What does a funeral cost?
Published medians: $8,000–$9,500 for burial with vault, $6,000–$6,500 for cremation with services — with cemetery costs on top and wide local variation. The itemization is where planning gets real.
Calls may be recorded for quality and matching purposes.
The line items
Basic services fee, transfer and care of remains, embalming (often optional by law — required mainly for certain public viewings), viewing and ceremony facilities, casket (the single widest-ranging item — retail markups are substantial and third-party purchase is federally protected), vault or liner (a cemetery requirement more than a legal one), plus cemetery plot, opening/closing, and marker for burial. Direct cremation — no ceremony through the funeral home — commonly runs $1,000–$3,500 published and is the budget floor.
Rights that save money
The federal Funeral Rule entitles you to itemized price lists (including by phone), item-by-item selection instead of packages, and the right to supply a casket purchased elsewhere without penalty. Comparing two or three local general price lists — an afternoon’s calls — commonly reveals four-figure spreads for equivalent services. Written wishes plus a sized insurance benefit beats prepayment for flexibility in most published guidance.