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Finding a will or probate case in South Carolina

Who holds it: County Probate Court; an elected Probate Judge in each county has jurisdiction over estates, marriage licenses, guardianships, conservatorships1

Last checked against official sources on .

On this page
  1. How to search and order
  2. Fees
  3. More details
  4. Related records in South Carolina
  5. How South Carolina handles it
  6. Probate and wills in South Carolina counties with a full guide
  7. Official copies vs look-alike sites
  8. Sources

Copy fee

Uniform: $5.00 certified copy; $20.00 exemplified/authenticated copy; $10.00 filing and indexing a will under § 62-2-9012

How to search and order

Online
County systems only. Example, Horry: subscription portal at scportal.hostedbyspartan.com linked from the county site; Oconee: index only, no images3
Online example2
Oconee estates are index only4

Fees

Exemplified fee
$20.002
Will index fee
$10.002
Estate fee
Sliding scale by estate value: $25 under $5,000; $45 under $20,000; $67.50 under $60,000; $95 under $100,000; then a percentage2

More details

Jurisdiction
Exclusive original jurisdiction over estates, including will contests5
Filing a will
Custodian must deliver a will to the Probate Judge within 30 days of notice of death; the judge files it6
Courts: court system
State-run court system with county clerks: Circuit Court (Common Pleas civil, General Sessions criminal), Family Court, Probate Court, Magistrate and Municipal courts; 16 judicial circuits. An elected Clerk of Court in each county keeps circuit and family court records.7
Courts: statewide case search
Public Index, reached from sccourts.org/case-records-search: one county-by-county link for each of the 46 counties (Charleston and Greenville are hosted on county servers); some municipal courts included8
Courts: fees
Civil filing: $100 under § 8-21-310(C)(1) plus $50 under § 14-1-204(B)(1) ($150 total); $10 for an official certificate under seal2
Death certificates: who holds it
State: SC DPH Vital Records; any Vital Records office can issue for any county9
Death certificates: fee
$12 search including one certified copy; $17 expedited; $3 per additional copy9

How South Carolina handles it

  • Marriage licenses come from the Clerk of Court, not the Probate Judge, in Darlington and Georgetown counties10

Probate and wills in South Carolina counties with a full guide

The local office, its official online search and its own fee, for each county with a full guide. Local fees can differ from the statewide figures above.

CountyOfficeSearch onlineFee
Aiken CountyProbate Court11——
Anderson CountyAnderson County Probate Court12Search12Uniform: $5.00 certified copy; $20.00 exemplified/authenticated copy; $10.00 filing and indexing a will under § 62-2-90113
Beaufort CountyBeaufort County Probate Court15Search14$.50 per page made by staff; $.30 per page made by the public16
Berkeley CountyBerkeley County Probate Court17—Statewide probate fee: certified copy $5.0018
Charleston CountyProbate Court; Estate & Wills Search linked by the county19——
Cherokee CountyProbate Court20Search20$5.00 certified copy (statewide probate fee schedule)21
Dorchester CountyDorchester County Probate Court22——
Florence CountyFlorence County Probate Court23Search23$.50/page copies24
Greenville CountyGreenville County Probate Court25Search25Statewide uniform probate fee: certified copy $5.0026
Horry CountyProbate Court Records System (paid monthly or annual subscription): view, download and print public Horry probate records online27——
Lancaster CountyProbate Court29Search28Uniform: $5.00 certified copy; $20.00 exemplified/authenticated copy; $10.00 filing and indexing a will under § 62-2-90130
Lexington CountyProbate Court31——
Oconee CountyProbate Court32——
Pickens CountyProbate Court33—Uniform: $5.00 certified copy; $20.00 exemplified/authenticated copy; $10.00 filing and indexing a will under § 62-2-90134
Richland CountyProbate Court36Search35Copies $.50 per page; search fee $3.00; issuing certified copies $5.00; exemplified/authenticated copies $20.0037
Spartanburg CountyProbate Court38—Uniform: $5.00 certified copy; $20.00 exemplified/authenticated copy; $10.00 filing and indexing a will under § 62-2-90139
Sumter CountySumter County Probate Court40—$5.00 certified copy (state fee statute)41
York CountyYork County Probate Court42Search42Cost: Free to view; $2.00 per document to print42

For any other county, see the county list on the South Carolina guide.

