Pre-need planning

Plan and prepay a cheap funeral.

A pre-need plan lets you choose the funeral now and pay for it now, in one payment or in installments. Pick the cheapest option you'd be happy with, get quotes from more than one home, and check whether the contract guarantees the price before you sign.

First

Compare

Ask each home for its General Price List

Then

Choose

Pay only for the services you want

Before you sign

Check

Price guarantee, refunds and transfers

Step 1 · Who is the plan for?

Step 2 · What kind of funeral?

Step 3 · How do you want to pay?

Step 4 · How can we reach you?

First nameLast nameEmail *Phone (optional)ZIP code *Age of the person the plan is for (optional)Anything else? (religious needs, special requests, interest in water cremation)

This is free for you. We share your name, email, phone and ZIP only with low-cost providers and licensed pre-need brokers in your state, who may contact you by email or phone.

Before you prepay

·Price. Paying now only locks the price if the contract says so. Get that in writing.
·Where the money goes. States have different rules for prepaid funeral money. Some require part of it to go into a state-regulated trust or a life insurance policy; others offer little protection. Ask where your money will be held and who gets the interest.
·Calmer decisions. You decide now, not in the first hours after a death, when it's easiest to say yes to extras you don't need.
·Moving. Some prepaid plans can be transferred, often at extra cost. Ask what happens if you move or die away from home.
·Canceling. Ask whether you can cancel for a full refund, and whether you're protected if the funeral home goes out of business.

Source: FTC, Planning your own funeral →

General information, not legal or financial advice.

Your casket rights

You don't have to buy the casket from the home that sells you the plan. You can buy one from another seller, and under the FTC Funeral Rule (16 CFR 453.4) the home can't charge you a fee for using it.

FTC guide to the Funeral Rule →