Online Memorial Sites: How to Choose One and Create a Digital Tribute
An online memorial is a web page where family and friends share a person's story, photos, service details and memories. The main options are a funeral home's tribute page, a dedicated memorial website, and a memorialized social media profile. They differ most in cost, how long the page stays online, privacy controls and whether you can export your content — so check those four things before you choose, and keep your own copies of everything you upload.
What kinds of online memorials are there?
| Option | Typical use | Things to check |
|---|---|---|
| Funeral home tribute page | Obituary, service details and guestbook, set up with the funeral arrangements | How long it stays online; whether you can export messages |
| Dedicated memorial website | A fuller life story, photo galleries, stories from many contributors, fundraising or donation links | Free vs. paid features, advertising, permanence, privacy settings, export |
| Memorialized social media profile | Keeping an existing Facebook or Instagram profile as a place for friends to post | Platform rules; a legacy contact has limited controls (see digital memorials) |
Dedicated memorial sites include services such as Ever Loved, ForeverMissed and Legacy.com. Features and prices change, so compare their current plans against the questions below rather than relying on any list.
How to choose a memorial site
- Cost: is it free, a one-time fee or a subscription — and what happens if a subscription lapses?
- Permanence: how long will the page stay online? Ask for the policy in writing.
- Privacy: can you make it public, link-only or invitation-only?
- Contributions: can visitors add memories without creating an account, and can you approve posts?
- Ownership and export: can you download all photos and messages if you leave or the service closes?
- Advertising: are ads shown on the page?
How to create an online memorial, step by step
- Gather materials: a clear portrait, key dates, 10–20 photos from different stages of life, and the obituary or a short biography.
- Write the biography: who they were, what they loved, who survives them — 200 to 400 words is usually enough. Our free Obituary Writer can draft it from a few questions.
- Build a photo timeline in chronological order, with names, places and approximate dates in each caption.
- Add service details and any donation request ("in lieu of flowers").
- Invite contributions by sharing the link with family, friends, coworkers and neighbors — and ask directly: "Please add a photo or a memory."
- Keep your own backup of everything on the page, in at least two places.
Online memorial or obituary?
An obituary is a formal announcement of a death with biographical facts and service details, published in a newspaper or online. An online memorial is a living page that grows as people add stories and photos. Many families do both, linking from the obituary to the memorial page.
For what happens to the person's own accounts, see what happens to your digital life after you die; to plan ahead, see our digital legacy guide.
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People Also Ask
What is an online memorial site?
A web page where family and friends share a person's life story, photos, service details and memories. Options include funeral home tribute pages, dedicated memorial websites and memorialized social media profiles.
How long does an online memorial stay online?
It depends on the service: some host pages indefinitely, others require a fee or subscription to keep them up. Ask for the policy in writing, and keep your own copies of photos and messages.
Is an online memorial the same as an obituary?
No. An obituary is a formal death announcement with biographical facts and service details. An online memorial is a living page that grows as people add stories, photos and memories; many families link one to the other.