If the cost of living is rising, what about the cost of dying?

In Ireland, the average cost for a funeral was €5,000 in 2013, but this can rise to as much as €10,000 at the higher end of the scale. In the UK, the average cost of a funeral is just over £3,700 – but state aid for funerals has been frozen at £700 for the last 13 years, leading to the rise in funeral poverty.

A Hopes and Fears article looked at the approximate costs of funerals around the world and the article makes fascinating reading. Here we look at some of the costs and some of the cultural norms that apply to funerals in different cities all over the world.

1. London, United Kingdom
Royal London, the life and pensions group, estimates that the average cost of a funeral in the UK has risen nearly 4 percent in the last four years to £3,700 (€4,670). The funeral director’s fees make up the majority of the costs and this only buys a basic funeral. The funeral directors’ fees have increased by about 5 percent in recent years, and burial and cremation fees have also increased. Adding in all the extras such as flowers, a reception and a headstone can push the funeral costs up to about £6,000 (more than €7,500).

2. New York City, United States
A funeral in New York City ranges in cost from $8,000 – $10,000, with the average funeral costs $6,600 – or about €5,726. Most people opt for cremation, rather than burials because there is a limit on the amount of green space that is available for burials. A graveyard service can cost up to $10,000 – or more than €8,600.

3. Tokyo, Japan
The cost of a funeral is 2.31 million Yen (which is approx. €18,830). Cremations are the most popular option, with 98 percent of people choosing this. Funerals are a mix of religious customs and traditions. Sometimes, the deceased takes a new name for the afterlife and gifts, photos and flowers are added to the graves.

4. Mexico City, Mexico
The average cost of a funeral in Mexico works out at 12,000 Pesos – or €584. The cost varies from 7,500 to 180,000 Pesos and the Mexican Social Services Institute provides subsidised costs to families on lower incomes.

5. Toronto, Canada
The national average funeral cost in Canada is $5,000 to $15,000 CAD, with the cost varying greatly depending on the area of Canada and method of funeral. This cost translates to about €3,405 to €10,215.

6. Rome, Italy
Funerals in Rome cost some €6,000, with the average for the country at about €5,600, but cremations can cost as little as €270. Funeral costs have increased greatly in recent years – from 2001 to 2011, the cost of a funeral rose by 53 percent.

7. Russia
The national average cost for a funeral in Russia in 2013 was 46,108 RUB – or €608.

8. Johannesburg, South Africa
With a death rate of 17 per 1,000 people every year, South Africa has almost twice the average international rate of people dying. The national average cost of a funeral in the country is almost 39,000 ZAR – or €2,290.