Compare prices among these and more of America’s most trusted life insurers
Aetna
AARP
Colonial Penn
State Farm
TruStage
Aflac
Physicians Mutual
AAA
AIG
USAA
Lincoln Heritage
Gerber Life
Globe Life
Corebridge Financial
American Amicable
Estimate your funeral cost
Choose your state and the type of service. The result separates what the funeral home charges from what the cemetery charges, because they are two different bills.
Estimated burial with a service in Florida
- Funeral home services, viewing and ceremony$5,220
- Casket, standard$2,450
- Cemetery plot$2,440
- Opening and closing the grave$1,330
- Burial vault or grave liner$1,660
- Headstone or marker$1,960
Funeral home figures start from the South Atlantic median in the NFDA General Price List Survey, with the casket separated out so your choice replaces it rather than adding to it, then spread across the division by the fees Florida funeral homes actually publish. Cemetery figures are US mid-points. These are estimates, not quotes.
Most families have no plan for this
A burial insurance policy is written to cover exactly this amount. It pays out in days rather than months, and for most people over 50 there is no medical exam, only health questions.
Now see what covering that costs
Six questions, about a minute, and we come back with real prices from the 25+ companies the agency is appointed with. No obligation, and your details are never sold on.
Burial Estimator specializes in funeral insurance across all 50 states.
Instant estimate
See a real state level number in about ten seconds, with the cemetery bill kept separate from the funeral home bill.
Nothing is gated
No email, no form and no follow up you did not ask for. The number is the point of the page, so it is not held back.
Published figures
Funeral home averages come from the NFDA price survey, spread to your state with federal price data. Every source is named.
A licensed agent, not a lead form
If you want help covering the number you speak to a licensed agent, not a call centre. Licence and producer numbers are published.
Why the number surprises people
When a funeral home quotes you, they are quoting their own services. The NFDA figure most articles cite, $8,300, covers the director’s fee, embalming, viewing, the service, transport and a metal casket. It never includes the cemetery.
Add a plot, opening and closing the grave, a required vault and a headstone and you are routinely $15,395 or more. Cremation with a service is considerably less at $6,280, and a direct cremation with no service can be as low as $2,202.
What families want against what each kind of site gives them
Every row is a fact you can check by opening the other kind of site and looking. None of it is a score for service or an opinion about anybody.
| What families want | Burial Estimator | Typical quote site | Insurance companies | Comparison sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A price before you hand over an email | ||||
| Cemetery costs shown rather than left out | ||||
| State price levels, not one national average | ||||
| Every figure traced to a named source | ||||
| A named author with licence and NPN published | ||||
| More than one carrier, so health decides the fit | ||||
| Financial strength ratings shown, weak ones included | ||||
| You reach the licensed agent, not a call centre | ||||
| Your details are not sold on to other agents |
Standard Common Rare Not offered
In 26 states a funeral costs a fifth of a year’s income
Our study of all 50 states and the District of Columbia found the states where a funeral costs the least are often where it is hardest to afford.
The four ways people pay for it
| Method | What it means |
|---|---|
| Savings | Works if the money is liquid and available within days, which is the hard part. |
| Burial insurance | A small whole life policy written for this purpose. Pays in days, no medical exam for most people over 50. |
| Prepaid funeral plan | Locks in one funeral home. Hard to move, and the money is tied to that provider. |
| Existing life insurance | Often too slow. Claims commonly take weeks, and the funeral home wants paying first. |
About final expense insurance
Also called burial insurance or funeral insurance. Three names, one product, a small whole life policy bought to cover what a funeral actually costs.
When you die the insurer pays a tax free amount to the person you name, which means the funeral home can be paid in days rather than the weeks a standard life claim takes.
Read the guide→
Benefits
- Coverage usually between $5,000 and $25,000, sized to a real funeral rather than a round number
- No medical exam for most people over 50, only health questions
- The premium never rises and the coverage never expires while it is paid
- Most policies pay the full amount from day one if you can answer the health questions
- Pays in days rather than the weeks a standard life claim takes
- Money goes to a person you name, who can spend it on anything, not only the funeral
- Available to most people well into their eighties
- Builds a small cash value you can borrow against
The Burial Estimator difference
We hold appointments with nine carriers rather than one. That matters because carriers disagree about health, and the cheapest company for a healthy applicant is often the one that declines everybody else.
Every figure traces to a published source, the method is written down, and when the survey says something inconvenient we publish that too. We grade the carriers we can sell, including the one rated below the Excellent tier.
Nobody here will pressure a family in the first week after a death. If the timing is wrong, we will say so and leave you the information you came for.
Funeral and burial insurance guides
What a funeral really costs
Every line on the bill, the cemetery charges nobody quotes, and your rights under the Funeral Rule.
How burial insurance works
Small whole life policies written to cover a funeral. What they cost and who qualifies.
Read the guide
Policies that pay from day one
Most people qualify for immediate coverage. Here is how to tell what you are being sold.
Read the guide
Does life insurance cover it?
Usually yes, but rarely fast enough. The funeral home wants paying before the claim settles.
Read the guide
The Funeral Affordability Gap
Our study of all 50 states and DC. A funeral takes 19.8% of a year's median household income.
Read the guideMost read articles
Swipe for moreHow much does a funeral cost?
Every line on the bill, and the cemetery charges nobody quotes you
Policies that pay from day one
Who actually qualifies, and how to tell what you are being sold
How to plan a funeral
The first day, the first week and the first month
Casket prices
The largest declinable item, and why you may buy one anywhere
Veterans funeral benefits
What the VA pays, and what has to be claimed rather than granted
The Funeral Affordability Gap
Our study of all 50 states and DC, cost against what households earn
Buying with diabetes
What underwriters ask, and why most applicants still get day one cover
Cremation against burial
Cost, process and timing set out side by side
Helpful tools
Funeral cost calculator
Your state, burial or cremation, with the cemetery charges separated from the funeral home charges. No email required.
Carrier ratings
AM Best financial strength for every carrier we can place business with, each with the date we last read it from source and whether the policy pays in full from day one.
Insurance company reviews
The dial is the company’s AM Best financial strength grade, never a star rating and never our opinion. Every grade here was read from AM Best’s own rating page, entity by entity, and carries the date we read it.
Superior, confirmed April 2026A+Excellent, confirmed September 2026AExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AExcellent, confirmed September 2026AExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026A-Excellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AGood, confirmed 2 September 2026B++Gerber LifeSuperior, confirmed 2 September 2026A+Globe LifeExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AAetnaExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AAARPSuperior, confirmed 2 September 2026A++Colonial PennExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AState FarmSuperior, confirmed 2 September 2026A+TruStageExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AAflacSuperior, confirmed 2 September 2026A+Physicians MutualSuperior, confirmed 2 September 2026A+AAA LifeExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AAIGExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AUSAASuperior, confirmed 2 September 2026A++Lincoln HeritageExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026ACorebridge FinancialExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AAmerican AmicableExcellent, confirmed 2 September 2026AMore articles by topic
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Funeral costs by state
Costs vary by several thousand dollars depending on where the funeral is held.