5 Digital Assets Worth More Than You Think

Your Digital Net Worth Is Probably Higher Than You Think

When people think about estate planning, they think about the house, the car, the bank account, and maybe the 401(k). But in 2026, some of the most valuable things you own aren't physical at all — they're digital.

And unlike your house (which has a deed) or your bank account (which has a beneficiary), most digital assets have no inheritance mechanism at all. When you die, they can simply vanish.

Here are five categories of digital assets that are often worth far more than people realize — and what happens to each when the owner dies.

1. Domain Names: The Digital Real Estate You Might Be Sitting On

Potential value: $100 to $50,000,000+

Domain names are the real estate of the internet, and like physical real estate, the best ones appreciate dramatically over time.

The Numbers

The average .com domain that sells on the aftermarket goes for $2,000-5,000 (GoDaddy Aftermarket data)
Premium domains routinely sell for six and seven figures
Voice.com sold for $30 million. Cars.com sold for $872 million (including the business). Insurance.com sold for $35.6 million
Even modest domains — local business names, common phrases, short acronyms — can be worth $500-10,000

What Happens When You Die

If you own domain names and no one knows:

Auto-renewal fails when your credit card expires or gets canceled
The domain enters a redemption period (30-45 days, with increasing fees)
After redemption, it's released to the public — domain squatters actively monitor expiring domains and snap up anything valuable within minutes
Your $10,000 domain becomes someone else's property because no one paid the $12 annual renewal

Real-World Case

A family in Texas lost a portfolio of 40+ domain names worth an estimated $200,000 after the owner died unexpectedly. The domains expired over the following months because no one had the registrar login credentials. By the time the family discovered the loss, the most valuable names had been purchased by third parties.

How to Protect Them

Document your registrar account (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, etc.) and login credentials
Enable auto-renewal and keep payment methods current
Consider locking valuable domains with registrar lock
Store the information in an encrypted vault with a deadman switch so your family gets access before renewals lapse

2. Loyalty Points and Miles: A Currency Most People Forget

Potential value: $500 to $25,000+

If you travel, use credit cards, or shop at major retailers, you're almost certainly sitting on thousands of dollars in loyalty currency that you've never thought about as an "asset."

The Numbers

The average American household has $3,000-5,000 in unredeemed loyalty points across all programs, according to Bond Brand Loyalty research
A single frequent flyer might have 200,000-500,000 miles, worth $2,000-7,500 depending on the program
Credit card points (Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards) are often worth 1.5-2 cents per point when redeemed optimally
Hotel loyalty programs (Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors) can represent thousands in free stays

What Happens When You Die

Most loyalty programs have terms of service stating that points are not transferable upon death. In practice:

Airlines: Most major airlines will cancel points upon notification of death. Some (Delta, United) will transfer points to a beneficiary upon request, but it's not guaranteed and often requires estate documentation
Hotels: Marriott Bonvoy allows points transfer to an authorized estate representative. Hilton's policy is less clear
Credit card points: Generally transferable to the estate, but the account must be managed through the issuing bank's estate process
Retail rewards: Almost universally non-transferable. They simply disappear

How to Protect Them

Create a list of all loyalty programs with account numbers and login credentials
Note the approximate value and transfer policies for each program
For high-value accounts, consider redeeming points before they're at risk (e.g., if you have a terminal diagnosis)
Store program details in your encrypted estate vault

3. Digital Media Libraries: The Collection That Doesn't Exist

Potential value: $1,000 to $30,000+

Here's a fact that surprises most people: you don't own your digital media. When you "buy" a movie on iTunes, a book on Kindle, or a game on Steam, you're purchasing a license to use that content — not the content itself.

The Numbers

The average Steam user has $1,000-2,000 in games (based on average library size of 100+ games)
A Kindle reader who has bought books for 10 years might have $3,000-5,000 in ebooks
iTunes/Apple TV movie and TV show libraries can easily reach $2,000-5,000
Music libraries (purchased, not streamed) represent hundreds to thousands of dollars

What Happens When You Die

According to each platform's terms of service:

Apple: iTunes purchases are non-transferable. When you die, your library dies with you. Apple's Digital Legacy program allows viewing of purchased content but not transferring licenses
Amazon/Kindle: Kindle books are licensed, not owned. Amazon's ToS states the license is non-transferable. In practice, if no one closes the account, the content remains accessible on devices already logged in
Steam: Steam accounts are non-transferable. Valve's subscriber agreement explicitly states that accounts and the games in them cannot be transferred. In practice, if family members know the login, they can continue using the account — but it technically violates the ToS
Google Play: Similar to Apple — content is licensed, not transferable

The Big Picture

The average American household spends $500-1,000 per year on digital media (streaming excluded). Over 10-20 years, that's $5,000-20,000 in digital content that has zero inheritance value under current terms of service.

