Cremation has climbed from 35.5% in 2000 to 60.4% in 2022, while payment plans are now offered by 96% of U.S. funeral homes, shifting how families compare options and budgets. At the same time, only 12% of U.S. funeral homes offered green burial options in 2021, even as 10.4% of revenue came from merchandise in 2021 and online expectations for same-day responses are rising. Here is the tension between tradition and technology, regulation and choice, and it shows up in the latest figures across both the U.S. and the UK.
Key Takeaways
- 10.4% of funeral home revenue in the U.S. came from merchandise (e.g., caskets/urns) in 2021 (revenue mix share)
- The U.S. FTC Funeral Rule requires itemized General Price Lists for consumers (mandatory consumer information disclosure)
- In the U.S., funeral homes must provide disclosures about embalming and price by law under the FTC Funeral Rule (compliance disclosure requirement)
- In the U.S., 80% of burial and cremation facilities are subject to state licensing requirements covering mortuary science qualifications (regulatory coverage indicator)
- In 2021, 12% of U.S. funeral homes offered green burial options (sustainable service adoption rate)
- Cremation equipment market forecast indicates 6.1% CAGR from 2024–2032 (growth expectation for crematory technology)
- In a 2020 analysis, 61% of funeral consumers prefer cremation when offered clear package options (preference signal supporting industry mix shift)
- In a 2021 survey, 58% of U.S. funeral directors reported using social media for customer outreach (marketing channel adoption)
- In a 2022 vendor study, 46% of funeral service organizations adopted cloud hosting for operations (infrastructure adoption rate)
- In 2019, 84% of U.S. adults used the internet (baseline digital consumer capability influencing funeral discovery/booking)
- In 2020, the mean time from referral to counseling in community bereavement services was 21 days (service delivery timeliness metric)
- In a 2020 benchmarking study, funeral homes with standardized checklists reduced service errors by 31% (quality control effectiveness metric)
- In 2022, 55% of online reviews for funeral service providers were 4+ stars (reputation performance indicator)
- 92% of consumers read online reviews for local businesses (review-reading prevalence relevant to funeral selection journey)
- In 2022, the age-adjusted death rate in the U.S. was 1057.7 per 100,000 people (population-level demand pressure for death care services)
With cremation rising and online reviews guiding families, U.S. funeral homes increasingly blend transparency, digital outreach, and sustainable options.
Related reading
01 · Category
Revenue And Costs1 stats
01
10.4% of funeral home revenue in the U.S. came from merchandise (e.g., caskets/urns) in 2021 (revenue mix share)
Interpretation
Revenue And Costs Interpretation
In 2021, merchandise accounted for 10.4% of U.S. funeral home revenue, showing that even within the revenue and costs category, a meaningful share of income comes from physical goods like caskets and urns rather than only services.
02 · Category
Regulation And Compliance4 stats
01
The U.S. FTC Funeral Rule requires itemized General Price Lists for consumers (mandatory consumer information disclosure)
02
In the U.S., funeral homes must provide disclosures about embalming and price by law under the FTC Funeral Rule (compliance disclosure requirement)
03
In the U.S., 80% of burial and cremation facilities are subject to state licensing requirements covering mortuary science qualifications (regulatory coverage indicator)
04
The UK’s Cremation Regulations require authorization and monitoring of cremators (mandatory operational compliance)
Interpretation
Regulation And Compliance Interpretation
In the Regulation And Compliance landscape, the U.S. FTC Funeral Rule’s mandatory itemized price disclosures and embalming transparency are backed by a broad regulatory footprint, with 80% of burial and cremation facilities subject to state licensing requirements covering mortuary qualifications, while the UK’s cremation regulations add required authorization and monitoring of cremators.
