HomeResearchOne funeral home in town
The only funeral home in town charges 19.7% more
A funeral home with no other funeral home within 10 miles charges a median $2,275 for a direct cremation. Where eleven or more homes sit inside that same ring, the median is $1,900. That is $375 for the same service, and it lands on the families with the fewest ways to shop around.
Key findings
- 7.8% of priced funeral homes have no competitor within 10 miles. That is 873 homes of the 11,260 we hold a direct cremation price for.
- The price falls the more homes are nearby, at every step. $2,275 with none, $2,094 with one or two, $1,995 with three to five, and $1,900 with eleven or more.
- It is not just a rural difference. Comparing a state's own isolated homes against its own crowded ones, the isolated homes are dearer in 26 of 34 states, by a median 10.1%.
- The basic services fee barely moves. $1,995 where a home stands alone against $1,895 where it does not, a gap of $100. The premium sits in the package price, which is the number families are quoted.
- A drive is usually worth it. 819 of the 873 isolated homes have a cheaper home within 60 miles. The median saving is $400 for a 17 mile trip, and 43% of them save $500 or more.
The price of having nobody to ring
The Funeral Rule gives every family the right to a price over the telephone, and our cremation price spread study showed what that right is worth in a city, where the dearest home charges about twice the cheapest for an identical service. The right is worth far less when there is nobody else to ring. This study counts, for every operating funeral home in the directory, how many other operating homes sit within 10 miles of it, then reads the price the home charges for a direct cremation.
Other funeral homes within 10 miles, against the median direct cremation price at 11,260 US funeral homes.
The gradient runs one way the whole length of the table. Homes standing alone charge the most, homes in the thickest markets charge the least, and every step in between moves in the same direction.
How far away the next home is
Counting neighbours and measuring the distance to the nearest one are different questions, and they give the same answer.
| Nearest other home | Homes | Median direct cremation |
|---|---|---|
| Under 2 miles | 7,603 | $1,930 |
| 2 to 5 miles | 1,636 | $2,100 |
| 5 to 10 miles | 1,148 | $2,315 |
| 10 to 20 miles | 746 | $2,278 |
| Over 20 miles | 121 | $2,300 |
A home with a competitor on the same street charges a median $1,930. Once the nearest competitor is five to ten miles away, which in most of the country means a different town, the median is $2,315.
Where the premium is hidden
Every funeral home in the country has to publish a basic services fee, the one charge a family cannot decline, and it is the figure regulators and journalists quote. It is also the figure that moves least here. Isolated homes charge a median $1,995 against $1,895 in crowded markets. The whole premium shows up in the direct cremation package instead, which is the price a family is actually quoted when they ring.
| Other homes within 10 miles | Homes | Median direct cremation | Median basic services fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| No other home | 873 | $2,275 | $1,995 |
| 1 to 2 | 2,398 | $2,094 | $1,950 |
| 3 to 5 | 2,117 | $1,995 | $1,930 |
| 6 to 10 | 1,691 | $1,995 | $1,975 |
| 11 or more | 4,181 | $1,900 | $1,895 |
The same test inside one state
Isolated homes are rural, and rural prices differ for reasons that have nothing to do with competition. So the comparison is repeated inside each state, where a state with both empty counties and cities is asked about its own homes only. A state appears below when it has at least fifteen homes on each side.
| State | Thin market homes | Dense market homes | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nebraska | $2,780 (95) | $1,875 (28) | +48.3% |
| New York | $2,450 (25) | $1,795 (306) | +36.5% |
| Kansas | $2,492 (156) | $1,895 (59) | +31.5% |
| Illinois | $2,550 (126) | $1,995 (207) | +27.8% |
| Wisconsin | $2,750 (25) | $2,170 (54) | +26.7% |
| Minnesota | $2,958 (197) | $2,362 (42) | +25.2% |
| Iowa | $2,950 (27) | $2,392 (32) | +23.3% |
| Texas | $2,095 (324) | $1,720 (377) | +21.8% |
| Louisiana | $2,378 (98) | $1,995 (100) | +19.2% |
| Colorado | $1,895 (34) | $1,614 (73) | +17.4% |
| West Virginia | $2,295 (75) | $1,990 (53) | +15.3% |
| Pennsylvania | $2,350 (15) | $2,095 (327) | +12.2% |
| Maryland | $2,900 (34) | $2,595 (135) | +11.8% |
| Missouri | $1,888 (16) | $1,690 (111) | +11.7% |
| Maine | $2,295 (45) | $2,070 (24) | +10.9% |
| Arizona | $1,880 (49) | $1,698 (94) | +10.7% |
| Ohio | $1,978 (33) | $1,790 (382) | +10.5% |
| Florida | $1,750 (45) | $1,595 (434) | +9.7% |
| Washington | $1,700 (49) | $1,570 (134) | +8.3% |
| Michigan | $1,995 (118) | $1,843 (238) | +8.2% |
| Mississippi | $1,995 (74) | $1,845 (78) | +8.1% |
| South Carolina | $1,945 (52) | $1,800 (147) | +8.1% |
| Indiana | $2,195 (91) | $2,035 (85) | +7.9% |
| Arkansas | $1,745 (116) | $1,625 (59) | +7.4% |
| Alabama | $2,150 (107) | $2,095 (95) | +2.6% |
| Oklahoma | $1,940 (147) | $1,895 (63) | +2.4% |
| North Carolina | $1,995 (125) | $1,995 (271) | 0% |
| Oregon | $1,295 (33) | $1,295 (51) | 0% |
| Georgia | $1,895 (180) | $1,900 (149) | -0.3% |
| California | $1,720 (100) | $1,732 (512) | -0.7% |
| Tennessee | $1,965 (117) | $1,995 (111) | -1.5% |
| Kentucky | $1,908 (148) | $1,975 (91) | -3.4% |
| New Hampshire | $1,890 (31) | $2,295 (17) | -17.6% |
| Virginia | $2,195 (126) | $2,910 (117) | -24.6% |
Thin market means two or fewer other homes within 10 miles, dense means six or more. The median state difference is 10.1%. Eight states run the other way, which is what an honest table looks like when the effect is real but not universal.
