The Cost of Funerals research 2026
Britain's most comprehensive, robust and up-to-date research into the rising cost of a traditional funeral – available free for anyone, as part of our mission to make funeral prices more transparent and understandable.
Every funeral director in Britain must have a ‘standardised price list’ that’s easily findable on their website and prominently displayed in their funeral parlour. Yet working out how much a funeral will cost in total – and whether or not that’s more or less than the average price where you live – can still be very difficult.
The standardised price list isn’t that easy to follow. What’s more, some funeral directors quote price ranges, others have costs you may pay depending on your circumstances, and some do not show costs for everything you might need. (For instance, it’s almost impossible to work out the cost of a burial from a funeral director’s website.)
The Cost of Funerals research aims to change all of that. The aim is to make it easy to see the average cost of a funeral in England, Scotland and Wales. The methodology behind the research calculates the average cost of a traditional funeral in nine different areas of Britain by checking the prices of 270 funeral directors and 20 local councils, using 1,890 data points. These are then rechecked quarterly, to create the most accurate, comprehensive and up-to-date research into funeral costs in Britain.
Right now, the Cost of Funerals research shows that the average cost of a traditional funeral across England, Scotland and Wales is currently £4,562.
A traditional funeral means one arranged by a funeral director, with a service at the crematorium or a burial. You can download our free one-page guide to the key costs in each region – showing the average cost per region, the cremation and burial costs and the average funeral director fee in each region.
Here are ten key findings from the latest research which you might find interesting:
London is the most expensive place overall to have a funeral, while Wales is the least expensive (over £1,500 cheaper)
Burials cost £1,833 more than cremations, on average
The fee a funeral director charges is more than half the total cost, averaging 56% and is the most expensive part of a traditional funeral
Depending on which funeral director you choose, the cost can vary within a region by more than £3,000
Many funeral directors quote a price range, so for example, an individual funeral director’s price might vary by £525 depending on which crematorium they use (since they usually don’t have their own)
77% of the funeral directors (207 out of 270) whose prices were checked are independent, not part of a group or a national company
The cheapest individual funeral director is in Scotland, the most expensive individual funeral director is in the South-West of England
A burial in London now costs more than £9,000
The region with the most deaths is the South-East and East of England (23% of all deaths) which is also the most expensive place after London to have a funeral
The average cost of a funeral in England, Wales and Scotland is now £4,562 (which makes it over twice the price of a pure cremation)
What’s more, rechecking the research findings just three months after initially gathering them found that several funeral directors had already put up their prices in that time, further increasing the cost families would have to pay.
All of which means it’s perhaps not surprising that research by thinktank Theos in 2023 found that more than half of people now don’t want a traditional funeral – and of those, over two thirds gave the main reason as being that ‘the money could be better spent another way’.
When someone chooses Pure Cremation – whether to buy a plan so it’s all sorted in advance, or for someone’s funeral after they’ve died – they get a dignified, respectful funeral for less than half the average cost of a traditional funeral. And that can mean more money to leave to family, or to have a more meaningful, personal send-off that really reflects their life.
To see just how affordable lifelong peace of mind with Pure Cremation really is, call us free on 0800 470 23 93 for a free quote, or get your free quote here today:
Here are ten key findings from the latest research which you might find interesting:
London is the most expensive place overall to have a funeral, while Wales is the least expensive (over £1,500 cheaper)
Average traditional funeral cost by region (highest to lowest)
1 London
2 South-East & East of England
3 East & West Midlands
4 Yorkshire & Humberside
5 Scotland
6 South-West England
7 North-East England
8 North-West England
9 Wales
Burials cost £1,833 more than cremations, on average
The fee a funeral director charges is more than half the total cost, averaging 56% and the most expensive part of a traditional funeral
Split of costs for a traditional funeral
Depending on which funeral director you choose, the cost can vary within a region by more than £3,000
Many funeral directors quote a price range, so for example, an individual funeral director’s price might vary by £525 depending on which crematorium they use (since they usually don’t have their own)
77% of the funeral directors (207 out of 270) whose prices were checked are independent, not part of a group or a national company
The cheapest individual funeral director is in Scotland, the most expensive individual funeral director is in the South-West of England
A burial in London now costs more than £9,000
The region with the most deaths is the South-East and East of England (23% of all deaths) which is also the most expensive place after London to have a funeral
The average cost of a funeral in England, Wales and Scotland is now £4,562 (which makes it over twice the price of a pure cremation)
What’s more, rechecking the research findings just three months after initially gathering them found that several funeral directors had already put up their prices in that time, further increasing the cost families would have to pay.
All of which means it’s perhaps not surprising that research by thinktank Theos in 2023 found that more than half of people now don’t want a traditional funeral – and of those, over two thirds gave the main reason as being that ‘the money could be better spent another way’.
When someone chooses Pure Cremation – whether to buy a plan so it’s all sorted in advance, or for someone’s funeral after they’ve died – they get a dignified, respectful funeral for less than half the average cost of a traditional funeral. And that can mean more money to leave to family, or to have a more meaningful, personal send-off that really reflects their life.