03 · Category
Industry Trends10 stats
01
In 2021, 12% of U.S. funeral homes offered green burial options (sustainable service adoption rate)
02
Cremation equipment market forecast indicates 6.1% CAGR from 2024–2032 (growth expectation for crematory technology)
03
In a 2020 analysis, 61% of funeral consumers prefer cremation when offered clear package options (preference signal supporting industry mix shift)
04
In the U.S., 5.2% of all burial services were “green” or natural burial in 2021 (share of sustainable burial offerings)
05
A 2020 peer-reviewed study reported that biodegradable urns can reduce waste and improve end-of-life environmental footprints (material innovation impact)
06
Global death care market size was $145.6 billion in 2023 (overall market scale context)
07
U.S. funeral services industry revenue was $25.7 billion in 2023 (industry revenue benchmark)
08
In 2022, 38% of UK funeral arrangements included a pre-paid plan (pre-need adoption rate)
09
In the U.S., cremation rates increased from 35.5% in 2000 to 60.4% in 2022 (long-run adoption trajectory for cremation services)
10
In 2022, 96% of U.S. funeral homes offered payment plans (consumer affordability mechanism affecting conversion)
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Across the industry trends, cremation and consumer-focused options are accelerating, with U.S. cremation climbing from 35.5% in 2000 to 60.4% in 2022 while 96% of funeral homes offer payment plans and 12% already provide green burial options.
04 · Category
Technology Adoption3 stats
01
In a 2021 survey, 58% of U.S. funeral directors reported using social media for customer outreach (marketing channel adoption)
02
In a 2022 vendor study, 46% of funeral service organizations adopted cloud hosting for operations (infrastructure adoption rate)
03
In 2019, 84% of U.S. adults used the internet (baseline digital consumer capability influencing funeral discovery/booking)
Interpretation
Technology Adoption Interpretation
With 58% of U.S. funeral directors using social media and 46% of organizations adopting cloud hosting, the technology adoption trend in the funeral industry is clearly advancing from digital consumer readiness where 84% of adults were online in 2019.
More related reading
05 · Category
Performance Metrics5 stats
01
In 2020, the mean time from referral to counseling in community bereavement services was 21 days (service delivery timeliness metric)
02
In a 2020 benchmarking study, funeral homes with standardized checklists reduced service errors by 31% (quality control effectiveness metric)
03
In 2022, 55% of online reviews for funeral service providers were 4+ stars (reputation performance indicator)
04
In 2021, 48% of consumers expected same-day responses from service businesses when contacting online (customer expectations benchmark)
05
A 2021 peer-reviewed paper found that grief support delivered within 30 days can reduce complicated grief symptoms (timeliness performance metric for bereavement support)
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
Across these performance metrics, the funeral industry shows a clear timeliness and quality pattern, with 21 days from referral to counseling and grief support delivered within 30 days both aligning with better outcomes, while standardized checklists cut service errors by 31% and 55% of 2022 online reviews land at 4+ stars.
06 · Category
User Adoption1 stats
01
92% of consumers read online reviews for local businesses (review-reading prevalence relevant to funeral selection journey)
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
With 92% of consumers reading online reviews for local businesses, user adoption in the funeral industry will increasingly depend on how prominently and positively providers are reviewed online during the selection journey.
07 · Category
Market Size3 stats
01
In 2022, the age-adjusted death rate in the U.S. was 1057.7 per 100,000 people (population-level demand pressure for death care services)
02
In 2022, 83.1% of deaths in the U.S. were due to the ten leading causes of death (health burden structure affecting cause-specific service considerations)
03
In the UK, cremation was 78.6% of all deaths registered in 2023 (share of deaths disposed via cremation; demand mix indicator)
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
With the U.S. age-adjusted death rate at 1057.7 per 100,000 in 2022 and cremation accounting for 78.6% of registered deaths in the UK in 2023, the funeral market’s size is clearly underpinned by steady, high baseline mortality and a demand mix that is heavily tilted toward cremation.
08 · Category
Regulatory & Compliance1 stats
01
86% of U.S. cremation facilities were licensed under state regulations (regulatory oversight prevalence for cremation operations)
Interpretation
Regulatory & Compliance Interpretation
With 86% of U.S. cremation facilities licensed under state regulations, regulatory oversight appears to be the dominant compliance requirement shaping how cremation operations are legally conducted.
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Elif Demirci. (2026, February 13). Funeral Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/funeral-industry-statistics
MLA
Elif Demirci. "Funeral Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/funeral-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Elif Demirci. 2026. "Funeral Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/funeral-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
28 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+5 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)