Average Funeral Costs
Is there an average? YES and NO. Don't trust the stats, nor the undertakers.
It’s been almost 4 weeks that I posted here.
Need to get my engine restarted. I know that all you writers are aware that once your train of thought stops, it’s really hard to get back on track.
Imagine having to argue with an undertaker for the bill you received.
Some of the items are definitely not legit. Yes, I’ve seen them.
What is an average funeral costs?
Did you also know that there is a “running cost” that keeps on growing without you knowing?
Nationwide, the average is about 1.21 million yen.
Simply knowing can help surviving family members feel at ease and not panic.
And it’s rising for bad reasons.
This amount is no small burden for many people.
Especially when the cremation cost in Tokyo is skyrocketing.
What’s more, in recent years, some unscrupulous funeral homes have been aggressively increasing the cost separately from the funeral in an attempt to increase sales.
This has even become a hot topic on X (Twitter).
In the midst of grieving the loss of a loved one, the last thing you want is to panic about unfamiliar procedures and costs.
However, in reality, it’s not uncommon for people to face unexpected expenses due to a lack of advance preparation or information gathering, resulting in not only an emotional but also a financial burden.
It’s extremely important to “know” in advance, so that surviving family members can focus on remembering the deceased and send them off in peace without financial worries.
Funeral costs vary greatly depending on the region, sect, size of the funeral, and the plan chosen.
For example, a “direct cremation” where only the body is cremated may cost only a few hundred thousand yen, but a standard funeral often exceeds one million yen.
The breakdown of funeral costs mainly includes the following elements:
Funeral costs: Basic costs for holding a funeral, such as venue usage, altar, coffin, urn, dry ice, memorial photo, and transportation costs.
In Tokyo, cremation fees are separate, but there are also other fees charged by the funeral home, such as placement fees (storage fees), which can add up quickly, so please do your research.
Food and drink entertainment costs: Expenses for entertaining attendees, such as wake entertainment and a Buddhist memorial service.
Also includes food and drink at the crematorium.
Temple expenses: Fees paid to religious figures, such as sutra chanting fees, posthumous name fees, donations, and transportation costs.
Understanding these costs in advance and discussing them with your family will help you respond calmly when an emergency occurs. There are also various ways to prepare, such as taking out funeral insurance, using a mutual aid society, and getting estimates in advance.
It has been reported that things turn out very differently than you might imagine.
Just knowing can turn anxiety into peace of mind.
Preparing to send off a loved one is by no means bad luck.
In fact, it can be seen as a sign of deep love and consideration for family.
Unintended expenses are often recorded without people realizing it, and it is likely that we will see an increase in complaints to the Consumer Affairs Agency and the National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan, reports to the Fair Trade Commission, and lawsuits.
To prevent this from happening, now may be a good opportunity to think again about what to do in the event of an emergency for yourself and your family.
I just wrote an article “Funeral Journal" — 葬祭ジャーナル on my website about surviving family asking a lot (5 monks to be present, extra popcorn for all, 300 attendants albeit planning for 100) received an estimate of 7.8M yen but was reduced to about 5M yen. 5 monks will cost 3M yen for sure in Tokyo and she didn’t take that in account and was complaining.
https://toyokeizai.net/articles/-/905500?display=b
It was definitely not the undertaker’s fault althoug charging 2200 yen for a plate of popcorn IS extorsion.
BTW, the reason that there is no average is because, funeral matters differs from each family and requests since everything in the funeral is a “variable”.
That’s why you need to talk to your local funeral home and shop around.