Burial vs. Cremation Pros & Cons

Comparing burial and cremation is often challenging because each has pros and cons.   

Choosing burial vs. cremation should be based on your budget, personal beliefs, religion, and other preferences. You must make a personal decision for yourself or your loved ones. 

If you’re unsure, we can help you go through the pros and cons of burial and cremation.

FOR EASIER NAVIGATION:

• Burial Pros
• Burial Cons
• Cremation Pros
• Cremation Cons
• How Does Burial Or Cremation Insurance Work?
• How Can Funeral Funds Help Me?
  

Burial Pros

Burial is the more traditional way of honoring a loved one. If you or your deceased loved one is more conventional, burial is the best way. For many years, burial has been the default method of showing goodbye because it’s more familiar, and everybody is comfortable with it.

Burial is widely acceptable by most religions. Burial conforms to most religious traditions held by Jewish, Christian, and Islam. If the deceased follows any of these religions or their family is highly spiritual, they will typically choose burial as their final care option.

Burial in a cemetery provides family and survivors with a permanent gravesite to visit their loved ones. Family members often get comfort from having a specific place to remember their departed members. Visiting the gravesite often helps family members with their grieving process and allows them to feel connected to their loved ones.

The headstone can be a tribute to the life of a loved one. It is an important memorial to the family, primarily if it’s close to other deceased family members.

Some people feel the body is more respected in burial than in cremation, where the body is put on fire. Many think they will not get the respect they deserve if they opt for cremation. The body is dressed in nice attire with burial and placed in a beautiful casket. The family can even add special mementos to the casket. It is one of the reasons why many people choose burial over cremation.

With burial, you can exhume the remains if necessary. It is especially crucial for crime victims. Cremation is an irreversible procedure that cannot be undone.

Burial offers the ability to lay rest alongside your family members. Many families purchase family plots in the cemetery. This option provides comfort, knowing loved ones are lying close to each other for eternity.

The family can make burial personal by choosing the outfit the loved one wears, the type of casket, the headstone, and the cemetery location. They can also include special tributes like photographs, jewelry, and other special things in the coffin.

Burial can allow family members to have more closure. A funeral with burial provides family members with the most effective way of mourning for losing a loved one. Getting closure is easier as they witness the casket being lowered into the ground. Most considered this act as a proper goodbye.

Environmentally Friendly Options: If you choose burial to be your funeral option, there are some things you can do to be still sustainable.

• Choose biodegradable materials such as cardboard, wood, or wicker casket. These are eco-friendly and easily absorbed into the soil. They are also less expensive than metal caskets. Another good option is to use a shroud to wrap around the body and directly interred in the soil.

• You can also opt for direct burial without embalming. You must know that embalming is not required by law unless the body needs to be transported a long distance or the deceased has a communicable disease.

Burial Cons

Burial is more expensive than cremation.

Burial costs include embalming, funeral directors fee, casket, burial plot, opening and closing of the grave, transportation, and other fees. The average cost of a funeral with viewing and burial is $7,640, with a burial vault costing $9,135. A funeral with viewing and cremation only costs $6,645.

It may be difficult to visit the gravesite if a family member moves away from where they bury their loved one.

Some cemeteries have restrictive rules. You must follow the rules regarding the type of monument you can install, the flowers to use, and other remembrances. There are also rules on the visiting hours, which can be constricting for loved ones who need to mourn.

Burials hurt the environment, such as:

• 800,000 gallons of formaldehyde are used in embalming a year
• The harsh embalming chemicals can leech the soil and ultimately end up polluting the water system
• It takes a lot of trees to make caskets
• Many caskets are not biodegradable
• Burial takes a lot of lands, and there is not enough land for burial anymore

Cremation Pros

Cremation hastens the process of decomposition. It can reduce the body to ashes within several hours, whereas traditional burial takes the natural slow decomposition process.

Cremation helps save ground space, while burial takes up a lot of lands. Since it takes up less space, it helps with the problem of overcrowded cemeteries.

Cremation is less expensive than burial. Direct cremations cost less than direct burial because they do not require embalming. With no casket, burial, cemetery plot, or headstone, cremation can cost less than half of traditional burial costs. The cremation costs make it a good option for families with a stringent budget.

