Bitcoin Inheritance Planning Tools Compared

Bitcoin Inheritance Planning Solutions Overview

An estimated 2.87 million to 3.79 million BTC may be permanently inaccessible, according to analysis attributed to Chainalysis. That represents roughly 17% to 23% of all mined supply. A significant portion of those coins were lost because holders died or became incapacitated without leaving a viable recovery path for their heirs. Bitcoin inheritance planning addresses this problem: how do you pass self-custodied bitcoin to your beneficiaries without introducing a single point of failure that could also be exploited while you are alive?

The solutions range from fully trustless on-chain timelocks to managed collaborative custody services to traditional legal instruments. Each approach makes different tradeoffs between cost, technical complexity, trustlessness, and the likelihood that heirs can actually recover the funds. The following table provides a high-level comparison of the main categories.

For a comparison focused specifically on inheritance service providers, see our Bitcoin inheritance solutions comparison. For background on the timelock primitives used by several of these approaches, see our guide to Bitcoin timelock types.

Timelock-Based Inheritance: Dead Man's Switch

A dead man's switch is the most trustless approach to Bitcoin inheritance. It uses Bitcoin's native scripting capabilities to create a spending condition that only becomes valid after a period of owner inactivity. The owner "resets" the timer by periodically moving coins. If the timer expires (because the owner is dead or incapacitated), a recovery key held by the heir can spend the funds.

Two opcodes enable this pattern: OP_CHECKLOCKTIMEVERIFY (CLTV, BIP 65) for absolute timelocks and OP_CHECKSEQUENCEVERIFY (CSV, BIP 112) for relative timelocks. CSV is generally preferred for dead man's switches because the timer resets automatically whenever coins move to a new UTXO. CLTV requires manually creating new pre-signed transactions each time you want to extend the deadline.

Miniscript has made these setups significantly more accessible. Liana is an open-source Bitcoin wallet that uses Miniscript descriptors to build "decaying multisig" policies: the primary key can always spend, but after a configurable inactivity period (for example, 15 months of no transactions), a secondary recovery key gains spending authority. Liana supports hardware signing devices including Blockstream Jade and BitBox02.

The tradeoff is complexity. Heirs need both the recovery key and the wallet descriptor to spend. If the descriptor is lost, the funds are unrecoverable even with the correct key. The owner must also remember to move coins periodically, or the recovery path activates prematurely. Fee estimation for future transactions is inherently uncertain, and the entire UTXO must be spent in a single transaction.

Collaborative Multisig Inheritance Services

Collaborative custody providers offer managed multisig vaults with built-in inheritance workflows. The general model: you hold a majority of keys, the provider holds one backup key, and an inheritance protocol defines how heirs gain access if you become unavailable.

Casa

Casa's Standard plan ($250/year) provides a 2-of-3 multisig vault with inheritance support. Keys are distributed across your mobile device, a hardware wallet, and Casa's recovery server. The Premium plan ($2,100/year) upgrades to 3-of-5. When a beneficiary initiates a claim, Casa enforces a six-month waiting period before releasing its key share. This delay serves as a safeguard: if the owner is still alive and active, they can cancel the claim.

Nunchuk

Nunchuk's Iron Hand plan ($120/year) offers a 2-of-3 multisig with limited inheritance features. The Honey Badger plan ($450/year) provides a 2-of-4 setup where Nunchuk holds one key and a separate timelocked inheritance key sits on a Tapsigner or COLDCARD. Nunchuk 2.0, launched in November 2025, introduced autonomous on-chain inheritance enforced by Bitcoin timelocks and Miniscript, removing the need to trust Nunchuk's servers for the inheritance trigger. Nunchuk requires no KYC.

Unchained

Unchained uses a 2-of-3 multisig model where the client holds two keys on separate hardware wallets and Unchained holds one backup key. Its inheritance protocol provides documentation and guided processes for transferring access to beneficiaries. Onboarding packages range from approximately $250/year per vault to higher tiers that include concierge support and IRA integration.

Custodial Trust Solutions

For holders who want institutional-grade custody with professional inheritance planning, custodial trust solutions combine collaborative custody with legal trust structures.