How to Protect Them

Accept that digital media licenses likely die with you
For irreplaceable content (family videos uploaded to services, personal playlists), download and store copies locally
Store account credentials so family can at least access content on existing devices
Consider DRM-free alternatives where available (e.g., GOG for games, Bandcamp for music)

4. Online Businesses and Side Hustles: Income That Stops Without You

Potential value: $1,000 to $1,000,000+

The creator economy and e-commerce have made it common for people to have income-generating online businesses — sometimes ones their family doesn't even fully understand.

The Numbers

36% of Americans have a side hustle (Bankrate, 2024), many of which are entirely online
The average Etsy seller earns $2,000-3,000/year; top sellers earn six figures
A YouTube channel with 10,000 subscribers can generate $500-2,000/month in ad revenue
Shopify stores, affiliate websites, digital products, online courses — all generate ongoing revenue that requires active management

What Happens When You Die

Online businesses don't just "stop" — they decay:

Hosting and domain payments fail, taking websites offline
Customer orders go unfulfilled (this can create legal liability)
Subscription customers keep getting charged for nothing (chargeback risk)
Advertising revenue accumulates but can't be withdrawn without account access
Inventory (for physical product sellers) sits in warehouses racking up storage fees
Supplier contracts and autoorders continue

The Compounding Problem

Every day an online business goes unmanaged after the owner's death:

Revenue is lost
Customers leave (and leave negative reviews)
The business's value decreases
Legal and financial complications increase

A business that was worth $50,000 last month might be worth $5,000 in 90 days if no one takes action.

How to Protect Them

Document everything: Platform logins, hosting credentials, payment processor access, supplier contacts, customer service processes
Create an operations manual: How does the business work? What needs daily/weekly/monthly attention?
Designate a business successor: Who should take over? Your spouse, business partner, or someone who understands the business
Store credentials and instructions in an encrypted vault with automatic delivery
Consider key-person insurance if the business generates significant income

5. Photo and Video Archives: The Priceless Asset

Potential value: Financially modest. Emotionally? Priceless.

This is the asset that doesn't have a dollar value but is often the one families mourn losing the most.

The Numbers

The average smartphone user has 2,000-5,000 photos on their device (Apple)
Google Photos stores over 4 trillion photos with 28 billion new ones uploaded weekly
The average iCloud account contains years of irreplaceable family memories
Professional photographers may have tens of thousands of images in cloud accounts

What Happens When You Die

Google deletes inactive accounts after 2 years of inactivity
Apple can delete iCloud data after 12 months of inactivity (with notification to Legacy Contacts if set up)
Facebook/Instagram memorializes accounts but limits what family can download
Cloud storage (Dropbox, OneDrive) may delete inactive free accounts
Phone-only photos (never backed up) are lost if the device is locked and no one has the passcode

What's Really at Risk

Wedding photos that were never printed
Videos of children's first steps, birthdays, milestones
The last photo ever taken of a deceased relative
Decades of memories stored only in the cloud

According to a 2023 survey by Backblaze, 21% of people have never backed up their data, and another 28% only back up annually or less. That means roughly half of all personal photos are at risk of being lost.

How to Protect Them

Download and back up your most important photos and videos to a physical drive
Enable automatic cloud backup so device photos are preserved somewhere
Share important albums with family members now, while you can
Store device passcodes and cloud account credentials in your encrypted vault
Set up Google's Inactive Account Manager (if you use Google Photos) to notify your family before deletion
Upload your most treasured photos and videos to Killswitch — they'll be encrypted and automatically delivered to your chosen family members

The Total Hidden Value

Let's add up what the average person might be sitting on:

Digital Asset	Estimated Value
Domain names	$500 - $50,000+
Loyalty points & miles	$3,000 - $25,000
Digital media libraries	$1,000 - $20,000
Online business/side hustle	$1,000 - $100,000+
Photos & videos	Priceless
Total	$5,500 - $195,000+

That's potentially six figures in digital assets that most estate plans completely ignore.

What to Do Right Now

Take inventory — Go through each category above and estimate your digital asset value
Document access credentials for every platform where you hold digital assets
Upload your inventory to Killswitch with zero-knowledge encryption
Set up a deadman switch so your family gets access before any time-sensitive assets (like domains) expire
Tell someone — make sure your executor or spouse knows that digital assets exist and are documented

Your digital life has real value. Don't let it disappear.

Killswitch protects your digital assets with zero-knowledge encryption and automatic deadman switch delivery. Protect what's yours →