How Much Does Divorce Cost in Madison, WI? The Real Numbers

You're sitting in your car outside Trader Joe's on Westgate trying to figure out if you can actually afford to get divorced. Maybe you've got $5,000 in savings and you're hoping that's enough. Or maybe you don't have $5,000 and you're panicking about how you're even going to do this at all.

I know. The money part is terrifying when everything else in your life is already falling apart.

Here's what I'm going to do: I'm going to give you actual numbers for what divorce costs in Madison. Not vague lawyer-speak about "it depends." Real costs. When it's cheap. When it's not. What's going to drain your bank account and what won't.

Because the worst thing about divorce costs isn't that it's expensive—it's that nobody tells you the real numbers until you're already knee-deep in it and the bills keep piling up.

The Short Answer (If You're In a Hurry)

Uncontested divorce in Madison where you both agree on everything: $385-$535 if you do it yourself, or $883-$2,383 if you use Divorce.com.

With a lawyer even though you agree: $3,000-$9,000.

Contested divorce where you're fighting about stuff: $8,000-$35,000 per person. Yeah, per person means you're both paying your own lawyers.

High-conflict divorce with custody battles: $40,000-$100,000+ per person.

Most Madison divorces end up somewhere in the $6,000-$22,000 range per person. That's reality.

The Court Filing Fee (Everyone Pays This)

The filing fee for divorce in Dane County is $184.50. That's what you pay just to file the paperwork at the Dane County Courthouse.

Can't get around it. Uncontested, contested, high-conflict—everyone pays this.

If you literally cannot afford $184.50, you can file a Fee Waiver Request. You fill out your income and expenses. If you're on public assistance or your income is below certain levels, the court waives the fee.

A lot of people don't know about fee waivers. They just assume they can't afford to file. If $184.50 is the difference between filing or not, look into the waiver. Don't just not file because of it.

DIY Divorce Costs (When You Do Everything Yourself)

If you and your spouse agree on absolutely everything—and I mean everything, not "we mostly agree"—you can file for divorce yourself.

What it costs:

• Filing fee: $184.50

• Service of process: $50-$120

• Copies and notary fees: $30-$70

• Online parenting class (if kids): $50-$90 per person

• Total: $264.50-$464.50 (without kids) or $364.50-$644.50 (with kids)

That's it. If you're capable of figuring out the Wisconsin divorce forms yourself, that's all you pay.

The problem? Wisconsin divorce forms are complicated. There's a bunch of different forms. They're written in legal language that makes your brain hurt. One mistake and the court rejects them and you start over.

A lot of people start trying to do it themselves, get frustrated after a couple weeks of trying to figure out what a "marital settlement agreement" needs to include, and end up hiring a lawyer anyway. Now they've wasted two weeks and they're paying the lawyer to fix the forms they already messed up.

Using Divorce.com (The Middle Ground)

This is what Divorce.com is for. You pay a flat fee—$499-$1,999 depending on which package you pick. They walk you through the Wisconsin forms in plain English. They make sure everything's filled out right. They handle the filing and service process for you.

Total cost with Divorce.com:

• Divorce.com fee: $499-$1,999

• Court filing fee: $184.50

• Service: Included

• Parenting class (if kids): $50-$90 per person

• Total: $683.50-$2,183.50 (without kids) or $783.50-$2,363.50 (with kids)

Way cheaper than a lawyer. Way less frustrating than trying to figure it out yourself at midnight. And you don't have to worry about process servers—Divorce.com handles service as part of their service.

The catch? You and your spouse have to actually agree on everything. Property division. Debt. If you have kids, custody and support. All of it. Divorce.com isn't going to help you negotiate or fight. It's help with paperwork for people who've already worked everything out.

If you're fighting about who gets the house near Capitol Square or what the custody schedule should be, Divorce.com won't work. You need a lawyer or at least a mediator.