Onramp provides multi-institution custody with AUM-based pricing (approximately 0.48% annually for its Private tier). It added inheritance planning at no additional cost in early 2024. Onramp's custody includes a $100 million per-incident insurance policy backed by Lloyd's of London. The tradeoff is cost: AUM-based pricing becomes expensive for large holdings, and the minimum for the Core tier starts at approximately $3,000/year.

These providers typically pair the technical key management with estate planning guidance, helping clients coordinate between their custody setup and their legal documents. The client still holds a majority of keys, so the provider cannot unilaterally access funds. However, the inheritance process may depend on the provider remaining operational.

Shamir's Secret Sharing for Seed Backup

Shamir's Secret Sharing splits a seed phrase into multiple shares with a configurable threshold. A 3-of-5 split, for example, creates five shares, any three of which can reconstruct the original seed. Fewer than three shares reveal no information about the seed. The SLIP-39 standard, implemented by Trezor and other wallets, provides a standardized format for creating and recovering Shamir backups.

For inheritance, shares can be distributed among family members, a lawyer, and a safe deposit box. No single party can access the funds alone, and the loss of one or two shares does not prevent recovery. The approach is free (beyond hardware wallet costs) and requires no ongoing subscription.

The risks are operational. Heirs must understand what the shares are and how to combine them. If a passphrase was used alongside the seed, heirs need that too. Shares stored on paper or metal can degrade over decades. Most critically, Shamir shares provide no access control over time: if enough shares are compromised while the owner is alive, the funds can be stolen. There is no inactivity trigger or waiting period. For a deeper look at seed backup strategies, see our research on Shamir's Secret Sharing for Bitcoin backup.

Traditional Estate Planning with Crypto Addenda

The most legally robust approach combines a standard estate plan (will or revocable living trust) with a separate document covering cryptocurrency access. The crypto addendum or letter of instruction describes where hardware wallets and seed backups are stored, how to access them, and what software is needed for recovery. Access details are kept out of the trust instrument itself to avoid exposing sensitive information during probate.

Trustees must generally follow the prudent investor rule, which can conflict with holding volatile assets like Bitcoin. Estate attorneys often include an explicit exception permitting the trustee to hold cryptocurrency. Professional legal costs typically range from $1,500 to $5,000+ depending on complexity, and updates are needed whenever the custody setup changes.

The weakness of this approach is execution risk. The legal documents describe access procedures, but they cannot enforce them. If the executor or trustee cannot follow the instructions (outdated wallet software, unfamiliar hardware, lost passphrase), the bitcoin may be unrecoverable. Traditional estate plans work best when combined with one of the technical solutions above.

DIY Multisig with Family and Lawyer Keys

A self-managed multisig setup (for example, 2-of-3 with keys distributed among yourself, a family member, and a lawyer) avoids provider dependencies entirely. Tools like Sparrow Wallet and Bitcoin Core's descriptor wallets support multisig configuration, and the software is free.

This is the most technically demanding option. Every keyholder needs to understand output descriptors, PSBTs, and the signing workflow. There is no guided recovery process: if you are incapacitated, the other keyholders must coordinate independently to construct and broadcast a transaction. Hardware costs for signing devices typically run $180 to $750, and the setup requires careful documentation. For most non-technical holders, collaborative custody services provide a similar security model with significantly better usability. See our multisig setup comparison for a detailed breakdown of self-managed versus assisted configurations.

Comparing Failure Modes

Each inheritance approach has distinct failure scenarios. Understanding these is essential for choosing a resilient strategy.

Which Approach Should You Use?

The best inheritance plan depends on your technical comfort level, the size of your holdings, and your trust assumptions. Most serious holders benefit from combining two or more approaches.

If you prioritize trustlessness and are technically comfortable: a Miniscript-based dead man's switch (Liana) combined with a basic estate plan gives your heirs an on-chain recovery path with no provider dependency. This works best for developers and technically sophisticated bitcoiners who can maintain the setup over time.

If you want a managed solution with inheritance built in: Casa or Nunchuk provide guided recovery workflows at accessible price points. Nunchuk 2.0's on-chain timelock inheritance offers a middle ground between fully trustless and fully managed approaches.

If you hold substantial value and want institutional support: Unchained or Onramp pair cold storage multisig with professional inheritance planning. The higher cost is justified by insurance coverage, dedicated support, and coordination with estate attorneys.

