What is the average cost of a funeral?

In the US, the median funeral with a burial is around $8,300, and a funeral with cremation is around $6,280. Both figures exclude some cemetery costs, so the real total is often higher.

What is the cheapest type of funeral?

A direct cremation is the lowest-cost option, typically $800–$4,000. It skips the viewing, service and embalming, and a memorial can be held later at little or no cost.

Why are funerals so expensive?

A traditional funeral bundles many services and products: professional services, embalming, facilities for a viewing, a casket, and at a cemetery a plot, vault and headstone. Each line adds up, and upsells are common.

Do funeral homes have to show prices?

Yes. Under the FTC Funeral Rule, US funeral homes must provide an itemized General Price List on request, and you may choose only the goods and services you want.

Costs

How much does a funeral cost?

A traditional funeral is one of the largest expenses most families ever face. Here’s what the average funeral costs in the US, what makes up the bill, and how to pay far less without cutting corners that matter.

Typical US figures

The headline numbers

Funeral with burial

~$8,300

US median for a traditional burial funeral, and often more once all cemetery costs are added.

Funeral with cremation

~$6,280

US median for a cremation with a viewing and service.

Lowest cost

Direct cremation

$800–$4,000

No service or viewing; ashes returned to the family. The lowest-cost option.

Median figures based on national US funeral pricing (NFDA). Actual costs vary by location and provider, so verify locally.

Where the money goes

What’s in the bill

A traditional funeral is a bundle of separate goods and services. The biggest drivers are:

•Basic services fee (the funeral director's non-declinable charge)
•Transfer of the body and care of the deceased
•Embalming and body preparation
•Facilities and staff for a viewing and ceremony
•A casket, often the single largest product cost
•Cemetery costs: plot, burial vault, opening/closing and a headstone

Under the FTC Funeral Rule, you’re entitled to an itemized price list and can decline anything you don’t want.

Pay less

How to lower the cost of a funeral

✓Consider direct cremation and hold a celebration of life separately
✓Compare itemized price lists from several funeral homes
✓Decline extras you don't need, since embalming is rarely legally required
✓Buy a casket or urn from a third party if you want one (the funeral home must accept it)
✓Ask about a simple graveside service instead of a full viewing

FAQ

Funeral costs: common questions

What is the average cost of a funeral?: In the US, the median funeral with a burial is around $8,300, and a funeral with cremation is around $6,280. Both figures exclude some cemetery costs, so the real total is often higher.
What is the cheapest type of funeral?: A direct cremation is the lowest-cost option, typically $800–$4,000. It skips the viewing, service and embalming, and a memorial can be held later at little or no cost.
Why are funerals so expensive?: A traditional funeral bundles many services and products: professional services, embalming, facilities for a viewing, a casket, and at a cemetery a plot, vault and headstone. Each line adds up, and upsells are common.
Do funeral homes have to show prices?: Yes. Under the FTC Funeral Rule, US funeral homes must provide an itemized General Price List on request, and you may choose only the goods and services you want.

About the author

Adam Binstock

Founder of Cremation Institute

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