Funeral Planning Guides & Grief Resources

What the FTC Funeral Rule requires of every U.S. funeral home: prices by phone, an itemized General Price List, no casket handling fees and no embalming you did not approve — and what to do if a funeral home breaks the rule.

How to write an obituary step by step: what to include and in what order, a fill-in template, three short examples, what to leave out to protect against identity theft, and where to publish it.

What Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, Google, Apple and Microsoft do when an account holder dies, what families can request, and what to do about money, photos and subscriptions.

The main kinds of online memorials, how to compare memorial sites (cost, permanence, privacy, ownership of content), and how to build a tribute page step by step.

What 'digital dementia' does and does not mean, what research says about devices and memory, and practical ways to preserve a family's stories and photos — before and after a loss.

What a digital legacy is, why it needs a plan, and how to set one up step by step: account inventory, a digital executor, and the legacy settings Facebook, Instagram, Google and Apple offer.

Choosing a funeral home is one of the most important decisions you'll make. Learn the 10 essential questions to ask, red flags to avoid, and how to compare providers with confidence.

Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist funeral customs — timing, preparation of the body, burial or cremation, mourning periods and what guests should know — with how U.S. funeral rules fit in.

A comprehensive guide to veteran funeral benefits, including VA burial allowances, free headstones, national cemetery eligibility, and how to apply for military honors.

What a funeral costs in the U.S. according to the NFDA's latest price study, the price of each item on a funeral home's price list, your rights under the FTC Funeral Rule, and help with paying.

A practical, compassionate guide covering everything you need to do in the first 24 hours and beyond after losing a loved one, from legal requirements to funeral planning.

More families now choose services led by celebrants, held outside a funeral home and built around the person's life. How to plan a personalized funeral or celebration of life, who can lead it and what it costs.

What green burial is, how the Green Burial Council certifies cemeteries, whether embalming or a vault is ever required, and which costs a natural burial avoids.

How to pre-plan a funeral step by step, how to write down and share your wishes, and the questions the FTC says to ask before you prepay anything.

What grief can feel like, why it has no fixed timeline, practical ways to cope, and the signs that it is time to get professional help — with guidance from MedlinePlus and the American Psychiatric Association.

Online memorial pages, memorialized social media, livestreamed services and what Facebook, Google and Apple let families do with a loved one's accounts.

What to wear, what to say, flowers or a donation, how to behave at a visitation and service, and how to keep supporting the family afterwards.

Types of cremation and what they cost, your rights under the FTC Funeral Rule, the rules for scattering ashes on land, in national parks and at sea, flying with ashes, and common myths.

How long a eulogy should be, a simple structure that works, how to gather stories, what to leave out, and how to get through delivering it.

How to tell a child that someone has died, the words to use and avoid, whether children should attend the funeral, how grief shows up at different ages, and when to get extra help.

Keepsake urns, cremation jewelry, fingerprint pieces and other memorial keepsakes: what each is, how to fill and care for jewelry, your rights when buying, and flying with ashes.