If your heirs are non-technical: a collaborative custody service with a guided inheritance workflow (Casa, Unchained, Nunchuk) combined with a traditional estate plan offers the most reliable recovery path. Avoid approaches that require heirs to understand descriptors, PSBTs, or timelock mechanics.

Regardless of approach, the Bitcoin ecosystem continues to develop better tools for this problem. Layer 2 protocols like Spark are exploring how off-chain balances and stablecoin holdings (such as USDB) can integrate with inheritance planning, reducing the on-chain overhead that makes timelock-based solutions expensive to maintain.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens to Bitcoin when the owner dies?

If no inheritance plan exists, the Bitcoin is likely lost permanently. Unlike bank accounts, Bitcoin has no account recovery process and no institution that can grant access. The private keys controlling the funds die with the owner unless they were backed up or shared in a way that heirs can access. Chainalysis estimates that millions of BTC are already inaccessible, with deaths and incapacitation being a significant contributing factor.

What is a Bitcoin dead man's switch?

A dead man's switch is a mechanism that automatically grants a recovery key spending authority after a period of owner inactivity. In Bitcoin, this is implemented using timelocks (OP_CHECKSEQUENCEVERIFY or OP_CHECKLOCKTIMEVERIFY). The owner resets the timer by periodically moving coins. If the timer expires, the heir's key can spend. Liana wallet and Nunchuk 2.0 both implement this pattern using Miniscript.

Is Shamir's Secret Sharing safe for Bitcoin inheritance?

Shamir's Secret Sharing (SLIP-39) provides redundancy: losing one or two shares does not prevent recovery. However, it has no time-based access control. If enough shares are compromised while the owner is alive, the funds can be stolen immediately. It also requires heirs to understand how to combine shares and use them to recover a wallet, which can be challenging for non-technical family members. Shamir backups work best as one layer in a broader inheritance plan, not as the sole mechanism.

How much does Bitcoin inheritance planning cost?

Costs range from free to several thousand dollars per year. Liana (timelock-based) and DIY multisig setups cost nothing beyond hardware wallets ($60 to $250 each). Collaborative custody services range from $120/year (Nunchuk Iron Hand) to $2,100+/year (Casa Premium). Custodial trust solutions like Onramp charge AUM-based fees. Traditional estate planning with a crypto addendum typically costs $1,500 to $5,000 in one-time legal fees. For a detailed cost breakdown, see our Bitcoin inheritance tax calculator.

Can I use a regular will to pass Bitcoin to my heirs?

A will can designate who receives your Bitcoin, but it cannot by itself grant access. If your heirs do not have the private keys or seed phrase, a court order naming them as beneficiaries is meaningless. The will should be paired with a letter of instruction describing where keys and hardware wallets are stored, and ideally with a technical solution (multisig, Shamir backup, or timelock) that ensures the keys are actually accessible. Keep access details out of the will itself, as wills become public documents during probate.

What is the safest way to pass Bitcoin to heirs without a third party?

A Miniscript-based timelock wallet (such as Liana) provides the most trustless inheritance path. The recovery condition is enforced by Bitcoin consensus, not by any company. However, "safest" also depends on your heirs' technical ability. If they cannot operate wallet software and signing devices independently, a collaborative custody service with guided inheritance may result in more reliable recovery despite the additional trust assumptions.

How do Bitcoin timelocks work for inheritance planning?

Bitcoin timelocks restrict when a transaction output can be spent. OP_CHECKSEQUENCEVERIFY (CSV) creates relative timelocks: a recovery key can only spend after a UTXO has been unspent for a specified number of blocks. The owner resets this timer by spending to a new address. For inheritance, this creates a dead man's switch: normal use keeps the recovery path locked, but extended inactivity (death or incapacitation) allows the heir to spend. For a technical deep dive, see our research on Bitcoin timelocks: CLTV, CSV, and time-based scripting.

This tool is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or legal advice. Pricing data is approximate and based on publicly available information as of late 2026. Service features, pricing, and availability change frequently. Always verify current details on provider websites before making custody or estate planning decisions. Consult a qualified attorney for estate planning advice specific to your jurisdiction.