California Name Change Filing Fees by County
Filing a name change case in California costs $435, paid to the Superior Court Clerk (Superior Court). That base fee holds in 56 of 58 counties; Riverside and San Francisco add a local surcharge.
| Filing | Fee |
|---|---|
| Petition for a decree of change of name or gender Gov. Code §§ 70611, 70602.5, 70602.6 | $435 |
Source: Superior Court of California — Statewide Civil Fee Schedule (effective Jan. 1, 2026) — schedule dated 2026-01-01, last checked 2026-08-25.
- Most adult name changes also require publishing an order to show cause in a newspaper once a week for four weeks, which is billed by the newspaper, commonly $80 to $300 depending on the county.
- If you cannot afford the fee, you can ask for a fee waiver with form FW-001.
Name Change fees by county
- Alameda County$435
- Alpine County$435
- Amador County$435
- Butte County$435
- Calaveras County$435
- Colusa County$435
- Contra Costa County$435
- Del Norte County$435
- El Dorado County$435
- Fresno County$435
- Glenn County$435
- Humboldt County$435
- Imperial County$435
- Inyo County$435
- Kern County$435
- Kings County$435
- Lake County$435
- Lassen County$435
- Los Angeles County$435
- Madera County$435
- Marin County$435
- Mariposa County$435
- Mendocino County$435
- Merced County$435
- Modoc County$435
- Mono County$435
- Monterey County$435
- Napa County$435
- Nevada County$435
- Orange County$435
- Placer County$435
- Plumas County$435
- Riverside County$450
- Sacramento County$435
- San Benito County$435
- San Bernardino County$435
- San Diego County$435
- San Francisco County$450
- San Joaquin County$435
- San Luis Obispo County$435
- San Mateo County$435
- Santa Barbara County$435
- Santa Clara County$435
- Santa Cruz County$435
- Shasta County$435
- Sierra County$435
- Siskiyou County$435
- Solano County$435
- Sonoma County$435
- Stanislaus County$435
- Sutter County$435
- Tehama County$435
- Trinity County$435
- Tulare County$435
- Tuolumne County$435
- Ventura County$435
- Yolo County$435
- Yuba County$435
Common questions
- Is the name change filing fee the same in every California county?
- Almost. The base fee is set statewide, but Riverside County and San Francisco County add a local courthouse-construction surcharge, so some amounts are higher there. County pages show the exact local figure.
- What does the $435 fee not include?
- Serving the other party (billed separately by the sheriff, constable, process server, or clerk), certified copies, publication notices where required, and attorney's fees. The notes above cover what service typically costs for this case type.