To see just how affordable lifelong peace of mind with Pure Cremation really is, call us free on 0800 470 23 93 for a free quote, or get your free quote here today:
Here are ten key findings from the latest research which you might find interesting:
London is the most expensive place overall to have a funeral, while Wales is the least expensive (over £1,500 cheaper)
Burials cost £1,833 more than cremations, on average
The fee a funeral director charges is more than half the total cost, averaging 56% and the most expensive part of a traditional funeral
Depending on which funeral director you choose, the cost can vary within a region by more than £3,000
Many funeral directors quote a price range, so for example, an individual funeral director’s price might vary by £525 depending on which crematorium they use (since they usually don’t have their own)
77% of the funeral directors (207 out of 270) whose prices were checked are independent, not part of a group or a national company
The cheapest individual funeral director is in Scotland, the most expensive individual funeral director is in the South-West of England
A burial in London now costs more than £9,000
The region with the most deaths is the South-East and East of England (23% of all deaths) which is also the most expensive place after London to have a funeral
The average cost of a funeral in England, Wales and Scotland is now £4,562 (which makes it over twice the price of a pure cremation)
What’s more, rechecking the research findings just three months after initially gathering them found that several funeral directors had already put up their prices in that time, further increasing the cost families would have to pay.
All of which means it’s perhaps not surprising that research by thinktank Theos in 2023 found that more than half of people now don’t want a traditional funeral – and of those, over two thirds gave the main reason as being that ‘the money could be better spent another way’.
When someone chooses Pure Cremation – whether to buy a plan so it’s all sorted in advance, or for someone’s funeral after they’ve died – they get a dignified, respectful funeral for less than half the average cost of a traditional funeral. And that can mean more money to leave to family, or to have a more meaningful, personal send-off that really reflects their life.
To see just how affordable lifelong peace of mind with Pure Cremation really is, call us free on 0800 470 23 93 for a free quote, or get your free quote here today:
Every funeral director in Britain must have a ‘standardised price list’ that’s easily findable on their website and prominently displayed in their funeral parlour. Yet working out how much a funeral will cost in total – and whether or not that’s more or less than the average price where you live – can still be very difficult.
The standardised price list isn’t that easy to follow. What’s more, some funeral directors quote price ranges, others have costs you may pay depending on your circumstances, and some do not show costs for everything you might need. (For instance, it’s almost impossible to work out the cost of a burial from a funeral director’s website.)
The Cost of Funerals research aims to change all of that. The aim is to make it easy to see the average cost of a funeral in England, Scotland and Wales. The methodology behind the research calculates the average cost of a traditional funeral in nine different areas of Britain by checking the prices of 270 funeral directors and 20 local councils, using 1,890 data points. These are then rechecked quarterly, to create the most accurate, comprehensive and up-to-date research into funeral costs in Britain.
Right now, the Cost of Funerals research shows that the average cost of a traditional funeral across England, Scotland and Wales is currently £4,562.
A traditional funeral means one arranged by a funeral director, with a service at the crematorium or a burial. You can download our free one-page guide to the key costs in each region – showing the average cost per region, the cremation and burial costs and the average funeral director fee in each region.
Here are ten key findings from the latest research which you might find interesting:
London is the most expensive place overall to have a funeral, while Wales is the least expensive (over £1,500 cheaper)
Average traditional funeral cost by region (highest to lowest)
1 London
2 South-East & East of England
3 East & West Midlands
4 Yorkshire & Humberside
5 Scotland
6 South-West England
7 North-East England
8 North-West England
9 Wales
Burials cost £1,833 more than cremations, on average
The fee a funeral director charges is more than half the total cost, averaging 56% and is the most expensive part of a traditional funeral
Split of costs for a traditional funeral
Depending on which funeral director you choose, the cost can vary within a region by more than £3,000
Many funeral directors quote a price range, so for example, an individual funeral director’s price might vary by £525 depending on which crematorium they use (since they usually don’t have their own)
77% of the funeral directors (207 out of 270) whose prices were checked are independent, not part of a group or a national company
The cheapest individual funeral director is in Scotland, the most expensive individual funeral director is in the South-West of England
A burial in London now costs more than £9,000
The region with the most deaths is the South-East and East of England (23% of all deaths) which is also the most expensive place after London to have a funeral
The average cost of a funeral in England, Wales and Scotland is now £4,562
(which makes it over twice the price of a pure cremation)
What’s more, rechecking the research findings just three months after initially gathering them found that several funeral directors had already put up their prices in that time, further increasing the cost families would have to pay.
All of which means it’s perhaps not surprising that research by thinktank Theos in 2023 found that more than half of people now don’t want a traditional funeral – and of those, over two thirds gave the main reason as being that ‘the money could be better spent another way’.
When someone chooses Pure Cremation – whether to buy a plan so it’s all sorted in advance, or for someone’s funeral after they’ve died – they get a dignified, respectful funeral for less than half the average cost of a traditional funeral. And that can mean more money to leave to family, or to have a more meaningful, personal send-off that really reflects their life.
To see just how affordable lifelong peace of mind with Pure Cremation really is, call us free on 0800 470 23 93 for a free quote, or get your free quote here today: