Email FacebookTwitterMenu burgerClose thin

How Much Does the Average Funeral Cost?

Share
How Much Does the Average Funeral Cost?

The emotional pain of losing a loved one is obviously top of mine for most grieving people — but the financial burden is important to consider as well. The median cost for a funeral with a viewing and burial was nearly $8,000, according to a 2021 National Funeral Directors Association study. For a funeral with a viewing and cremation, the cost was $6,970. If you’re worried about how your survivors will pay for your funeral, you may be considering final expense insurance. But you may also want to consider hiring a financial advisor, who can help you with your overall estate planning, including your end-of-life planning.

Average Funeral Costs: The Basics

The average funeral costs $7,848 in 2021. That includes a viewing and burial, embalming, hearse, transfer of remains, service fee and more. It doesn’t, however, include the cost of the cemetery site, gravestone or vault (many cemeteries require this cement container that prevents the ground from caving in). It also doesn’t include, say, a catered luncheon with drinks after the memorial service, which can add hundreds if not thousands of dollars to the cost.

Between 2016 and 2021, the median cost of a funeral with viewing and burial increased about 6.6%, according to the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA). That may not seem so bad if you consider that over the same period inflation jumped 13.98%.

The number of funeral homes in the U.S. has been declining. As of 2021 there were nearly 19,000 funeral homes, a drop of about 500 from 2004, according to Statista.

Burial vs. Cremation

How Much Does the Average Funeral Cost?

As mentioned earlier, according to the NFDA, the median cost of a funeral with viewing and cremation is $6,970. That’s nearly $900 less than the median cost of a funeral with a viewing and burial. And some sources put the average cost of a cremation even lower, at $2,000-$4,000.

In 2020, the national cremation rate was 56%, while the burial rate was 37.5%, according to the NFDA. The remaining 6.5% of deceased individuals were reported as being handled through other means, such as donation to science or other alternative methods. The cost differential between burial and cremation may be part of the reason that cremation rates are rising and burial rates are falling. In 2005, cremation accounted for 32.3% of funerals, burial 61.4%. The NFDA projects that cremations will represent close to 75% of funerals and burials only 20%.

Budgeting for a Funeral

How Much Does the Average Funeral Cost?

It’s probably a good idea to budget more than $7,848 (or $6,970 for cremation). Why? Because those numbers don’t include things like traveling for the memorial service, meals and lodging around the time of the funeral, catering for guests, special clothing, clergy stipend and more.

Most experts recommend rounding up to $10,000, which is why final expense life insurance policies often come with a $10,000 benefit. If you don’t have $10,000 to stash in a money market account to cover the cost of your funeral, you can always buy final expense insurance and name a loved one as the beneficiary of the policy.

That way, he or she won’t be out of pocket $10,000. Having a final expense policy can make it easier for your loved one to get that money. If you had $10,000 in a savings account, it may take your loved one longer to access that money, particularly if he or she is not listed as a beneficiary on your bank account.

Some final expense insurance policies are only available to those 50 or older. So what do you do if you’re under 50 and you don’t want your funeral to be a financial burden to a loved one? You can set up a dedicated savings account and share access to the account with your loved one, or buy a bond for the person who would be responsible for planning your memorial service. In some cases, you can pre-pay for a funeral with a funeral home, but doing this too far in advance can lead to complications if you move or if the funeral home goes out of business.

Tips for End-of-Life Planning

  • If thinking about how much the average funeral costs makes you worry about how your survivors will come up with that much cash, it may be time to start saving. If you’re eligible for final expense life insurance, you may opt for that. Because of the low policy benefit, these policies tend to come with low premiums, too. Or, you could buy a bigger term life insurance policy that your beneficiary could use to both pay for your funeral and cover other expenses.
  • Consider turning to a financial advisor for guidance on estate planning. If you don’t have a financial advisor yet, finding one doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to three vetted financial advisors who serve your area, and you can interview your advisor matches at no cost to decide which one is right for you. If you’re ready to find an advisor who can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.

Photo credit: ©iStock.com/PeopleImages, ©iStock.com/meggyzaza,  ©iStock.com/John Kevin

...