The average traditional funeral in the UK costs £4,562, according to the latest Cost of Funerals research – but some consumers could pay up to £4,000 more than others, depending on where they live.
The research from Pure Cremation, which analysed costs of 30 randomly selected funeral directors in each of nine regions across England, Scotland and Wales, along with prices charged by 20 councils, revealed an average burial fee of £6,064, with cremation costing £4,232.
In London, however, burial costs jump to £9,050 – 78% more than in the North East, where the average burial costs £5,092. As well as significant regional variations, the analysis found price differences of up to £3,600 within the same area.
In the Midlands, total burial fees ranged from £3,737 to £6,175, while in Devon, one funeral director charged £812, with another charging £4,485 for the same services – a difference of £3,663.
Funeral directors fees account for almost 60% of the average cost; the most expensive funeral director in Britain charges £4,485 for their services alone. London funeral directors charge the highest average fees in Britain at £3,146, not including burial, cremation or any other costs.
In 2021, the Competition and Markets Authority introduced a legal requirement for funeral directors to display clear, standardised price lists both online and in-store. However, the analysis by Pure Cremation revealed costs can be difficult to work out.
“As we compiled this report, it became clear that just looking at a funeral director’s ‘standardised price list’ won’t give you the real cost in many cases,” said marketing director Ian Atkinson.
“Funeral directors will put a price range next to some items, some will put ‘price on request’ next to some items, and there will often be a list of extras – such ‘additional miles’ charges that it is impossible for families to work out in advance.
“There remains far too much ambiguity around what’s included, what isn’t, and what families actually end up paying. That leaves grieving families vulnerable to hidden costs at the worst possible time.
“Our report aims to change that by giving families a fully transparent way to compare funeral prices in their area — so they know exactly what they’re paying for.”
According to Pure Cremation’s research, the lowest overall cost for cremation is in Wales, with an average of £4,136. In London, the most expensive region, the same services are almost £1,500 more at £5,710.
The gap widens further with burials. In the North East, burials costs an average of £5,092, while in London the cost almost doubles to £9,050. This difference is driven largely by burial plot prices, which average nearly £3,000 more in London (£5,064) than in the North East (£2,085).
Referring to the methodology, Pure Cremation said a ‘traditional funeral’ includes the funeral director’s fees (£2,544), the cost of the celebrant (£225), embalming (£165), returning the ashes (£18) and an additional limousine (£272) and the cost of the of the a burial and plot (£2,859) or crematorium fees (£1,008).
The organisation added:
“Burials are typically more expensive than cremations, so to accurately reflect the average cost, the weighting used in the calculations is 82% traditional cremations, 18% traditional burials – the same as the national ratio of how many burials to cremations there are.”
