Many estate planning companies often try to persuade you that there is only one correct way to organize and secure your digital estate, ensuring the future well-being of your family and yourself. But you've decided to conduct thorough research, and have discovered there are two powerful options: TrustsandWill and IronClad Family.
You’ve also no doubt discovered that choosing a platform that best serves your particular needs can be a bit tricky. Hopefully, by the end of this post, you will have everything you need to make an informed decision.
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TrustandWill
Trust&Will is an online estate planning and settlement company that offers, online creation of a personal trust or a will. With a focus on ease of use and precision, Trust&Will provides customized, state-specific Will-Based Estate Plans and Trust-Based Estate Plans. These plans cover the vital aspect of estate planning such as asset distribution, guardianship for children and pets, healthcare preferences, and final arrangements.
IronClad Family
IronClad Family is a comprehensive family protection platform that offers digital protection services and tools, including encrypted storage for important documents, automated vault delivery, and estate planning features, all designed to ensure the security and accessibility of your family’s crucial information, so you can have peace of mind in today's volatile digital age.
Capabilities
Choosing a family protection and/or estate planning platform is a matter of preference, primarily based on which platform's features or services you find more useful than the others.
Therefore we’ve itemized below the benefit-driven differences between Trust&Will and IronClad Family.
Estate Planning:
TrustandWill offers both Will-Based Estate Plans and Trust-Based Estate Plans. These plans cover essential aspects such as asset distribution, nomination of guardians for children, healthcare preferences, and arrangements for pets. With a user-friendly platform and expert support, TrustandWill gives you smooth and precise estate planning tailored to individual state requirements and specific needs.
Note: Attorney support for estate plans covers only 38 states in the country.
Designed by cyber security experts, IronClad Family gives you access to a more holistic online platform that can help you organize and manage your family information. As a user, you’re provided access to a lawyer-approved Estate Planning Wizard to create your will, trust, and health directives.
Ironclad Family also allows you to store critical information in an ultra-secure vault instead of storing it in less secure cloud platforms such as google drive and Dropbox - which have consistently been breached. The platform is built with privacy and security in mind. It ensures that you have full control over all your assets and liabilities and can access them at any point in time, from anywhere in the world.
Resources:
The TrustandWill website is supported with popular questions you’re likely to encounter in the Initial stages of your research trying to find the right solution for you and your family. It’s packed full of relevant information about trust, will, and estate planning in general.
IronClad Family includes this but also boasts a seamless onboarding process. From the moment you sign up, you get VIP onboarding materials and processes that practically takes you by the hand and guide you step-by-step on how best to use the platform to your advantage. You can even test-deliver your vaults - to ensure that the contents of your vault will be delivered exactly as you desire if anything happens to you.
Additionally, the Ironclad Family blog section offers free access to vital information regarding how to protect yourself and your family now and in the future.
Vaults:
TrustandWill stores and encrypts customers’ Wills and Trust documents using industry-standard encryption to ensure the safekeeping and organization of your important information and assets. The platform allows users to access their documents easily and share them with trusted individuals. Unfortunately, the Trust&Will encryption suffers from the same weaknesses to which most other online sites are subject.
IronClad Family outshines all others with the extreme security offered by its Digital Vaults - in addition to extra features and flexibility. It enhances user experience with the ability to not only “assign delegates” to a vault to any member of your family, giving others access to manage your vaults, but also “assign recipients” ensuring that the contents of your vaults are delivered right on schedule, and most importantly, uses advanced protection that is unrivaled in the industry. We’ll cover this in more detail below in the security section.
Storage:
On its website, TrustandWill does not specify the exact amount of cloud storage space it assigns to its users for document storage. However, it does mention that Trust&Will offers a "digital safe" for users to store important documents.
So what this means is that, unlike IronClad Family, where you can store other kinds of sensitive documents, all you can store with Trust&Will is your legal Will and Trust documents.
