How much does it cost to die in the U.S.?
Funerals may be closure for the living left behind, but they also create debt. The Sum dives into the costs behind what death could cost those you leave behind.
To Sum It Up
According to a report by Self Financial, the average cost to die in the United States in 2021 was just under $20,000. That number varied based on burial or cremation and place of death, with funerals costs topping $10,000 in California, Washington D.C., New York and Hawaii, and just around $6,000 in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas and New Mexico. Cremations averaged $5,000 to $12,000 across US states.
Inflation drives up prices
Though they’re rising slower than other necessary expenses, the average costs of funerals and cremations has gone up with inflation. The funeral industry is a $16.323 billion revenue business, according to 2012 U.S. Census Bureau Economic numbers. But the median cost of a funeral has increased only 6.6% over the past five years, in comparison to the overall rate of inflation of 13.98% for the same period, according to the National Funeral Directors Association. And because of those high prices, in 1984 the Federal Trade Commission issued a rule allowing consumers to request prices prior to making funeral arrangements.
What costs the most?
However, the highest percentage of death expenses was not for funerals or cremations, but for end-of-life care. In the last year of life, the average amount out-of-pocket is $11,618. Broken down that could be about $4,731 for hospital visits or hospice, $1,496 for prescription drugs and just around $2,000 for home health care and accessibility adjustments in the home. If your loved one is lucky enough to have an inheritance to pass on, a family lawyer can cost around $250 per hour to settle the estate.
Those looking for an eco-friendly option will have fewer costs, but more red tape to navigate permits, green internment and compostable burial vessels, like wicker or bamboo coffins. That can all cost around $5000 or so depending on availability of eco-approved options.
Sources:
National Funeral Directors Association: Research Studies and Reports
Self Financial: The Costs of Dying in 2021
Axios.com: Costs of Dying By State
US Bureau of Labor Statistics: The Rising Cost of Dying
USA Today: More Americans die younger in states with conservative policies, study finds
National Bureau of Economic Research: Out-of-pocket healthcare expenditures
Cake.com: Average Cost of a Natural (Green) Burial: A Price Breakdown
Rocket HQ: From End-Of-Life Care To Funeral: The Cost Of Dying In America
LongTermCare.gov: Costs of Care
Arcadia: Visualizing The Final Year of Life
This story was originally published October 31, 2022 at 2:35 PM.
