Digital Wills vs. Traditional Wills: Which Is Right for You?

Estate planning has changed. Compare the benefits of Automated Digital Wills versus limitations of Traditional Wills. Learn how Fallbacks can give you more control over your digital and personal Legacy.

Category	Fallbacks	Traditional Will
Primary Purpose	Automated delivery of your Legacy to Recipients using time-based Triggers.	Outlines instructions for your estate, but only within the scope of what traditional legal documents can cover.
Execution Method	Time-based Trigger system that automatically executes your Legacy if you don’t check in by the specified time.	Manually executed by an executor after death, through probate or legal processes.
Legacy Items	Digital assets such as documents, passwords, account vaults, files, recordings, instructions, digitial currency and monetary gifts.	Primarily covers physical property, financial inheritance, and legally recognized estate instructions.
Recipients	Anyone can be a Recipient — including family, friends, coworkers, online connections, legal entities, or organizations. Recipients can also remain anonymous with minimal information required.	Typically limited to heirs, family members, and executors as defined in the legal document.
Setup Requirements	Completely digital; no lawyer or notary required.	Often requires a lawyer, witnesses, or a notary depending on jurisdiction.
Updates & Changes	Instant updates - add or remove Recipients, Documents, Actions, and Triggers anytime.	Requires legal amendments or an entirely new will to update instructions.
Delivery Speed	Immediate delivery once a Trigger executes. Recipients may need to verify their identify before accessing your Legacy.	Execution often takes a considerable amount of time due to probate and extensive legal verification.
Security & Storage	Encrypted platform with secure digital storage accessible from anywhere at anytime.	Often stored on paper at home, in a safe, or with a lawyer; vulnerable to loss or damage.
Automation	Fully automated delivery of messages, files, or digital instructions.	Manual execution relying on human actions and legal steps.
Limitations	Not a full legal substitute for transferring certain assets like real estate or complex estates.	Cannot deliver digital assets or automate messages, passwords, or documents.

Primary Purpose

Fallbacks

Automated delivery of your Legacy to Recipients using time-based Triggers.

Traditional Will

Outlines instructions for your estate, but only within the scope of what traditional legal documents can cover.

Execution Method

Fallbacks

Time-based Trigger system that automatically executes your Legacy if you don’t check in by the specified time.

Traditional Will

Manually executed by an executor after death, through probate or legal processes.

Legacy Items

Fallbacks

Digital assets such as documents, passwords, account vaults, files, recordings, instructions, digitial currency and monetary gifts.

Traditional Will

Primarily covers physical property, financial inheritance, and legally recognized estate instructions.

Recipients

Fallbacks

Anyone can be a Recipient — including family, friends, coworkers, online connections, legal entities, or organizations. Recipients can also remain anonymous with minimal information required.

Traditional Will

Typically limited to heirs, family members, and executors as defined in the legal document.

Setup Requirements

Fallbacks

Completely digital; no lawyer or notary required.

Traditional Will

Often requires a lawyer, witnesses, or a notary depending on jurisdiction.

Updates & Changes

Fallbacks

Instant updates - add or remove Recipients, Documents, Actions, and Triggers anytime.

Traditional Will

Requires legal amendments or an entirely new will to update instructions.

Delivery Speed

Fallbacks

Immediate delivery once a Trigger executes. Recipients may need to verify their identify before accessing your Legacy.

Traditional Will

Execution often takes a considerable amount of time due to probate and extensive legal verification.

Security & Storage

Fallbacks

Encrypted platform with secure digital storage accessible from anywhere at anytime.

Traditional Will

Often stored on paper at home, in a safe, or with a lawyer; vulnerable to loss or damage.

Automation

Fallbacks

Fully automated delivery of messages, files, or digital instructions.

Traditional Will

Manual execution relying on human actions and legal steps.

Limitations

Fallbacks

Not a full legal substitute for transferring certain assets like real estate or complex estates.

Traditional Will

Cannot deliver digital assets or automate messages, passwords, or documents.