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 prepay more; the limit binds only what the landlord demands.

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

14 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 July 9, 2026 All Arizona topics →

Legislative changes ahead — not yet in force. The rules on this page reflect the law in force today. The following measures would change it:

HB 2244 (2026), Ch. 194 — Already CHAPTERED but not yet effective: on September 12, 2026, ARS 12-1567 and 22-247 gain a tenant remedy after an eviction judgment is paid — if the tenant files a motion to compel satisfaction of the judgment and the landlord does not respond within 15 days, the filing fee is waived, no hearing is held, the judgment is deemed satisfied on the tenant's proof of payment, and the court may seal records of the eviction action under ARS 33-1379.Status: Approved 2026-06-19; effective 2026-09-12 (the session's general effective date; the chapter carries no effective-date clause of its own). The answers shown do not yet reflect it. (checked 2026-08-12).
SB 1426 (2026), Ch. 69 — Already CHAPTERED but not yet effective: on September 12, 2026, ARS 12-1173 gains a separate forcible-detainer track for unauthorized occupants of residential property. The act states it 'does not apply to or modify the rights and remedies available to landlords and tenants pursuant to title 33, chapter 10,' so the tenant eviction rules on this page are unchanged by it.Status: Approved 2026-05-29; effective 2026-09-12 (general effective date). No figure on this page changes. (checked 2026-08-12).

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) · Verified July 9, 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 be present at the move-out inspection.

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 prepay more; the limit binds only what the landlord demands. 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. Nonrefundable fees designated in writing under 33-1321(B) sit outside the refundable-security scheme. Mobile home parks are governed separately (ARS 33-1431, ch. 11).
Return deadline	14 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.
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	No pet-deposit statute exists for standard rentals. A pet deposit is 'security, however denominated' and counts toward the 1.5-month aggregate cap of 33-1321(A) unless designated in writing as a nonrefundable fee under 33-1321(B).
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 July 9, 2026), landlordatlas.com/laws/security-deposits/arizona/" — free to cite and quote with a link (how these records are verified). Every figure above is cited to the Arizona statute in the citations section below.

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

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.

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 prepay more; the limit binds only what the landlord demands.
How long does a landlord have to return a security deposit in Arizona?: 14 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.

Statute citations

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

How this record was verified: Direct read of statute text on the official Arizona Legislature site (azleg.gov): ARS 33-1321 and 33-1343 each read in full twice (independent reads matched verbatim), ARS 33-1368, 33-1375, 33-1329, 33-1376, and 33-1314 read in full, plus trap-check reads of the mobile-home statutes ARS 33-1414 (late fees) and 33-1432 (90-day rent-increase notice) to confirm those figures do NOT apply to standard rentals. Pending-bill statuses (HB 2337 of 2025, HB 4122 and HB 2243 of 2026) checked against azleg.gov bill text and legislative trackers 2026-07-09; all died without committee action.