800 | 31st | $2,900 | 12 |
| moderate | $8,400 | 27th | $8,550 | 27 |
| complex | $22,600 | 22nd | $21,800 | 59 |
$2,800 drops Pennsylvania to 31st of 51 on straightforward matters, 4 below its moderate position and $100 (3%) under the $2,900 tier midpoint.
12 implied hours at $230: 44% of the moderate tier's 27, over 1-3 months.
Georgia ($2,800) and Tennessee ($2,800) bracket it — a $0 window.
5 states record a simple-tier median within three percent of $2,800, denser than the 3 around the moderate row.
$22,600 puts Pennsylvania 22nd of 51 on contested matters, 5 up on its moderate position, and $800 (4%) over the $21,800 tier midpoint.
59 implied hours at $385: 219% of the moderate tier's 27, over 6-18 months.
Florida ($22,800) and Illinois ($22,050) bracket it — a $750 window.
7 states record a complex-tier median within three percent of $22,600, denser than the 3 around the moderate row.
| Rank | State | Median |
|---|---|---|
| 29 | Ohio | $2,850 |
| 30 | Georgia | $2,800 |
| 31 | Pennsylvania | $2,800 |
| 32 | Tennessee | $2,800 |
| 33 | Montana | $2,750 |
| Rank | State | Median |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | Maine | $22,850 |
| 21 | Florida | $22,800 |
| 22 | Pennsylvania | $22,600 |
| 23 | Illinois | $22,050 |
| 24 | Wyoming | $21,950 |
$8,400 ranks a divorce 2nd of 8 in Pennsylvania, under Criminal Defense, over DUI / DWI. At 80% of Criminal Defense ($10,450).
Across practice areas Pennsylvania ranges from 17th of 51 for Personal Injury to 31st for DUI / DWI — a 14-place spread, with its 27th on divorce inside it.
Pennsylvania is not equally priced in every practice area. Measured against each matter's own midpoint, Immigration runs 6% above its own midpoint while DUI / DWI runs 7% below its own midpoint — a 13-point spread between the extremes.
The largest tracked median in Pennsylvania is 5.2x the smallest, effectively the 5.1x that the typical state records: the internal spread is ordinary even where the levels are not.
1 of 8 matter types rank Pennsylvania in the upper third, 0 in the lower, 7 between; divorce is 27th.
In percentile terms it sits at the 48th percentile of the 51 tracked states.
| Matter | Simple | Moderate | Complex | Hours | Rank | vs mid | Above |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Criminal Defense | $3,300 | $10,450 | $29,650 | 34 | 23rd | +2% | Illinois |
| Divorce | $2,800 | $8,400 | $22,600 | 27 | 27th | −2% | Arizona |
| DUI / DWI | $3,700 | $6,950 | $16,050 | 24 | 31st | −7% | Montana |
| Immigration | $2,250 | $5,050 | $11,000 | 18 | 22nd | +6% | Virginia |
| Personal Injury | $1,600 | $5,000 | $15,900 | — | 17th | −4% | Michigan |
| Bankruptcy | $1,650 | $3,800 | $4,800 | 15 | 19th | +6% | New Jersey |
| Real Estate Closing | $1,050 | $2,300 | $4,800 | 9 | 21st | +3% | Nevada |
| Estate Planning / Probate | $650 | $2,000 | $5,900 | 7 | 27th | −4% | Minnesota |
Simple tier. $2,800 ÷ $230 = about 12 hours, spread over 1-3 months at roughly $1,400 a month. The $5,600 step to the moderate tier is 15 more hours at that rate.
Work against price. $8,400 to $22,600 is a $14,200 step, mostly work: 32 more hours at $310 is $9,920, while moving to $385 across 59 hours adds $4,425. Work carries 69%.
Borrowing the wrong row. Budgeting from Wisconsin ($8,300) lands $100 under Pennsylvania; from Arizona ($8,550), $150 over; from the $8,550 table midpoint, $150 out.
Both ends, in time. $4,650 is 15 hours at $310; $14,000 is 45. Over the 3-6 months recorded for a moderate divorce, that is 3 to 10 hours a month — the difference between an occasional file review and continuous work.
Contested against simple. At Pennsylvania's own recorded figures, $22,600 buys 8.1 matters at the $2,800 simple median — or, counted in time, 59 implied hours against 12, a factor of 4.9 — the two ratios differing because the rate rises with the tier.
Verified June 2026. Filing fees change on the Pennsylvaniacourt's own schedule; billing models are covered in the legal fees guide.
This tool provides general cost estimates for informational purposes only. It is NOT legal advice. Costs vary significantly based on individual circumstances. Consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for specific guidance.