Guide
Questions to ask
Call two funeral homes and ask the same questions. Write the answers down. A low number that excludes the container, the permit, or the cremation fee is not comparable to a package that includes them.
- What is your direct cremation price if I provide the container?
- What is your direct cremation price if you provide the container, and what container is that?
- Does that price include the basic services fee, the cremation fee, and transportation?
- Which permits, death certificates, or medical examiner fees are extra?
- Is refrigeration extra if the cremation is not the same day?
- If we add a viewing and a ceremony, what is that package? The national median is $6,280.
- Can you email or hand me the General Price List before we meet?
In person, the funeral home has to give you the General Price List. On the phone, ask for the direct cremation prices anyway, then check them against the list. NFDA’s 2024 consumer research found that 78.2% of people who received a General Price List thought funeral homes should have to post those prices online.