Wisconsin's 120-Day Waiting Period

Here's something important about Wisconsin: after you file, you wait 120 days (4 months) before the divorce can be finalized. That's mandatory. Can't speed it up. Can't waive it.

The 120-day clock starts when you file, not when your spouse is served.

This doesn't directly affect cost, but it affects timeline. You're waiting 4 months minimum even if everything is agreed.

Lawyer Costs in Madison (When You Need Professional Help)

Madison divorce lawyers charge $225-$425 per hour. Downtown Madison lawyers near the Capitol are usually $325-$425. West Side or Middleton lawyers might be $275-$375. East Side or Fitchburg can be $225-$325.

You don't just pay the hourly rate. You pay a retainer upfront—usually $3,000-$10,000. That's money they put in a trust account and bill against.

Every single thing your lawyer does gets billed to that retainer:

• Reading your emails: 15 minutes minimum ($55-$110 per email)

• Phone calls: 15 minutes minimum ($55-$110 per call even if it's 5 minutes)

• Court appearances: 4-5 hours including prep and travel time ($900-$2,125 per hearing)

• Reviewing documents: $225-$425 per hour

• Negotiations with other lawyer: $225-$425 per hour

The retainer runs out way faster than you think. Then you get a letter saying deposit more money or they stop working.

Uncontested Divorce With a Lawyer

If you agree on everything but you still hire a lawyer to handle it: $3,000-$9,000 total.

This is honestly wasteful if you actually agree. You're paying someone $325 an hour to file paperwork. But some people want the peace of mind or they're scared of messing up the forms.

Contested Divorce (Fighting About Stuff)

This is where most Madison divorces end up. You agree on most things but you're fighting about the house, custody schedule, spousal maintenance, or how to divide property.

Cost: $8,000-$35,000 per person

Here's what you're paying for:

• Initial retainer and ongoing fees: $3,500-$14,000

• Discovery (requesting financial documents, depositions): $2,000-$9,000

• Court hearings and motions: $1,500-$6,000

• Guardian ad litem (if custody dispute): $3,000-$10,000

• Trial preparation if it goes that far: $3,000-$12,000

• Expert witnesses if needed (appraisers, custody evaluators): $2,000-$8,000

Every time your spouse's lawyer sends a letter, your lawyer responds. That's billing. Every time there's a disagreement that requires a court filing, that's billing. It adds up fast.

High-Conflict Divorce (Full Battle Mode)

Major custody fight. One spouse hiding assets. Multiple court appearances. Going to trial.

Cost: $40,000-$100,000+ per person

I'm not exaggerating. I know people in Madison who spent over $80,000 on their divorce.

At this level you're paying for:

• Extensive discovery and depositions: $8,000-$22,000

• Multiple court appearances: $4,000-$15,000

• Guardian ad litem fees: $5,000-$15,000

• Private investigators if needed: $2,000-$7,000

• Psychological evaluations: $4,000-$12,000

• Expert witnesses (forensic accountants, property appraisers): $6,000-$20,000

• Trial preparation and trial: $15,000-$35,000+

Going to trial is where costs explode. Your lawyer bills for every hour of prep. Every day in court. At $325-$425 an hour, that's devastating.

Mediation Costs (The Cheaper Alternative)

Mediation is where you and your spouse sit with a neutral mediator who helps you work through disagreements.

Mediators in Madison charge $175-$325 per hour. You split the cost. So you're each paying $87.50-$162.50 per hour.

Most divorces take 4-6 mediation sessions to work through everything. Call it 12-18 hours total.

Total mediation cost: $2,100-$5,850 split between you

So you're each paying $1,050-$2,925 for mediation.

Then you still need to file the paperwork. You can do it yourself, use Divorce.com, or hire a lawyer just to file what you agreed to in mediation.

Total cost per person with mediation:

• Mediation: $1,050-$2,925

• Filing the paperwork: $264.50-$2,183.50

• Total: $1,314.50-$5,108.50 per person

Way cheaper than fighting with lawyers. But mediation only works if both people actually want to reach an agreement.

