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Does a bill of sale need a notary?

Usually not. 9 states name a notary for a bill of sale or a price form, and most of them only in one situation. Where a notary is needed on every sale, it is usually the title that gets notarized, not the bill of sale.

The notary people remember is usually on the title.

What a notarized bill of sale is

An ordinary bill of sale, signed in front of a notary public.

The notary checks each signer’s ID, watches them sign and adds a stamp or seal.

The notary vouches for who signed, not for the deal. They do not check the price, the car or the title.

Where a bill of sale gets notarized

These are the states whose rules name a notary for the bill of sale. Read the “when” column: in most of them it is one situation, not every sale.

State	When
Arizona	Only for Arizona's own Title Transfer Bill of Sale, used in place of the signed title. It has a notary or MVD agent block.
Delaware	State law says the price is evidenced by a notarized bill of sale. The DMV also accepts the price written on the title.
Kentucky	Not a bill of sale. Where Kentucky asks for the price affidavit on form TC96-182, both of you sign it in front of a notary.
Louisiana	Whenever one is used. With the price written on the title, you do not need one at all.
North Dakota	Only when there is no title to sign. Form SFN 2888 is signed before a notary.
Oklahoma	Only if the buyer will drive it home without plates. A dated, notarized bill of sale covers five days.
Tennessee	Only when a lienholder holds your title.
West Virginia	When the price is under half the book value. Without it, tax is charged on full book value.
Wyoming	Only when no assigned title can be produced.

Tap a state for its full answer, the source and the date we checked it.

Everywhere else

In the other 41 states, the rules we checked do not ask for a notary on the bill of sale.

Some say so outright. California, Indiana and Maryland each state that theirs does not need one.

Both of you signing it, and each keeping a copy, is the usual standard.

The title is a different story

7 states want a notary or witnesses on the seller’s signature on the title, on every sale.

That is the document that actually transfers the car, and it is where the notary rule usually lives.

If you remember someone saying “it has to be notarized,” this is probably what they meant.

How signing over a title works.

If you do need one

Plan it before the meeting, not after. Both signatures usually have to be made in front of the notary.

Many banks, shipping stores and some tag offices have one.

Meeting at a notary also gives you a public, staffed place to finish the sale.

A bill of sale, free

Ours prints on one page, with the as-is line, the odometer line and room for a notary where your state wants one. Free, no account.

What this page is

A plain description of how this generally works in private vehicle sales in the United States. Rules differ by state and change. It is not advice about your sale — for that, your state's motor vehicle agency is the authority, and their current page is what governs.