How Much Do Executors Get Paid in New York?

Every few weeks, a client sits across from me — sometimes a surviving spouse, sometimes an adult child named as executor in a parent's will — and asks a version of the same question: "Wait, I actually get paid for doing this?" The answer is yes. New York law entitles an executor (and an administrator, in an estate without a will) to statutory compensation for the work of settling an estate. What surprises people even more than the fact of payment is how the math actually works — it isn't a flat percentage, it isn't the same for every asset, and it isn't always as simple as multiplying the estate value by a single number.

I handle probate and estate administration matters throughout New York City, and executor commission questions come up in nearly every one of them. Whether you're the executor trying to figure out what you're owed, or a beneficiary wondering why the estate accounting shows a large commission line item, understanding SCPA 2307 — the statute that governs this — will save you a lot of confusion later. Below, I'll walk through the statutory schedule, show you the actual arithmetic on a real dollar figure, and cover the issues that tend to generate disputes: co-executors splitting commission, what counts toward the calculation, whether the money is taxable, and whether a family member should even take it in the first place.

New York's Statutory Commission Schedule

New York doesn't leave executor compensation to guesswork or negotiation. SCPA 2307 sets out a sliding-scale commission schedule that applies to both executors named in a will and administrators appointed when someone dies without one. The rates decrease as the estate grows, which reflects the reality that larger estates don't require proportionally more work — collecting and distributing $5,000,000 doesn't take fifty times the effort of handling $100,000.

The statutory rates break down as follows:

• 5% on the first $100,000
• 4% on the next $200,000
• 3% on the next $700,000
• 2.5% on the next $4,000,000
• 2% on amounts above $5,000,000

This is a tiered calculation, similar in concept to how income tax brackets work — you don't apply one rate to the whole estate. Instead, each slice of value is taxed (so to speak) at its own rate, and you add the pieces together. Let's make this concrete with an estate worth $600,000, a figure that comes up constantly in my practice given New York City real estate and retirement account values.

On a $600,000 estate, the calculation looks like this:

• 5% of the first $100,000 = $5,000
• 4% of the next $200,000 = $8,000
• 3% of the remaining $300,000 = $9,000
• Total commission = $22,000

Notice that $600,000 lands exactly at the top of the third bracket in this example, which makes the math clean. Most real estates fall somewhere inside a bracket, so you'd calculate the full amount of each completed lower bracket and then apply the applicable rate only to the remainder that falls in the current bracket. If you're the executor of an estate and want help running these numbers precisely, our probate team can walk through the calculation with you based on your actual estate inventory.

Commission on Receiving AND Paying Out

This is the detail that trips up almost everyone the first time they hear it, including some executors who've already started reading the statute on their own. Commission under SCPA 2307 is generally computed on both the "receiving" of estate assets and the "paying out" of those assets to creditors and beneficiaries. In practical terms, that means for many assets, the executor is entitled to earn the statutory commission twice — once when the asset comes into the estate, and again when it goes out to satisfy debts or is distributed to heirs.

So an executor who takes possession of $600,000 in bank accounts and investment assets, and later distributes that same $600,000 to the beneficiaries after paying expenses, isn't necessarily limited to the $22,000 figure calculated above as a one-time payment. Depending on how the funds moved through the estate, the executor may be entitled to a commission on receipt of the funds and a separate commission on paying them out, effectively doubling the compensation in some circumstances. There are exceptions — certain specific bequests of money, for example, may only generate a "paying out" commission and not a "receiving" commission, and the rules get technical quickly depending on exactly how an asset entered and left the estate.

I mention this not to make the math more confusing than it needs to be, but because it's one of the most common sources of miscommunication between executors and beneficiaries during an accounting. A beneficiary who does the simple one-time-tier calculation and then sees a commission figure that's meaningfully higher on the final accounting often assumes something improper happened. Usually it hasn't — it's just the receiving-and-paying-out mechanic doing exactly what the statute contemplates. If you're reviewing an estate accounting and the commission number doesn't match your own quick math, that's worth a conversation with an attorney rather than an assumption of wrongdoing.

What Happens With Co-Executors

Many wills name more than one executor — often two siblings, or a spouse and an adult child serving together. SCPA 2307(3) addresses how commission is divided or multiplied when there are co-fiduciaries, and the answer depends heavily on the size of the estate.