Urns are portable, and you can transport the ashes easily. Families can put the ashes in the urn and take them if they move. They can also share the ashes if they live in different parts of the country. With a traditional burial, the cemetery plot is fixed, and you don’t have the flexibility in location.

Cremation offers flexibility in memorialization. The ashes can be stored in the urn and displayed in the home. The ashes can also be scattered on land, air, or sea, placed in a columbarium, or buried in a burial plot.

If you choose cremation, you can still have a funeral or memorial service before or after cremation. You have the flexibility in scheduling the memorial service later, allowing family and friends to arrive from afar and gather at the time that works for everyone.

With cremation, you can put the ashes anywhere. You are not restricted to the cemetery. You can scatter the ashes anywhere the deceased wishes and feel most appropriate. You can re-visit where you scattered the ashes at any time, which could be as meaningful as the cemetery.

Cremation uses fewer resources compared with burial. For this reason, cremation is considered more environmentally friendly. The amount of mercury emission from the crematorium is lesser than from wood-burning fireplaces, diesel vehicles, and industrial boilers.

Family members can keep a part of the deceased with them. It can be put in an urn, jewelry, cremation art, and cremation diamonds closer to their loved one.

Environmentally Friendly Options: If you choose cremation, there are some things you can do to be still sustainable.

• If cremation is your funeral planning option, request information from the crematory if they are taking measures to lessen mercury and carbon dioxide emissions.

• Request the crematory to remove artificial limbs, pacemakers, and other medical implants before cremation.

• Use a biodegradable urn if you want your cremated remains to be buried.

Cremation Cons

Not all religions observe the practice of cremation. It may be against the deceased’s or their family’s religion. Families with strong religious beliefs normally go for traditional burials.

Cremation is permanent and not reversible. Once turned into ashes, the remains cannot be exhumed at a later date for forensic analysis. It is particularly depressing if the deceased is a victim of crime.

Cremation is not available everywhere. Not every area offers this service. Not every community have funeral homes equipped with cremation facility. If you choose this option, you may need to look further to acquire this service.

Cremation does not allow for a fixed location where family and friends can pay their respect at a comfortable time. Mourning may be more difficult because there is no permanent memorial where loved ones can mourn.

Cremations have a negative effect on the environment, such as:

• Crematoriums can release considerable mercury and carbon dioxide emissions that pollute the atmosphere.

How Does Burial Or Cremation Insurance Work?

Funeral cost is continuously increasing. The average funeral cost today is $9,135, and it does not include the cemetery plot, headstone, flowers, and obituary.

Buying burial, funeral, or final expense insurance is the best way to prepay funeral expenses. Burial insurance is designed to help the family pay for any death-related expenses.

Burial insurance pays a lump sum to your beneficiary when you pass away. The payout is not tied to any funeral home; your beneficiary can use it to pay for your final expenses. Any money left can be used for lost wages or other financial needs.

Unlike a prepaid funeral, where your beneficiary is the funeral home, burial insurance gives your family more flexibility because the funeral home will not hold the funds. Additionally, your family won’t be locked into your funeral choices years ago. Your loved ones can decide how to organize your funeral according to your final wishes.

Burial insurance policies have flexible payment plans compared with prepaid funeral plans. You can pay monthly, quarterly, or annually. Prepaid funeral plans are rigid in payment, and you can lose the plan if you miss one payment.

Burial insurance is affordable. You can purchase burial insurance in small amounts, such as $5,000 or $10,000 up to a maximum of $50,000. The premium for burial insurance is more affordable because it has a lower face amount.

Burial insurance is easy to get. You can buy this insurance over the phone without undergoing a medical exam. If you have some medical issues, you can still qualify for burial insurance with first-day coverage.

How Can Funeral Funds Help Me?

If you are considering ways to cover your funeral expenses, purchasing a burial or cremation insurance policy is the best option for your budget and peace of mind.

We will work with you every step to find the plan that fits your financial requirements and budget. You don’t have to waste your precious time searching for multiple insurance companies because we will do the work for you.

We work with many A+ rated insurance carriers that specialize in covering high-risk clients like you.  We will search all those companies and match you up with the best burial insurance company that gives the best rate.

We will assist you in securing the coverage you need at a rate you can afford.

Please call us at 862-9456 if you have any questions about burial, funeral, or final expense insurance, or fill in the instant QUOTE form to get accurate quotes from different insurance companies.