Our research showed that funeral insurance costs between around $10 a week for $8,000 worth of cover – but prices differ depending on personal factors.
The cost of funeral insurance changes based on a lot of circumstances, such as age, cover amount and smoking status.
To give you an idea of the general cost, we ran quotes with some of well-known Australian brands.
We also looked at what makes the biggest impact on costs so you can find ways to save.
How much does funeral insurance cost?
We sourced online quotes from 3 of Australia's most well-known insurance brands. We found that for a 50-year-old looking to get $8,000 worth of cover, funeral insurance costs are on average under $11 a week.
Age
Weekly cost
Monthly cost
50
$10.80
$43.20
60
$14.97
$59.88
70
$26.79
$107.16
Prices shown are the initial premium in the first year, based on a sum insured of $8,000. Premiums may increase as you get older and be impacted by personal circumstances.
Get a funeral insurance quote to see how much you could pay
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What influences the cost of funeral insurance?
The main factors that will determine the cost of your funeral insurance are:
Where you live. It’s more expensive to be buried in somewhere like Sydney than in Hobart or Brisbane, for instance.
How old you are. The cost of premiums go up the older you are when you apply for funeral insurance.
Whether you choose level or stepped premiums. Level premiums remain the same, while stepped premiums go up over time.
Whether you smoke. Smokers can pay up to twice as much for funeral insurance as non-smokers
Whether you are male or female. Men statistically die younger than women so pay slightly more for funeral insurance.
Watch out for stepped premiums
These increase as you age e.g. every year at the "policy anniversary" your premium is re-calculated. This could mean you end up paying more in premiums than the funeral itself. To avoid this, opt for level premiums.
Is funeral insurance worth it?
Whether funeral insurance is worth having depends on the cost of your premiums vs the expected cost of your funeral. While premium costs vary according to factors such as entry age, gender and smoking status, the average cost of funeral insurance to age 80 for a 52-year-old is around $15,000, while the average cost of a funeral is around $7,000. If you can afford it, life insurance may be a better value alternative.
How to ensure your insurance is less than the funeral
Capped premiums. The insured amount is set at a particular limit (eg, $10,000) or age (eg, 90) and you continue paying for your policy until you reach that limit. After that, your cover will continue for the rest of your life but you won’t have to pay any more premiums.
Payout guarantee. Your dependants are guaranteed to receive either the total premiums paid or the original sum insured, whichever is the higher amount.
Level premiums. Level premiums stay the same over time – stepped premiums go up ever year which can end up making the insurance cost more than the funeral itself.
Can you afford to pay for your funeral?
A 2022 Finder survey revealed that 53% of Australians – equivalent to over 10 million people – intend to pay for their funeral while they're still alive.
Funeral insurance costs: smoker vs non-smoker?
We compared two quotes using the same details and changing the smoker status. These were the results.
Status
Monthly cost
Smoker
$48.71
Non-smoker
$30.56
Although you won't be excluded from cover in most cases, you will face a significantly higher premium. Note: The figures above are an estimate based on one brand and are not indicative of the entire market.
This is a decision for you to make. Some may find life insurance is a better-value option, in part because not all funeral insurance providers offer a payout guarantee (essentially, you could pay more in premiums than you get paid out). One of the pluses of standalone life cover is it does include a final expenses payout. This can help your family with immediate financial needs, such as paying for your funeral.
Not necessarily. We ran quotes for 3 Australian providers and found weekly cover for a 50-year-old may cost $10.80 per week on average. In September 2022, Finder research found policies cost $10.96 per week. Our research also found prices – on average – were a bit lower for 60 year-olds and 70 year-olds.
Ultimately, it's your call. In Australia, the entry age limits tend to range between 18 and 80.
In some circumstances, the government may provide financial assistance to help cover the cost of a funeral through the Pension Bonus Scheme. You can see if you're eligible for the Pension Bonus Scheme on Centrelink's website. You'll have had to have registered for this scheme before 1 July 2014, and meet other eligibility criteria.
Gary Ross Hunter was an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 6 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and news.com.au. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 2 General Advice General Insurance certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio
Gary Ross's expertise
Gary Ross has written 648 Finder guides across topics including:
James Martin was the insurance editor at Finder. He has written on a range of insurance and finance topics for over 7 years. James often shares his insurance expertise as a media spokesperson and has appeared on Prime 7 News, WIN News, Insurance News, 7NEWS and The Guardian. He holds a Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification and a Tier 1 Generic Knowledge certification, both of which meet the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio
James's expertise
James has written 212 Finder guides across topics including:
With Funeral Plan from Guardian Insurance, protect your loved ones against the financial burden that they may have to endure when you pass away. The lump sum benefit can help pay your funeral expenses and any other expenses that may arise.
Looking for cheap funeral insurance? Avoid getting ripped off or paying more than you need with this handy guide.
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