Knowledge & Resources
Wills and estate planning
What a will does, how to write one, and what your state requires for it to count.
We use privacy-friendly analytics to understand how the Will builder is used. No advertising, no session recording, and never any of your Will content. See our Privacy Policy.
Wills and estate planning
What a will does, how to write one, and what your state requires for it to count.
Pennsylvania is the great exception among US states: an ordinary will does not need witnesses at the moment you sign it. That does not mean you should skip them.
Pennsylvania does not require attesting witnesses for an ordinary will. The statute says only that every will must be in writing and signed by the testator at the end. Witnesses become mandatory in two situations: if you sign with a mark because you cannot write your name, or if someone else signs your name at your direction. In both cases two witnesses must be present and sign in your presence. Anything written after your signature does not invalidate what comes before it, but it may not be given effect either, so sign at the very end. None of that is a reason to sign alone. A Pennsylvania will still has to be proved when it reaches the Register of Wills, and a will signed with two witnesses is far easier to prove than one with none. Two disinterested witnesses remain standard practice here for that reason, and cost nothing.
20 Pa.C.S. § 2502
No. Nothing in section 2502 requires a notary, and notarizing a Pennsylvania will does not make it valid. A notary appears only in connection with a self-proving affidavit.
20 Pa.C.S. § 2502
Any person 18 or more years of age who is of sound mind may make a will in Pennsylvania.
20 Pa.C.S. § 2501
20 Pa.C.S. § 2502 (Form and execution of a will). In writing and signed by the testator at the end. Pennsylvania does not generally require witnesses at signing, but a will signed by mark must be made before two witnesses who sign in the testator's presence.
Links last checked 2026-08-25.
We could not read this statute at its official source, so the summary above is provisional. Confirm it before relying on it.
This is general information about the law, not legal advice, and it has not been reviewed by an attorney licensed in Pennsylvania. Requirements change. Confirm the current rules for your state before you sign.
Answer a few plain questions and Legawyl writes the document, with Pennsylvania’s signing instructions included. No account needed to start.
Create your free Will