For smaller estates, under roughly $100,000, the statute allows only a single full commission, which the co-executors must divide among themselves according to the services each rendered (or equally, if that can't be determined). For estates between approximately $100,000 and $300,000, up to two full commissions may be allowed — meaning two co-executors could each receive a complete statutory commission rather than splitting one. For estates above $300,000, up to three fiduciaries can each be entitled to a full statutory commission.

This structure matters enormously for how a will is drafted and how families think about naming multiple executors. Naming three children as co-executors of a $250,000 estate, for instance, doesn't mean each gets a full commission — the estate falls short of the $300,000 threshold, so at most two full commissions are available to be divided among however many people are actually serving. I go over this with clients regularly during estate planning, because the number of executors you name can have a real, sometimes unintended, effect on how compensation gets allocated later. It's a detail worth discussing before the will is signed, not after someone has died and siblings are trying to sort it out themselves.

What's Excluded From the Commission Base

One of the most frequent questions I get is whether commission is calculated on the full value of an estate, including a house. Generally, the answer is no — at least not automatically. Executor commission under SCPA 2307 is computed on "receiving and paying out" money and personal property. Real property that passes directly to heirs or beneficiaries, without ever being sold or otherwise administered by the executor as cash, typically is not included in the commission calculation base.

The logic makes sense once you see it: commission compensates the executor for the work of collecting, managing, and distributing estate assets. If a house simply transfers by deed to the beneficiaries named in the will, or passes by operation of law, the executor never actually "receives" or "pays out" that value in the way the statute contemplates — the property isn't converted to cash that flows through the executor's hands. If, on the other hand, the executor sells the house during administration and the sale proceeds pass through the estate, those proceeds generally do become part of the commissionable base, because at that point the executor has genuinely handled the money.

This distinction can significantly affect the bottom-line commission figure for New York City estates, where real estate often represents the single largest asset. An executor administering a $1.5 million estate consisting mostly of a co-op or condo that transfers directly to a beneficiary may end up with a far smaller commission than the headline estate value might suggest, because the real property never enters the commission calculation. This is exactly the kind of nuance that makes it worth having a probate attorney review the actual asset composition of an estate before anyone assumes what the commission will be — our overview of probate costs in New York touches on how these variables interact with overall estate administration expenses.

Is Executor Commission Taxable?

Yes, and this is a point I make sure every executor client understands before they get to the accounting stage. Executor commission is taxable income to the person receiving it. It gets reported on the executor's personal income tax return and is subject to ordinary income tax, generally reported similarly to other compensation for services rendered.

This stands in sharp contrast to an inheritance. If you inherit money or property from an estate as a beneficiary, that inheritance itself is not taxed as income to you under federal law (New York does have its own estate tax paid by the estate itself in larger estates, but that's a separate matter from income tax on the person receiving a bequest). Commission, however, is treated as earned compensation, not as a gift or inheritance, precisely because it's payment for services performed as a fiduciary.

This tax treatment has real planning implications, especially for an executor who is also a beneficiary of the same estate — which describes the overwhelming majority of the executors I work with. A surviving spouse or adult child who is both the primary beneficiary and the named executor faces a genuine choice: take the statutory commission as taxable income, or forgo it and simply receive their share as an untaxed inheritance instead.

Should a Family Member Waive Commission?

This question comes up in nearly every family estate I administer, and there's no universal right answer, but there is a pattern I see often. When the executor is also a major beneficiary — say, an only child inheriting the bulk of a modest estate — many people choose to waive commission entirely. The reasoning is straightforward: if you're going to receive most of that money anyway as an inheritance, taking it as taxable commission instead of tax-free inheritance can mean paying income tax for no real financial benefit, since the money was largely going to end up in your pocket regardless.

Family harmony is the other major factor. In families with multiple beneficiaries, an executor who is also a sibling or close relative of the other heirs sometimes waives commission to avoid the appearance of profiting at the expense of siblings who are receiving smaller shares, even when the commission is entirely earned and statutorily justified. I've seen commission disputes do real, lasting damage to family relationships, and a waiver — communicated clearly and early — can head that off before it becomes an issue.