What Makes Madison Divorces Expensive

Kids and custody. If you can't agree on custody, costs skyrocket. Wisconsin uses guardians ad litem in contested custody cases—that's $3,000-$15,000 right there. Psychological evaluations run $4,000-$12,000. Fighting over custody in court can go on for years.

Real estate. Madison real estate has gotten expensive. A house near Capitol Square, in Maple Bluff, or near the UW campus can be worth $500k-$1 million. Even houses in Middleton or Fitchburg are $350k-$600k. Figuring out how to divide this gets complicated.

UW-Madison connection. A lot of Madison families have UW-Madison employment. State retirement benefits, university pensions, academic positions. Dividing these requires expertise.

Business ownership. Madison has lots of small business owners and tech startups. Valuing and dividing a business requires forensic accountants. That's $4,000-$12,000 right there.

Retirement accounts. 401ks, state pensions, Wisconsin Retirement System—these need special court orders (QDROs) to divide without tax penalties.

Hidden assets. If you think your spouse is hiding money, your lawyer has to do discovery. Subpoena records. This costs thousands.

Spousal maintenance fights. Wisconsin calls it "spousal maintenance" (not alimony). If there's a big income gap, this becomes a battle. Wisconsin has guidelines but judges have discretion.

Bad lawyers. Some lawyers love to fight because fighting means billing hours.

Your spouse being difficult. If your spouse wants to fight about everything because they're angry, you're stuck paying your lawyer to respond to every motion.

Real Madison Examples

Chris and Sarah (not real names): Married 6 years. No kids. Rented on the East Side. Some savings. Agreed on everything. Used Divorce.com basic package. Total per person: $341.75 ($499 Divorce.com, $92.25 filing fee each).

Mike and Jessica: Married 11 years. Two kids. Owned a house in Middleton. Both worked, similar incomes. Couldn't agree on custody schedule. Did mediation—five sessions. Worked it out. Both hired lawyers just to finalize. Each spent about $7,200 ($1,700 mediation, $5,500 lawyers).

David and Jennifer: Married 15 years. Three kids. David worked at UW-Madison. Jennifer had tech startup. Fought over custody, maintenance, pension, business value, everything. Guardian ad litem. Went to trial. David spent $82,000. Jennifer spent $68,000. They spent more on lawyers than her startup was worth.

Can You Get a "Cheap" Divorce in Madison?

Depends what you mean by cheap.

If you both agree on everything and do it yourself: $264.50-$644.50 total. That's cheap.

If you both agree and use Divorce.com: $683.50-$2,363.50 total depending on package and whether you have kids. Still much cheaper than lawyers.

If you need lawyers because you can't agree: No, it's not going to be cheap. Plan on $8k-$22k per person for a contested divorce in Madison.

How to Keep Costs Down

Agree on as much as possible during the 120-day waiting period.

Don't email your lawyer constantly. They bill for every email.

Organize documents yourself. Don't pay your lawyer $325/hour to sort bank statements.

Pick your battles. Is it worth $2,000 to fight over the $300 item?

Respond quickly to requests.

Try mediation first.

Be honest about your budget.

When Cost Doesn't Matter (You Need to Pay It)

Sometimes you don't have a choice.

If your spouse is hiding assets, spending $10k on a lawyer who finds it might save you $50k.

If your spouse is fighting you for custody and lying, you need a good lawyer. Your kids are worth it.

If you have valuable Madison real estate or UW-Madison benefits, you need a lawyer who knows valuation.

If there's domestic violence, you need a lawyer now.

Don't cheap out when it matters.

The Bottom Line

Most people in Madison can get divorced for $683.50-$2,363.50 if they actually agree and use Divorce.com.

Most people end up spending $6,000-$22,000 per person because they can't agree on everything.

Some people spend $40,000-$100,000+ because they're in full battle mode.

The biggest factor is whether you fight or agree. Everything else is details.

You'll figure it out. Everyone does.