With IronClad Family it’s different. Companies are notorious for charging additional prices for more cloud storage space. That’s why IronClad Family, for all of its personal plans, rewards you with an excessive 100 GB cloud storage to store all your documents, pictures, videos about your last wish or memories, and so on. This way, you and your family can never run out of storage space, and you don’t pay extra for additional storage space.
And when the time comes, all the information and documents you stored in one place, will be delivered to your designated recipients.
Security:
TrustandWill doesn’t make much emphasis on the level of security used for their vaults - only that it utilizes multi-layer security measures similar to ones used by banks and most financial institutions.
The biggest privacy issue nobody talks about is that your files undergo local encryption. This means that your files are encrypted on the company’s servers only after they have been received in raw form – which doesn’t exactly scream private.
IronClad Family, on the other hand, having been built by cybersecurity experts, fortifies your sensitive information with the following features;
Government-level encryption: Your Ironclad family account is protected by 256-bit encryption—equivalent to the encryption used by top government institutions. You also get access to an optional (FREE) crypto wallet passphrase encryption.
Zero-knowledge encryption: With their advanced encryption technique called "End-To-End Zero-Knowledge Encryption", you can rest easy knowing that not even the IronClad Family team can ever access your account or its contents. Ironclad Family is the only service of its kind that has implemented this ultra-secure encryption standard.
The Highest Independent Security Scores: IronClad Family consistently scores higher than every other civilian website in 3rd party, independent ratings of website security. In fact, only the CIA and FBI rank higher in security than they do.
Sound too bold a claim? Click here to find out more about how IronClad Family is built to protect you from breaches, identity theft, and other risks.
End-of-Life Planning
This is where TrustandWill showcases most of its strengths. If you are looking for a Trust-Based Estate Plan, Trust&Will offers a Living Trust that allows you to avoid probate court and seamlessly transfer assets to your beneficiaries. This plan includes state-specific documents to nominate guardians for children, list assets, and outline medical emergency preferences.
Additionally, users can also opt for Attorney Support, giving them access to licensed estate planning attorneys for personalized legal advice on complex estate planning matters, for an additional fee of course, and attorney support for estate plans is only available for 38 states in the country.
IronClad Family offers an easily-customizable Estate Planning Wizard; which is basically a set of lawyer-approved templates to help you create your will, power of attorney, and health directives easily – this is legally recognized across all 50 states in the US. However, It’s Important to note that no template has been provided for creating a Trust (which is available in Trust&Will). But you have the option to upload and store your already drafted trust into your vault.
IronClad Family’s position is that a Trust is too complex and personalized to leave to a computer wizard and there are too many ways that small errors or omissions could result in your assets not being distributed as you wished.
In addition to their basic functions, Trust&Will and IronClad Family have sections in their product features that focus on end-of-life planning, including unique tabs for funeral preferences, obituaries, post-burial instructions, memorials, etc.
Ease of use
TrustandWill offers a user-friendly platform that makes it incredibly easy for users to navigate and utilize their services. The platform guides users through a step-by-step process, ensuring a smooth and intuitive experience when creating estate plans.
With the option to answer simple questions and provide basic information, users can customize their estate plans to meet their specific needs and state requirements. The platform allows for instant download or complimentary shipment of documents, making it convenient for users to access their estate planning materials.
IronClad Family also offers a simplistic interface, designed with the busy user in mind, making it a seamless experience to access any of your sensitive files from anywhere in the world without needing to carry around heavy files or documents, or having a stationary home safe.
It also guides users through a step-by-step process with its provisions of relevant materials, to ensure you have a smooth and intuitive experience when creating and managing your estate plans and other sensitive documents.
Premium Customer Support
For added convenience, TrustandWill allows users access to unlimited chat and technical support, where experts are readily available to provide personalized guidance and assistance throughout the estate planning process.
Overall, Trust&Will's user-friendly platform and expert support make navigating and utilizing their services effortless, empowering you to create comprehensive and tailored end-of-life plans with confidence.
