Headstone Retailers Compared: Online, Local or Cemetery

You can buy a headstone from the cemetery, a local monument company or an online seller, depending on the cemetery's restrictions, according to the Funeral Consumers Alliance (FCA). Online sellers such as Signature Headstones and Legacy Headstones publish prices and ship free to the contiguous US, but neither includes installation. Some cemeteries insist on selling you the stone or charge a fee for one bought elsewhere, so get the cemetery's rules before you order from anyone.

Where can you buy a headstone?

There are three main routes.

• The cemetery. Many cemeteries sell markers or work with a dealer they know. The FCA warns that because cemetery regulation is lax, some cemeteries insist you buy the headstone from them or add an "inspection fee" for markers bought elsewhere. It calls this legally questionable but rarely investigated.
• A local monument company. A dealer shows you samples, designs the stone with you and often deals with the cemetery's approval process. Some offer extra services. Hathaway Memorials, a Massachusetts dealer, lists on-site lettering to add a name or date to an existing stone, and monument cleaning.
• An online seller. You design the stone on a website and the seller ships it to the cemetery or your address. Signature Headstones and Legacy Headstones are two examples.

Manufacturers such as Rock of Ages, a Vermont monument maker with its own quarries, also have a dealers page on their sites, so you can ask a local dealer about a particular maker's stone.

How do the options compare?

The Funeral Rule is not a safeguard here. FTC guidance says a business is not covered by the Rule if it sells only funeral goods, such as caskets, without services for the disposition of remains. So do not assume the Rule's price-list protections apply to a headstone sale. See our FTC Funeral Rule guide for what it does cover.

How do two online sellers compare?

This table shows what Signature Headstones and Legacy Headstones stated on their own sites in October 2026. Policies and prices change, so read the current terms before you order.

Both sellers advertise 500-year guarantees. Those are the sellers' own claims, so read the exclusions. Our headstone materials guide explains what warranties usually cover.

How do you find a reputable local dealer?

Start with the cemetery, which knows who regularly sets stones there. You can also use the trade association Monument Builders of North America (MBNA). It offers a Find a Monument Builder tool and a directory of Certified Memorialists. MBNA says a Certified Memorialist has been trained and tested and must be retested every three years. Its members must follow a Code of Good Practice, and anyone can file a complaint about a member within three years of the incident.

Membership is not a guarantee. It is one more piece of information alongside written quotes and the cemetery's own experience with the dealer.

What should you ask any seller?

1. What exactly does the price include? Engraving, base, vases, shipping, setting and the foundation are often separate.
2. Will you check the cemetery's rules, and who is responsible if the stone is rejected? Signature says the purchaser is ultimately responsible. Get the answer in writing.
3. When will the stone arrive, and who receives it? Signature notes that most cemeteries require payment in full before they accept delivery of a memorial.
4. How do proofs and changes work? Find out the deadline for reporting mistakes.
5. What does the warranty cover, and who can use it? Rock of Ages says its warranty is transferable to heirs or cemetery management.
6. What happens if the stone arrives damaged? Signature says it replaces stones damaged in transit and asks you to inspect the packaging before you sign for it. Legacy asks you to report damage within 24 hours of delivery.

What to do next

1. Ask the cemetery for its marker rules, setting fees and whether outside stones are allowed.
2. Get two or three written, itemized quotes, including at least one local dealer.
3. Compare total delivered and installed prices. See headstone costs.
4. Check the proof against the death certificate before you approve it.
5. If an online seller does not deliver what you paid for, start with the seller's written policy, then your card issuer or state attorney general. You can also report suspected fraud to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.