What Is a General Price List at a Funeral Home?

A General Price List is one of the most useful documents a family can receive from a funeral home. It may not feel comforting in the moment. It is a price list, not a tribute. But when a family is grieving and decisions are happening quickly, a written price list can slow the conversation down and make the next step clearer.

The General Price List, often shortened to GPL, lists the funeral home's goods and services with itemized prices. It helps you see what the funeral home offers, what each option costs, and which choices can be accepted or declined. The Federal Trade Commission's Funeral Rule says funeral providers must give families certain price information and must let families choose only the goods and services they want, with limited exceptions. The FTC explains consumer rights under the Funeral Rule at consumer.ftc.gov.

This guide is not legal, financial, tax, benefits, medical, or government-process advice. Funeral requirements can vary by state, county, cemetery, crematory, provider, faith tradition, written authorization, family authority, and circumstance of death. Use this article to prepare for a funeral home conversation, then confirm the rules and charges that apply to your situation with the funeral director or the relevant local professional.

Quick answer

A General Price List is a written funeral home price list that shows itemized costs for funeral goods and services. Under the FTC Funeral Rule, when you visit a funeral home in person and begin discussing arrangements, services, goods, or prices, the funeral home must give you a GPL that you can keep. You can also ask for prices by phone, and the funeral director must provide price information by phone if you ask.

The GPL is not the same thing as the final contract. It is the starting point for understanding your choices. After you select arrangements, the funeral home should provide a written statement showing the goods and services selected, the price of each item, and the total cost. If a funeral home says an item is required by law, a cemetery, or a crematory, ask them to identify the requirement in writing.

You do not need to read the GPL perfectly. You need to use it as a tool. Circle unfamiliar terms. Ask which prices apply to the type of arrangement your family is considering. Ask which charges are required, which are optional, which come from third parties, and which decisions can wait until service details are confirmed.

Why the GPL matters

Funeral planning can feel urgent even when not every decision is urgent. Families may be asked about care of the person who died, burial or cremation, service timing, visitation, cemetery coordination, obituary publication, flowers, programs, transportation, keepsakes, and payment in the same meeting. Without written prices, it is hard to tell which choices are central and which are optional additions.

The GPL gives you a way to pause without sounding confrontational. You can say, "Please show us where that appears on the General Price List," or "Can we compare the direct cremation price with the cremation-with-service price?" Those questions are normal. They help the family make a decision based on facts instead of pressure, confusion, or embarrassment.

A GPL can also help relatives who are not in the room. If one person attends the arrangement meeting, they can share the written price list and estimate with siblings, a surviving spouse, adult children, or another responsible family member. That does not remove grief from the decision, but it can reduce misunderstanding about what was offered and what was chosen.

When to ask for it

Ask for the General Price List before you choose services or merchandise. If you are meeting in person and the conversation turns to arrangement options, goods, services, or prices, ask for a copy you can keep. If the family is talking by phone, ask for price information for the options you are considering. Federal rules require phone price information when asked, but they do not require every funeral home to send the GPL by mail or post it online. Some providers do, and some state rules may add requirements, so it is reasonable to ask.

If the first contact is urgent, such as transportation from a hospital, nursing home, hospice setting, or private residence, the conversation may begin with immediate care and authorization. Even then, you can ask when you will receive the GPL and when prices will be reviewed before decisions are approved. If the family is overwhelmed, write down this sentence: "Before we choose anything, we need the price list and an itemized estimate."

Bring the GPL to the arrangement meeting, or keep it open on a phone or laptop if the funeral home provides it digitally. Ask for the current version, not an old copy from a relative's file. Funeral home prices can change, and the document should reflect the provider you are actually using.

What to look for

Every GPL has its own layout, but several categories are especially important for families to understand. Start with the basic services fee. This is commonly the non-declinable professional fee for the funeral director and staff's basic work, such as the arrangement conference, coordination, permits, notices, sheltering of remains, and communication with third parties. Ask what is included and whether any other non-declinable fees appear elsewhere.