That said, waiving commission isn't automatically the right move, particularly when the estate administration is genuinely time-consuming and complicated — multiple properties, business interests, contentious beneficiaries, or extended litigation. In those situations, the executor has done real work and taking the statutory commission is entirely appropriate and expected. I generally advise clients to think about three things before waiving: how much actual work the administration will require, whether the family dynamic makes a waiver meaningful for harmony, and whether the tax comparison actually favors a waiver given the executor's own inheritance share. This is worth discussing with an attorney early in the process, ideally during the same conversation where you're reviewing the will itself under our wills and trusts guidance, so the decision isn't made reflexively under time pressure later.

It's also worth flagging a related but distinct scenario: trustees administering an ongoing trust, rather than settling a one-time estate, are compensated under a related statute, SCPA 2309, which provides for annual commissions rather than the one-time receiving-and-paying-out structure used for estates. The mechanics differ enough that I won't get into the details here, but if you're serving as both an executor and a trustee of a trust created under the same estate plan, don't assume the same commission rules apply to both roles.

How Commission Disputes Arise

In my experience, commission disputes rarely start as disputes about the statute itself — SCPA 2307 is fairly mechanical once you understand the tiers. They start as disputes about facts and judgment calls that feed into the calculation. A few patterns show up again and again.

First, disagreements over what counts as part of the commissionable base. Beneficiaries sometimes believe the executor is claiming commission on assets — like a home that passed directly by deed — that should have been excluded, or on assets that were mishandled or double-counted. Second, disputes over the double calculation on receiving and paying out, which as I mentioned earlier is often misunderstood by beneficiaries seeing a final accounting for the first time. Third, disagreements among co-executors themselves about how to split a single commission fairly when the statute doesn't spell out a formula beyond "according to the services rendered."

Finally, and perhaps most often, disputes arise simply because nobody explained the commission structure to the beneficiaries at the outset. An executor who discusses commission openly early in the administration — and who documents their time and the work performed, even though New York's system isn't hourly-based — tends to face far less pushback than one who springs the number on beneficiaries for the first time in a final accounting. If you're serving as executor and want to head off exactly this kind of friction, or if you're a beneficiary trying to make sense of commission figures you've already been shown, our overview of executor duties and responsibilities is a useful companion piece, and a conversation with an estate administration attorney can usually resolve the confusion before it hardens into a formal dispute or contested accounting proceeding.

Executor commission in New York isn't complicated once you know the tiers and the handful of rules that shape the calculation base, but it's easy to get wrong without guidance, and the dollar amounts at stake are often significant enough to warrant a careful look. If you're serving as an executor, or if you have questions about commission on an estate you're a beneficiary of, we offer a free consultation to review the numbers with you.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is executor commission calculated in New York?

New York uses a tiered statutory schedule under SCPA 2307: 5% on the first $100,000 of the estate, 4% on the next $200,000, 3% on the next $700,000, 2.5% on the next $4,000,000, and 2% above $5,000,000. Each bracket is calculated separately and the results are added together, similar to how income tax brackets work, rather than applying one flat rate to the entire estate.

What would the commission be on a $600,000 estate?

On a $600,000 estate, the calculation is 5% of the first $100,000 ($5,000), plus 4% of the next $200,000 ($8,000), plus 3% of the remaining $300,000 ($9,000), for a total statutory commission of $22,000. Keep in mind commission may apply separately to receiving and paying out assets, which can affect the final figure.

Does executor commission include real estate?

Generally, no. Real property that passes directly to beneficiaries without being sold or otherwise administered as cash by the executor is typically excluded from the commission calculation base. If the executor sells the property during administration and the proceeds flow through the estate, those proceeds usually do count toward commission.

Is executor commission taxable?

Yes. Commission is taxable income to the executor and must be reported on their personal income tax return, unlike an inheritance, which is not taxed as income to the person receiving it. This distinction matters especially when the executor is also a beneficiary of the estate.

Should a family member serving as executor take the commission?

It depends on the situation. Many family executors, especially those who are also major beneficiaries of a modest estate, choose to waive commission to avoid unnecessary income tax and to preserve family harmony. For estates requiring substantial work, or where the executor isn't the primary beneficiary, taking the statutory commission is often entirely appropriate.