Official copies vs look-alike sites

A certified copy comes only from the office that holds the record; reports and "research copies" sold by commercial sites are not issued by any South Carolina office. How to tell an official record source from a paid look-alike.

Rules in other states: probate records and wills in every state. Everything else in South Carolina: South Carolina public records guide.

Sources

Every fact above links to the official page it comes from. Fees and rules change, so check the office's own page before you pay or travel.

  1. Probate CourtSC Judicial Branchchecked November 4, 2026
  2. SC Code Title 8 Chapter 21, Fees and CostsSC Legislaturechecked November 4, 2026
  3. Probate CourtHorry Countychecked November 4, 2026
  4. Probate CourtOconee Countychecked November 4, 2026
  5. SC Code Title 62 Article 1, Probate Code GeneralSC Legislaturechecked November 4, 2026
  6. SC Code Title 62 Article 2, Intestate Succession and WillsSC Legislaturechecked November 4, 2026
  7. Clerks of CourtSC Judicial Branchchecked November 4, 2026
  8. Case Records SearchSC Judicial Brancharchived copychecked November 4, 2026
  9. Death CertificatesSC Department of Public Healtharchived copychecked November 4, 2026
  10. SC Code Title 20 Chapter 1, MarriageSC Legislaturechecked November 4, 2026
  11. Probate Court | Aiken County, SCAiken County, South Carolinachecked November 7, 2026
  12. Probate CourtAnderson County, SCchecked November 4, 2026
  13. SC Code Title 8 Chapter 21, Fees and CostsSC Legislaturechecked November 4, 2026
  14. Probate CourtBeaufort Countychecked November 4, 2026
  15. Records ManagementBeaufort Countychecked November 4, 2026
  16. Probate Court FeesBeaufort Countychecked November 4, 2026
  17. Probate CourtBerkeley County Governmentarchived copychecked November 4, 2026
  18. SC Code Title 8 Chapter 21, Fees and CostsSC Legislaturechecked November 4, 2026
  19. Register of Deeds OfficeCharleston County Register of Deedschecked November 4, 2026
  20. Probate CourtCherokee County, SCchecked November 7, 2026
  21. SC Code Title 8 Chapter 21, Fees and CostsSC Legislaturechecked November 7, 2026
  22. Probate CourtDorchester Countychecked November 4, 2026
  23. Probate CourtFlorence Countychecked November 4, 2026
  24. Filing FeesFlorence County Probate Courtchecked November 4, 2026
  25. Probate CourtGreenville County Probate Courtchecked November 4, 2026
  26. S.C. Code Title 8 Chapter 21 (fees)South Carolina Legislaturechecked November 4, 2026
  27. Probate CourtHorry County, South Carolinachecked November 4, 2026
  28. Probate CourtLancaster County, SCchecked November 7, 2026
  29. DepartmentsLancaster County, SCchecked November 7, 2026
  30. SC Code Title 8 Chapter 21, Fees and CostsSC Legislaturechecked November 4, 2026
  31. Probate CourtCounty of Lexingtonchecked November 4, 2026
  32. Probate CourtOconee Countychecked November 4, 2026
  33. Probate CourtPickens County, SCchecked November 8, 2026
  34. Sc-fees821South Carolina (state record)checked November 8, 2026
  35. Estate InquiryRichland County, South Carolinachecked November 4, 2026
  36. Probate CourtRichland County, South Carolinachecked November 4, 2026
  37. Probate Court: Estates (filing and additional fees)Richland County, South Carolinachecked November 4, 2026
  38. Probate Court | Spartanburg County, SCSpartanburg Countychecked November 4, 2026
  39. SC Code Title 8 Chapter 21, Fees and CostsSC Legislaturechecked November 4, 2026
  40. Sumter County Government home pageSumter Countychecked November 7, 2026
  41. SC Code Title 8 Chapter 21 (fees)SC Legislaturechecked November 7, 2026
  42. Probate CourtYork Countychecked November 4, 2026