Updated 2026
Cremation statistics: the US numbers that matter
Every key figure on cremation in America, in one place: the national rate, the rise of direct cremation, market size, and what families actually pay. Sourced, dated, and kept current.
The US cremation rate
of US deaths end in cremation (2025 projection)
NFDA 2025
the rate just four years earlier, in 2021
CANA
projected cremation rate by 2030
NFDA
projected by 2045
NFDA
Direct cremation
Direct cremation, with no funeral service or viewing beforehand, has become the mainstream form of cremation rather than the budget exception.
of US cremations are direct cremations with no service
NFDA
of cremations involve no service before the cremation (direct, or direct followed by a memorial)
NFDA
direct cremations per year in the US
Cremation Institute estimate, NFDA & CDC data
estimated annual US spend on direct cremation
Cremation Institute estimate
Volume and market size
US deaths per year
CDC
cremations per year at the current rate
computed, NFDA & CDC
US death care market (2026), growing ~4.7% a year
industry analyses
burial rate, now less than half the cremation rate
NFDA 2025
What cremation costs
Cost figures below are from our own 50-state Direct Cremation Price Index and NFDA medians.
average typical direct cremation price across the 50 states
Cremation Institute Price Index 2026
the full national spread for the same direct cremation
Cremation Institute Price Index 2026
US median for a funeral with cremation (viewing + service)
NFDA GPL study
US median for a funeral with burial, before cemetery costs
NFDA GPL study
How families say goodbye
of cremations are followed by a memorial service held later
NFDA
of families who cremate choose to scatter the ashes
industry surveys
states where water cremation (alkaline hydrolysis) is legal in 2026
NFDA / CANA
typical days from death to a completed direct cremation, paperwork included
provider reporting
Sources and citation
Figures are drawn from the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) Cremation & Burial Reports and General Price List studies, the Cremation Association of North America (CANA), CDC mortality data, and Cremation Institute’s own 50-state Direct Cremation Price Index. Estimates marked as ours are computed from those sources.
Journalists and researchers are welcome to cite these figures with attribution and a link to Cremation Institute.
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About the author
Adam Binstock
Founder of Cremation Institute