About Cremation Cost Guide
Cremation Cost Guide exists for one reason: cremation prices in the United States are hard to find, hard to compare, and usually needed at the worst possible moment. We research and publish those prices, state by state, so a family can make a calm decision with real numbers in hand.
What we do
We track the cost of cremation across all 50 states: direct cremation, cremation with a funeral service, and the extras that move the final bill. We explain how funeral pricing works, what the law requires providers to tell you, and where families most often overpay. We also publish a pet cremation silo, because pet owners face the same problem in miniature: emotional decisions, unclear prices, and very little honest information.
Everything we publish is free to read, and our calculator is free to use. This site is supported by advertising, which is clearly separated from our research. No provider can pay to appear in our tables, to change a figure, or to remove a cheaper competitor.
What we are not
We are not a funeral home, a cremation provider, or a broker. We do not sell cremation, funeral plans, urns, or insurance, and we do not book arrangements. When you are ready to buy, you deal directly with a licensed provider in your state, using our numbers as a check on theirs. If you are in the middle of arranging a cremation right now, start with the price for your state and the guide to reading a funeral home price list.
Who writes and checks the content
A four-person team produces everything on this site. The price dataset is built and maintained by Sarah Linden, our Senior Cost Researcher. The cost guides and explainers are written by Michael Torres (Staff Writer), and the pet cremation silo is written by Emily Hart (Pet Care Writer). Nothing is published until Daniel Mercer, our Editor & Reviewer, has checked every figure against its source and signed the page off. Every article carries its author's name and the reviewer's name, and the team page introduces all four and the pages each of them owns. Our methodology page explains where every figure comes from, how estimates are built, and when each dataset was last verified. If you spot a price that looks wrong, please tell us through the contact page. Corrections are part of the job, and we would rather fix a number than defend it.
Why cremation
About 63% of funerals in the United States now involve cremation, up from a small minority a generation ago. Families choose it for cost, for simplicity, for environmental reasons, and because it leaves time and freedom for a memorial that fits the person. Whatever the reason, the price should be knowable before the phone calls start. That is the gap this site is here to close.