Independent. Nothing to sell, nothing to sign up to.

Need to talk now? Samaritans 116 123 All helplines

What actually has to be decided

Very little, and less urgently than the arrangement meeting will make it feel. A basic coffin is included in every funeral director’s standard price. If you choose nothing at all, the funeral goes ahead in a veneered board coffin and no one at the crematorium will think anything of it.

Everything above that is a choice, and the useful questions are:

  • Burial or cremation? It narrows the field. Natural burial rules out varnished board; cremation rules out shrouds and metal.
  • Is anybody carrying it? A solid oak casket is very heavy. Bearers are usually the funeral director’s staff, but if the family want to carry it themselves — and many do — the weight matters more than the finish.
  • Does it need to mean something? A printed or decorated coffin can be the most personal object at the whole funeral. Or it can be entirely beside the point. Both answers are common.

What the law says, and what it does not

There is no legal requirement anywhere in the UK to use a coffin. What the law requires is that a body is disposed of decently and lawfully, by burial or cremation, with the correct authority from the registrar or the coroner.

What does the actual constraining is the crematorium’s or burial ground’s own rules — private conditions of a contract, not statute. Crematoria require a rigid, combustible container because of what they have to operate safely. Natural burial grounds require biodegradable materials because that is the point of them. Council cemeteries are the most permissive of all and will bury almost anything.

Buying direct

Coffins can be bought from UK suppliers online, delivered to your home or to the funeral director, and used for an otherwise ordinary funeral. Willow, cardboard and painted coffins in particular are often much cheaper this way.

Two practical points. Tell the funeral director early, because they need to know the dimensions and delivery date. And expect a handling charge from some firms — that is reasonable, since it is work they would otherwise have priced into the coffin.

Making one

It is entirely lawful to build a coffin, and a few families do — usually where the person who died was a joiner, or where a son or daughter wants something to do with their hands in the worst week of their life. Crematoria and burial grounds will accept a home-made coffin provided it is sound, has adequate handles, and meets their material rules. Ring them first, tell them what you intend, and ask for their dimensions in writing.

Related: what a funeral costs , burial or cremation , and urns and scatter tubes for what happens after a cremation.

The main types

Coffins in the UK, and what each costs

  • Veneered chipboard or MDF

    Usually included

    Veneered chipboard or MDF

    The standard coffin included in most funeral directors' basic fee — a wood-effect veneer over a manufactured board, with a gloss finish and moulded handles.

    • Included as standard almost everywhere
    • Suitable for burial and cremation
    • The handles are usually plastic, not metal
  • Solid pine

    £150 – £400 extra

    Solid pine

    A plain softwood coffin, sometimes waxed rather than varnished. Often chosen by people who want something honest-looking rather than glossy.

    • Suitable for burial and cremation
    • Accepted by most natural burial grounds
    • Lighter than hardwood
  • Veneered oak or mahogany

    £300 – £600 extra

    Veneered oak or mahogany

    The traditional funeral coffin: a hardwood veneer with solid mouldings, panelled sides and a raised lid. What most people picture when they picture a coffin.

    • Suitable for burial and cremation
    • Wide range of finishes and fittings
    • Solid timber versions cost considerably more
  • Solid oak casket

    £700 – £1,500 extra

    Solid oak casket

    Solid hardwood throughout, usually rectangular rather than tapered. The most expensive conventional option and by some distance the heaviest.

    • Traditionally associated with burial
    • Needs more bearers
    • Not accepted by some natural burial grounds
  • Willow, wicker or seagrass

    £400 – £900 extra

    Willow, wicker or seagrass

    Woven from willow, bamboo, seagrass or banana leaf. Comes with a cotton lining and, usually, a matching quilt and pillow.

    • Fully biodegradable
    • Accepted at natural burial grounds
    • Suitable for cremation
    • Oval and rectangular shapes available

  • £100 – £350 extra

    Cardboard

    Strong, laminated cardboard, sometimes plain and sometimes printed. The lowest-cost and lowest-impact option, and one families often decorate themselves.