IronClad Family offers you email and chat support 24/7. Regardless of whatever questions or challenges you may encounter in setting up or managing your account, IronClad Family’s friendly support practically holds your hand and walks you through it.
Additionally, you have the option to book a 2-hour session with an Ironclad Family Coach via phone/text, to ensure you have secured everything your family needs and made it accessible to them.
Unbeatable Features and Add-ons
In addition to exceptional Trust and Will service, as well as attorney support, TrustandWill offers probate support in three different plans: Self-guided, Concierge, and Attorney-led, providing users with various levels of assistance to navigate the probate process with ease.
From easy-to-follow instructions and expert consultations to full-service legal representation, Trust&Will ensures users have the support they need during this complex and challenging time.
IronClad Family on the other hand has gone out on a limb to ensure you and your family have everything you could ever need to prepare for the future and avoid probate completely, with the following additional features;
FREE emergency card: You have the option to request multiple FREE wallet-size, laser-etched, metal health cards with emergency contacts, health issues, and an online link to your health directive for access by EMS services and health providers.
Vault Delivery: Whatever the conditions you set for the delivery of your vaults, they will be carried out to the letter. The IronClad Family team goes the extra mile in contacting your recipient if they’re not able to reach them via email. Your vault content must be delivered to your desired and specified recipient. Only IronClad Family offers this service.
IronClad Family Benefits
If you prioritize comfort, accessibility, security, and full control, IronClad Family might be a good option for you. Additionally, Ironclad Family’s premium expert service offers you one-on-one assistance via email or chat. Overall, IronClad Family offers practical and flexible control over your assets and crucial information.
Privacy & Security
Nobody needs to know the content of your vaults. Only you do. And IronClad Family likes to keep it that way. Unlike other platforms that encrypt your information only after they are stored on that company’s servers in an unencrypted form, IronClad Family offers you secure end-to-end encryption, backed with our zero-knowledge encryption, the only way anyone else knows what’s in your vault is if you say so.
Full Control
Don’t feel the need to consult with your lawyer or family members every time you want to make changes to your documents such as will, power of attorney, or health directives?
Unlike other competitors that require it, you don’t actually have to. You can add and remove any recipient you choose without necessarily consulting them every time. You’re in full control.
And when the time comes, based on the conditions you’ve set up for your individual vaults, it will be delivered accordingly.
You also get to test-deliver your vaults. This way you know exactly what the process would look like when the time comes for your real vaults to be delivered in the future.
Famly-oriented
IronClad Family is primarily focused on providing protection for the family both physically and digitally. Its products and services are tailored to families who are looking for all-around protection in this modern, highly-volatile environment. This is your next best friend if you’re looking to start a family, or already have one and are looking to protect them in every way possible.
Still having trouble making a choice? Here is a breakdown of crucial points:
| IronClad Family | TrustandWill | |
| Free Trial | 14 days | N/A |
| Pricing | $99 | Starts at $159 |
| Storage Space | 100GB | N/A |
| Security | Government-level encryption | Bank-level encryption |
| 256-bit encryption | 256-bit encryption | |
| Two-factor authentication | N/A | |
| Zero-knowledge end-to-end encryption | Local encryption after receiving your data unecrypted | |
| Onboarding | Self-service, Expert-guided | Self-service, Expert-guided |
| Product | Collaboration w/ loved ones & advisors | Collaboration w/ loved ones & advisors |
| Support | Email, Chat | Email, Chat (including paid support) |
| Delivery | Automatic delivery to your recipients on specified date, or if something happens to you | No delivery option |
| Who it's for | Individuals and families | Individuals and families |
| Resources | Resource library for smooth onboarding | Resource library for information |
Next Steps
Ready to safeguard your family's digital protection? IronClad Family has the answers you need! Discover how Their revolutionary product can shield you and your loved ones from digital threats, and handle your end-of-life planning with ease.
Get in touch with the IronClad Family support team here. Or Start your free trial today to experience the ultimate security for you and your family. Don't wait – protect your family's future with IronClad Family.
