Stamp Duty & Solicitors Fees Calculator 2026
Work out your stamp duty plus solicitor and conveyancing fees in one place. The calculator estimates legal fees by property price and adds the official Land Registry fee automatically.
Purchase Details
Solicitor & Legal Fees
Auto-estimated by price & tenure
Local authority, water & environmental
Land Registry fee is added automatically using the official price-banded scale.
Cost Breakdown
Enter a Property Price
See stamp duty plus solicitor and legal fees
What This Calculator Includes
This tool focuses on the tax and legal costs of buying a property. If you want a full budget that also covers your deposit, mortgage, survey and moving costs, use the cost of buying a house calculator instead.
Stamp Duty
Calculated automatically for England and Northern Ireland (SDLT), Scotland (LBTT) and Wales (LTT), with first-time buyer relief and the additional property surcharge applied based on your buyer type. Learn how stamp duty is calculated.
Solicitor Fee
The conveyancing legal fee, estimated by property price and tenure and shown inclusive of VAT. Typical fees range from £1,000 to £2,000, with leasehold adding extra. You can edit the figure if you already have a quote.
Disbursements
Land Registry registration fee on the official price-banded scale, plus local authority, water and environmental searches. These are third-party costs your solicitor pays on your behalf.
Worked Examples
| Property Price | Stamp Duty | Solicitor Fee | Land Registry | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £200,000 | £1,500 | £1,020 | £100 | £2,920 |
| £350,000 | £7,500 | £1,260 | £150 | £9,210 |
| £500,000 | £15,000 | £1,260 | £150 | £16,710 |
| £750,000 | £27,500 | £1,500 | £295 | £29,595 |
England standard buyer, freehold, including £300 of searches. Solicitor and search figures are estimates and vary by firm. Stamp duty uses current 2025/26 SDLT rates.
Solicitor & Legal Fees Explained
Legal Fee vs Disbursements
The legal fee is the solicitor's charge for handling contracts, enquiries and completion, usually £800 to £1,500 plus VAT. Disbursements are separate third-party costs such as searches, the Land Registry fee and bank transfer charges that pass straight through to you.
Searches
A standard search pack covering local authority, water and drainage, and environmental searches typically costs £250 to £400. Lenders require these before releasing funds, so they apply to almost every mortgaged purchase.
Land Registry Fee
HM Land Registry charges a statutory fee to register you as the new owner, set on a price band from £20 to £500 for a standard electronic purchase. There is no VAT on this fee.
Leasehold Adds Cost
Buying a leasehold flat means reviewing the lease and management pack and serving notices on the freeholder. Expect around £200 to £350 of extra legal work, which this calculator adds when you select leasehold.
Always Get an Itemised Quote
A low headline conveyancing quote can hide disbursements or leasehold charges that appear later. Ask each firm to separate the legal fee from disbursements, confirm whether VAT is included, and check what you pay if the purchase falls through.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much are stamp duty and solicitors fees combined?
Stamp duty depends on the price, region and buyer type, while solicitor (conveyancing) fees for a standard purchase typically run from £1,000 to £2,000 including VAT. On a £350,000 freehold home in England a standard buyer pays roughly £7,500 stamp duty plus about £1,260 in solicitor fees, with Land Registry and search fees adding a few hundred pounds more. Enter your price above for an exact figure.
What is included in solicitor or conveyancing fees?
Conveyancing fees split into two parts. The legal fee is what the solicitor or licensed conveyancer charges for the work, usually £800 to £1,500 plus VAT. Disbursements are third-party costs paid on your behalf, including local authority searches (£250 to £400), the Land Registry registration fee (£20 to £500 depending on price), bankruptcy and priority searches, and bank transfer fees.
How is the Land Registry fee calculated?
HM Land Registry charges a price-banded registration fee. For a standard purchase of a registered property submitted electronically the fee is £20 up to £80,000, £40 up to £100,000, £100 up to £200,000, £150 up to £500,000, £295 up to £1 million, and £500 above £1 million. This calculator applies the correct band automatically.
Are solicitor fees higher for leasehold property?
Yes. Leasehold purchases involve extra legal work such as reviewing the lease, the management pack and freeholder notices, so conveyancers usually charge around £200 to £350 more than for an equivalent freehold. This calculator adds a leasehold supplement when you select leasehold tenure.
Do I pay VAT on stamp duty or solicitor fees?
There is no VAT on stamp duty (SDLT, LBTT or LTT) or on the Land Registry fee, as these are statutory charges. VAT at 20% does apply to the solicitor legal fee and to some disbursements. The solicitor fee shown by this calculator is VAT inclusive.
Reviewed by
Emma Richardson, MRICS
Chartered Surveyor & Property Tax Specialist
Emma Richardson is a RICS-qualified Chartered Surveyor with over 12 years of experience in UK property taxation. She founded Calculate My Stamp Duty UK to help buyers understand the complex world of property transaction taxes.