Next, look for transfer of remains to the funeral home, embalming, other preparation, use of facilities and staff for viewing or visitation, funeral ceremony, memorial service, graveside service, hearse, limousine or family car, direct cremation, immediate burial, casket prices or casket price range, outer burial container prices or a separate container price list, and forwarding or receiving remains if a body is being transported between locations.

Pay special attention to direct cremation and immediate burial if the family wants a simpler arrangement. Ask exactly what is included in each price. For cremation, ask whether the crematory charge is included or treated as a separate cash advance item. For burial, ask what cemetery charges are separate and whether a cemetery has its own rules about grave liners, burial vaults, opening and closing, markers, or scheduling.

Required vs. optional charges

One of the most important GPL conversations is the difference between required, optional, and third-party charges. Required does not always mean the same thing. A charge might be required by state or local law in a specific circumstance. It might be required by a cemetery or crematory. It might be required by the funeral home's own policy for a particular service. It might be part of the basic services fee. Or it might only be required if the family chooses a certain option.

Ask direct questions: "Who requires this?" "Does that requirement apply in our state and situation?" "Is this required for direct cremation, or only if we choose a public viewing?" "Is this a cemetery rule or a funeral home policy?" "Can you show us the requirement on the written statement?" These questions protect the family from confusing professional habit with legal necessity.

Embalming is a common area of confusion. The FTC says no state law requires routine embalming for every death, but rules and practical needs can vary. Some states have timing or preservation requirements in certain circumstances. Some funeral homes have viewing policies. Some services may make embalming or another form of care a practical necessity. Ask what applies to the service you are actually choosing and whether refrigeration or another option is available.

Outer burial containers can also be confusing. State law generally does not require an outer burial container, but many cemeteries require a grave liner or burial vault to maintain the grave. If burial is planned, ask whether the requirement comes from the cemetery and what lower-cost compliant options are available.

How to compare funeral homes

Comparing funeral homes is not disrespectful. It is responsible. You are allowed to ask for price information before deciding where to make arrangements. If you call more than one provider, use the same scenario each time so the answers are comparable: "We are considering direct cremation with no service through the funeral home," or "We are considering a visitation, funeral ceremony, and burial at a local cemetery."

Do not compare only the headline package price. Ask what the package includes, what it excludes, and what the family is likely to pay to third parties. A lower starting price may not include the same services as another provider's estimate. A higher price may include coordination or items that matter to the family. The goal is not simply the lowest number. The goal is a clear, respectful plan the family understands and can afford.

Obituary and service details

The GPL is about funeral prices, but it often connects to obituary decisions. Some funeral homes help place newspaper notices, publish obituaries on their own website, coordinate service details, or prepare printed materials. Ask whether obituary placement has a separate cost, whether newspaper charges are estimated or confirmed, who approves the wording, and whether edits are possible after publication.

Do not let pricing paperwork rush public information. Publish only confirmed names, dates, service times, locations, livestream links, donation instructions, and family wording. If arrangements are pending, say so. If the service is private, say that with care. If the family needs a central page for updates, the OfficialObituary create flow can publish a memorial page, and the AI obituary writer can help draft from verified facts without inventing details.

For wording help, see How to Write a Short Obituary or How to Write an Obituary When You Do Not Know All the Facts. For the meeting itself, use Funeral Home Meeting Checklist and Questions to Ask a Funeral Director.

GPL review checklist

Use this checklist before approving arrangements. It is not a substitute for professional guidance, but it can help your family slow down and ask the questions that matter.

A General Price List will not make a hard week easy. It can, however, give your family a steadier way to make decisions. Ask for the document. Keep a copy. Mark the questions you do not understand. A clear funeral plan is built one confirmed fact and one written choice at a time.

Frequently asked questions

JH

James Holloway

Funeral Industry Writer

James has spent over a decade covering the funeral industry, end-of-life planning, and obituary writing. He believes every life deserves to be remembered with care and dignity.