How much can a landlord charge for a security deposit in Arizona?

1.5 months' rent — This is an aggregate ceiling covering the security deposit, prepaid rent, and any refundable fees regardless of label (ARS 33-1321(A)). A tenant may still choose to pay more than one and one-half month's rent in advance; the landlord may not demand or receive more.

How long does a landlord have to return a security deposit in Arizona?

14 business days. Those 14 days exclude Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, so the deadline usually lands about three calendar weeks out. The clock starts on the LAST of three trigger events to occur: termination of the tenancy, delivery of possession, and demand by the tenant (ARS 33-1321(D)).

Do landlords have to pay interest on security deposits in Arizona?

No — Arizona does not require interest on the security deposit to be paid to the tenant. Arizona's security-deposit statute, ARS 33-1321, contains no escrow, trust-account, or interest requirement anywhere in its subsections. Fifty-state charts that import other states' escrow or interest rules into Arizona are wrong.

Can a landlord charge a non-refundable fee in Arizona?

Yes — non-refundable fees are allowed in Arizona.

What are the security deposit rules in Arizona?

Verified October 1, 2026 All Arizona topics →

Arizona caps everything a landlord can demand up front — security deposit, prepaid rent, and refundable fees combined, however they are labeled — at one and one-half month's rent, though a tenant may volunteer more.

Cited to ARS 33-1321 (A)-(E) and 1 more cited source · Verified October 1, 2026

Within 14 days (excluding weekends and holidays) after the tenancy ends, possession is delivered, and the tenant demands the deposit back, the landlord must send an itemized list of all deductions and any refund by first-class mail to the tenant's last known address. Nonrefundable fees are legal only if their purpose is stated in writing — any fee not designated nonrefundable is refundable by statute. There is no escrow or interest requirement. A landlord who blows the 14-day duty owes the money due plus damages equal to twice the amount wrongfully withheld, and tenants have a statutory right to a move-in damage form and to written notice that they may be present at the move-out inspection, though a landlord need not hold a joint move-out inspection with a tenant being evicted for a material and irreparable breach where the landlord has reasonable cause to fear violence or intimidation.

Arizona security deposits at a glance

Maximum deposit	1.5 months' rent — This is an aggregate ceiling covering the security deposit, prepaid rent, and any refundable fees regardless of label (ARS 33-1321(A)). A tenant may still choose to pay more than one and one-half month's rent in advance; the landlord may not demand or receive more. The statute bars a landlord from demanding or receiving 'security, however denominated, including prepaid rent in an amount or value of more than one and one-half month's rent'. The same subsection lets a tenant VOLUNTARILY pay more than 1.5 months in advance. A fee designated in writing as nonrefundable under 33-1321(B) is not refunded; whether it counts toward the ceiling is a reading the statute implies rather than states. Mobile home parks are governed separately (ARS 33-1431, ch. 11).
Return deadline	14 business days
Deadline conditions	Those 14 days exclude Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, so the deadline usually lands about three calendar weeks out. The clock starts on the LAST of three trigger events to occur: termination of the tenancy, delivery of possession, and demand by the tenant (ARS 33-1321(D)). The landlord mails the itemized list and any refund by first-class mail to the tenant's last known place of residence unless other arrangements are agreed in writing. The 'demand by the tenant' element is part of the statutory text and is routinely omitted by secondary sources. Once the itemized list and any refund are mailed, the tenant has sixty days to dispute the deductions or the amount; after that the itemized list is deemed valid and final and any further claims of the tenant are waived (33-1321(D)).
Itemization required	Yes
Itemization rules	The landlord must provide an itemized list of ALL deductions together with the amount due and payable to the tenant, if any (ARS 33-1321(D)). Dispute-prevention scaffolding front-loads the documentation: at move-in the landlord must furnish a signed copy of the lease, a move-in form for recording existing damage, and written notification that the tenant may be present at the move-out inspection (33-1321(C)).
Separate account required	No
Interest owed to tenant	No
Account & interest rules	Arizona's security-deposit statute, ARS 33-1321, contains no escrow, trust-account, or interest requirement anywhere in its subsections. Fifty-state charts that import other states' escrow or interest rules into Arizona are wrong.
Pet deposits	A pet deposit counts inside the general deposit cap and has no figure of its own. The pet-deposit rule, pet rent and fees, and the assistance-animal rules are on the pets and assistance animals page.
Non-refundable fees allowed	Yes
Penalty for violation	A landlord who misses the 14-day itemization-and-return duty owes the tenant the property and money due plus damages equal to twice the amount wrongfully withheld (ARS 33-1321(E)). That is double the amount wrongfully withheld, not double the whole deposit. The statutory phrase is 'together with damages in an amount equal to twice the amount wrongfully withheld.' Other remedies are preserved, and the obligations run with the landlord's interest to successors.
Tenant forwarding-address duty	No affirmative statutory duty to furnish a forwarding address — but the 14-day clock includes 'demand by the tenant' as a trigger element, and the landlord's mailing duty runs only to the tenant's LAST KNOWN place of residence (33-1321(D)), so a tenant who never demands or updates an address weakens their own position.

