Most people spend years building a digital life — thousands of photos, years of emails, social media accounts, cloud storage full of documents and videos — and then never think once about what happens to any of it when they die.
The answer, in most cases, is that it disappears.
Not because anyone wanted it gone. But because nobody made a plan.
The good news is that making a plan does not require a lawyer, does not cost much money, and does not take more than a few hours. Here is exactly what you need to do.
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Understand What Is At Stake
Before you plan, take a moment to think about everything you have built digitally.
Your photos. Your email going back years. Your social media accounts and the conversations, posts, and memories stored there. Your cloud storage — Google Drive, iCloud, Dropbox. Your online financial accounts. Cryptocurrency if you own any. A blog or website if you have one. Subscriptions and loyalty programs with real monetary value.
Now ask yourself: if you died tomorrow, could your family access any of that? Would they even know where to look?
For most people the honest answer is no. And the law does not automatically help them. Most platforms have strict terms of service that prevent anyone — even a spouse or child — from accessing an account without explicit authorization. Federal privacy laws can block access even when family members know the password.
Without a plan, your digital life ends with you.
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Step One: Make a Digital Asset Inventory
Start by writing down everything you have online. Go through this list and add your own:
Email accounts — all of them, not just the main one. Social media accounts. Cloud storage services. Photo storage (Google Photos, iCloud, Amazon Photos). Financial accounts — bank, investment, PayPal, Venmo, Cash App. Cryptocurrency wallets and the keys to access them. Subscription services. Domain names or websites you own. Any online business accounts. Password managers.
For each one, write down the email address used to create the account, the username if different, and the password or where the password can be found. Keep this document somewhere secure — a locked physical location, or a trusted password manager that has a legacy access feature.
One critical rule: never put passwords directly in your will. Wills become public documents during probate. Anything in your will is accessible to anyone. Keep passwords in a separate secure document and reference that document in your will.
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Step Two: Set Up Legacy Access on the Platforms Themselves
Several major platforms already have built-in tools that let you designate someone to access your account after you die. These are the most legally solid way to ensure access because they operate under the platform's own rules.
Google has an Inactive Account Manager. You can designate a trusted person to receive your data — emails, photos, documents — if your account becomes inactive. Set it up at myaccount.google.com/inactive-account-manager.
Facebook has a Legacy Contact. You can designate someone to manage your profile as a memorial after you pass, or you can choose to have your account deleted. Set it up in your Facebook settings under Memorialization Settings.
Apple has a Digital Legacy feature that lets you designate up to five Legacy Contacts who can access your iCloud data after your death. Set it up in your Apple ID settings.
Set these up on every platform that offers them. They represent your most direct, legally enforceable instructions to the platform about what should happen to your account.
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Step Three: Name a Digital Executor
A digital executor is a person you designate specifically to handle your digital assets after you die. This can be the same person as your regular executor, but it does not have to be. Pick someone who is comfortable with technology, trustworthy with sensitive information, and capable of following detailed instructions.
Give your digital executor a copy of your asset inventory. Tell them what you want done with each account — preserved, deleted, or transferred. Include their name and role in your will.
As of early 2025, 47 states have adopted the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, which gives legal authority to executors and trustees to access digital assets — but only if the estate plan explicitly grants that authority. Without the language in your legal documents, your executor may have no legal right to access anything.
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Step Four: Use One of These Digital Estate Planning Services
If you want to do this right without hiring a lawyer, several online services can help you build a legally valid will and digital estate plan.
FreeWill (freewill.com) — Free to use. Lets you create a legally valid will in about 20 minutes and name a digital executor. Good starting point for most people.
Trust & Will (trustandwill.com) — A paid service that creates more comprehensive estate plans including trusts, healthcare directives, and digital asset provisions. Good for people with more complex estates.
GoodTrust (mygoodtrust.com) — Specifically focused on digital assets. Lets you securely document your accounts, name trusted individuals, and create instructions for how your digital life should be handled.
Clocr (clocr.com) — Lets you organize and pass on your digital legacy including social media, documents, and personal memories. Includes a time capsule feature.
SecureSafe (securesafe.com) — Cloud storage with password management and a built-in data inheritance system.
Any of these is better than nothing. Start with FreeWill if you want free and fast. Step up to Trust & Will if you want comprehensive.
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Step Five: Do Not Forget the Physical Archive
No matter how carefully you plan your digital estate, physical preservation still matters. Hard copies of the most important documents — birth certificates, family photos printed and labeled, handwritten letters — do not require passwords, accounts, or internet access to survive.
Print your favorite photos. Write letters. Keep a journal. The physical record and the digital record together are stronger than either one alone.
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Your Digital Life Is Part of Your Legacy
The photos you took, the stories you wrote, the emails you sent to people you loved — none of that is trivial. All of it is part of who you were. All of it matters to the people who will miss you when you are gone.
Plan for it. Preserve it. Give the people who love you the ability to access it when the time comes.
That is not a morbid task. It is one of the most loving things you can do.