What a drive is worth
For a family near one of these homes the question is not why the price is what it is, it is whether the next town is worth the trip. For 819 of the 873 isolated homes it is. The median saving is $400 for a 17 mile drive, and 43% of those families save $500 or more. A funeral home will release the body to another home, and the Funeral Rule bars any home from charging you a fee for choosing a casket or a service elsewhere.
| Town | Price there | Nearest cheaper home | Saving |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lakota, ND | $4,025 | Fordville, ND (27 mi) | $3,045 |
| Lake Mills, IA | $5,007 | Albert Lea, MN (18 mi) | $2,917 |
| Slayton, MN | $4,565 | Westbrook, MN (16 mi) | $2,570 |
| Gladys, VA | $3,550 | Brookneal, VA (11 mi) | $2,255 |
| Wells, MN | $4,445 | Albert Lea, MN (16 mi) | $2,250 |
| Pond Creek, OK | $3,625 | Enid, OK (17 mi) | $2,240 |
| Torrington, WY | $3,395 | Morrill, NE (15 mi) | $2,185 |
| Morgan, MN | $4,160 | Redwood Falls, MN (13 mi) | $2,160 |
| Baldwin City, KS | $2,870 | Lawrence, KS (11 mi) | $2,075 |
| Casselton, ND | $3,160 | Fargo, ND (20 mi) | $2,015 |
| Oneida, IL | $3,790 | Galesburg, IL (10 mi) | $1,995 |
| Princeton, MN | $3,595 | Cambridge, MN (17 mi) | $1,995 |
Methodology
16,368 operating US funeral homes carry coordinates in our directory, and 11,260 of them across 51 states carry a direct cremation price. For each home we counted every other operating home within 10 miles, whether or not we hold that neighbour's prices, because a competitor constrains a price whether or not we can read it. Distances are straight line, computed from the coordinates themselves, so the drives in the table above are floors rather than routes. Prices come from funeral homes' own published price lists, from Funeral Consumers Alliance surveys and from the Parting directory, the same three sources that cross validate in our price list study. Medians are used throughout, because a handful of very high package prices would drag any average.
What this study cannot tell you
- It is a comparison, not a cause. Isolated homes differ from city homes in more ways than competition, including volume, staffing and the cost of the building. The within-state table narrows that, it does not close it.
- A price is not a bill. Direct cremation is the cleanest line to compare because it is the same service everywhere, but families who choose a viewing or a burial pay a different bill entirely.
- Coverage is uneven. Some states have far more priced homes than others, and states below fifteen homes on either side of the comparison were left out rather than reported thin.
- Prices move. Every figure is as at 2026-09-17. A home can change its price list tomorrow, which is why the page names the date rather than claiming a current price.
Citing this study
The data is free to use with a link. Suggested wording, Burial Estimator, The only funeral home in town charges 19.7% more, 2026-09-17, https://burialestimator.com/research/one-funeral-home-town.
Common questions
Do funeral homes charge more when there is no competition?
Yes, on the evidence of 11,260 US funeral home prices. Homes with no other funeral home within 10 miles charge a median $2,275 for a direct cremation, against $1,900 where eleven or more homes sit within that ring. The pattern holds inside 26 of 34 states tested on their own homes.
How much can a family save by driving to another town?
For funeral homes standing alone in their area, 819 of 873 have a cheaper home within 60 miles. The median saving is $400 for a 17 mile drive, and 43 per cent of those families would save $500 or more.
Is the basic services fee higher at isolated funeral homes too?
Barely. The median basic services fee is $1,995 at homes with no competitor within 10 miles and $1,895 at homes with eleven or more. The difference sits almost entirely in the direct cremation package, which is the figure a family is quoted on the telephone.
Can a funeral home refuse to release a body to another funeral home?
No. A family may move the deceased to another funeral home, and under the Funeral Rule a home cannot charge a fee for a casket or service bought elsewhere. The first home may charge for work it has already done, such as the removal.