Cite this page: "Landlord Atlas, Arizona Security Deposit Laws (verified October 1, 2026), landlordatlas.com/laws/security-deposits/arizona/" — free to cite and quote with a link (how these records are verified). Everything above is cited in the citations section below.

Generate a Arizona security-deposit return letter — free, no signup, built on the same verified Arizona law as this page.

Editable Arizona deposit kit — the deposit disposition letter, the move-in receipt with the custody and interest statements, a deposits-held register with the return deadline computed, and the rules fact sheet built on the verified Arizona rules on this page, in Word, fillable PDF and Excel.

Notes and caveats

The 1.5-month cap is an aggregate, not deposit-only — The one-and-one-half-month figure is an aggregate demand cap that includes prepaid rent, not just the security deposit — most summaries wrongly describe it as a deposit-only cap.
Two commonly misstated pieces of the 14-day deadline — The clock runs from the last of the trigger events — including demand by the tenant — and counts business days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays. Both elements are routinely misstated by secondary sources.
The 2x penalty is on the amount wrongfully withheld — Damages under ARS 33-1321(E) equal twice the amount wrongfully withheld — not twice the whole deposit.
Mobile home parks are a separate scheme — Park deposits are governed by an entirely separate statute (ARS 33-1431) and are out of scope here — don't import park rules into standard rentals.
The tenant has sixty days to object — The 14-business-day duty is only half of the timetable. Once the itemized list and any amount due are mailed, the tenant has sixty days to dispute the deductions or the amount. After that the figures in the itemized list are deemed valid and final and any further claims of the tenant are waived (ARS 33-1321(D)).
No escrow means the money may be used during the tenancy — Arizona requires no trust account, so during the tenancy a landlord may use refundable security deposits and other refundable deposits in accordance with any applicable provisions of the property management agreement. At the end of the tenancy all refundable deposits must still be refunded under the same section, and the duty binds whoever holds the landlord's interest in the premises when the tenancy ends (ARS 33-1321(G) and (H)).

Common questions: Arizona security deposits

Each answer is the verified value from the table above, restated as a direct answer. Free to quote with a link to this page.

How much can a landlord charge for a security deposit in Arizona?: 1.5 months' rent — This is an aggregate ceiling covering the security deposit, prepaid rent, and any refundable fees regardless of label (ARS 33-1321(A)). A tenant may still choose to pay more than one and one-half month's rent in advance; the landlord may not demand or receive more.
How long does a landlord have to return a security deposit in Arizona?: 14 business days. Those 14 days exclude Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, so the deadline usually lands about three calendar weeks out. The clock starts on the LAST of three trigger events to occur: termination of the tenancy, delivery of possession, and demand by the tenant (ARS 33-1321(D)).
What happens if a landlord does not return the deposit on time in Arizona?: A landlord who misses the 14-day itemization-and-return duty owes the tenant the property and money due plus damages equal to twice the amount wrongfully withheld (ARS 33-1321(E)). That is double the amount wrongfully withheld, not double the whole deposit.
Do landlords have to pay interest on security deposits in Arizona?: No — Arizona does not require interest on the security deposit to be paid to the tenant. Arizona's security-deposit statute, ARS 33-1321, contains no escrow, trust-account, or interest requirement anywhere in its subsections. Fifty-state charts that import other states' escrow or interest rules into Arizona are wrong.
Can a landlord charge a non-refundable fee in Arizona?: Yes — non-refundable fees are allowed in Arizona.

Citations

ARS 33-1321 · (A)-(E) (verified 2026) Official source
ARS 33-1321 · (A)-(H) (verified 2026) Official source

How this record was verified: Direct read of statute text on the Arizona Legislature's site (azleg.gov). October 1, 2026: every section the security deposit, rent increase, late fee, entry and eviction answers rest on was read there: A.R.S. §§ 33-1310, 33-1314, 33-1321, 33-1329, 33-1343, 33-1367, 33-1368, 33-1375 to 33-1377 and 33-1379; 12-1173, 12-1178, 12-1179 and 12-1567; and 22-247. The mobile home park act (§§ 33-1401 to 33-1501) and the recreational vehicle long-term rental space act (§§ 33-2101 to 33-2148) were read for the figures that belong to them and not to standard rentals. The statute pages print no amendment history, so the chaptered laws of the 2025 and 2026 sessions were searched for amendments to these sections; Laws 2026, chapters 69 and 194 (effective September 12, 2026) are stated where they apply. Rule 17 of the Rules of Procedure for Eviction Actions and Rule 4 of the Superior Court Rules of Appellate Procedure - Civil were read in the Arizona court rules as published for the courts. The status of each bill named here was read in the Legislature's own bill records.