    • Fully biodegradable
    • Can be drawn or written on by children and mourners
    • Lightest of all types
    • Check the burial ground accepts it — nearly all do
  • Painted or coloured

    £250 – £600 extra

    Painted or coloured

    A sprayed board coffin in any colour: a football team's colours, a favourite shade, a regimental blue.

    • Suitable for burial and cremation
    • Almost any colour to order
    • Usually needs about a week's notice
  • Picture or photographic

    £450 – £900 extra

    Picture or photographic

    Printed to order with photographs or an image — a landscape, a garden, a boat, a football ground. Usually printed onto a biodegradable board.

    • Made to order from your own images
    • Suitable for burial and cremation
    • Allow one to two weeks

  • £100 – £400

    Shroud

    A wool or cotton shroud on a carrying board, with no coffin at all. Lawful in the UK and used mainly for natural burial.

    • Not usually accepted for cremation
    • Accepted at most natural burial grounds
    • Ask the burial ground before committing

Prices are the typical UK extra over the basic coffin that a funeral director includes in the professional fee — not the total cost of the funeral. Firms differ, so ask what is included before comparing anything.

  • A coffin is not legally required

    There is no law in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland requiring a coffin. What is required is decent, lawful disposal — and crematoria and burial grounds set their own practical conditions.

  • You can buy one yourself

    Coffins can be bought direct from suppliers online and delivered to the funeral director. Some firms charge a handling fee; a firm that refuses outright is worth asking why.

  • Ask the burial ground first

    Natural burial grounds have their own rules — usually no varnish, no metal fittings, no chipboard. Check theirs before ordering anything.

Questions people ask us most

Is a coffin included in the funeral price?
Almost always a basic one is. Every funeral director’s standardised price list must state which coffin is included in the attended funeral price, and the figures on this page are the typical extra you pay to have something else instead. The description to look for is usually along the lines of ‘a simple, lined coffin’ — in practice a veneered manufactured board.
Is a coffin legally required in the UK?
No. There is no statutory requirement to use a coffin anywhere in the UK; the legal duty is that the body is disposed of decently and lawfully. In practice crematoria require a rigid, combustible container, and burial grounds set their own conditions — which is why shrouds are common in natural burial and effectively unheard of at a crematorium.
Which coffins can be used for cremation?
Anything combustible and rigid: veneered board, solid timber, willow, cardboard and painted coffins are all routinely cremated. What crematoria will not accept is anything that will not burn cleanly — no metal linings, no glass, no plastic fittings of the wrong kind, no zinc. If in doubt the funeral director will know that particular crematorium’s rules, because they deal with them weekly.
Can I buy a coffin myself instead of through the funeral director?
Yes. Several UK suppliers sell direct to the public and will deliver to a funeral director’s premises or to a home. It usually saves money, sometimes a lot. Some funeral directors add a handling charge, which is legitimate; some resist the idea altogether, which tells you something about how they price coffins.
What is a natural burial ground going to accept?
Typically: cardboard, willow, wicker, seagrass, untreated solid softwood, and shrouds. Typically not: chipboard, MDF, varnished or lacquered timber, or anything with metal or plastic fittings. Every ground publishes its own list and they do differ, so get theirs before you order.
Can a coffin be personalised?
Extensively, and it costs less than people assume. Printed and painted coffins are made to order. Cardboard coffins can be written and drawn on, which children in particular find far easier to deal with than being kept away from everything. Nameplates, linings, handles and the wording on the plate are all choices, and none of them is compulsory.

Keep reading

Related pages

You do not have to work this out in one sitting

Very little has to be done on the first day, and almost nothing has to be decided tonight. Start with the step-by-step guide, and if you need a person rather than a page, the helplines are free and answered by people who do this every day.

Start with the first steps Where to get help