Weekday vs Weekend Funeral: Costs and How to Choose

A weekend funeral can cost more than a weekday one, mainly because cemeteries charge extra for Saturday, Sunday and holiday burials. In 2026 fee schedules the extra runs from about $200 to $2,025 per burial. There is no national price list, and no survey shows how many funeral homes add their own weekend charge, so ask each provider for its prices in writing.

Is a weekend funeral more expensive?

Often it is, but the extra cost comes from two separate bills.

• The cemetery. Crews work outside normal hours, and some cemeteries pass that on as a surcharge for weekend and holiday burials. The Funeral Consumers Alliance (FCA) says the opening and closing fee can vary by the time of day, week or year.
• The funeral home. Some funeral homes may add a weekend, holiday or after-hours charge for staff, and others do not. Ask about it directly. Our General Price List guide shows how to read the list.

If the service is at a church, mosque, synagogue or hall, that place may have its own fees for weekend use. A cremation-only arrangement has no cemetery bill to add to.

What do cemeteries charge on weekends?

These three public fee schedules show how much the pattern can differ. They are examples from 2026, not national averages.

Fees differ by cemetery, and some charge nothing extra, so ask for the schedule of the cemetery you are using. Our guide to opening and closing fees explains what the fee covers, and planning a funeral during the holidays covers holiday dates.

Can you hold a funeral on a Sunday?

Sometimes. Richmond lists a Sunday rate, so some cemeteries do bury on Sundays. Others do not schedule burials on certain days, and clergy and musicians may be busy with their own services. The only way to know is to call the cemetery and the officiant before you pick a date.

Do religious rules affect which day you can hold a funeral?

They can. These are general rules, and practice varies within each tradition, so check with your own clergy or community.

• Jewish. My Jewish Learning says burial is prohibited on the Sabbath, so if someone dies just before it, burial is often delayed until after. Traditional law calls for burial within 24 hours, with exceptions such as time for relatives to gather.
• Muslim. Islamic tradition calls for burial as soon as possible, ideally within 24 hours, so the day of the week matters less and the quick timeline matters more. See Muslim cemetery requirements.
• Catholic. The General Instruction of the Roman Missal says a funeral Mass may not be held on solemnities that are holy days of obligation, on Holy Thursday, during the Easter Triduum, or on the Sundays of Advent, Lent and Easter. Other days depend on the parish. See Catholic funeral Mass and burial.

Our guide to funeral costs by religion covers how these traditions affect the bill.

How can you get a weekend gathering without weekend fees?

The day of the burial or cremation does not have to be the day of the gathering. The FTC says you can choose direct cremation or immediate burial, which do not require any form of preservation, and funeral homes must list prices for both. Options include:

1. Weekday burial or cremation, weekend memorial. Hold the private committal or cremation on a weekday, then invite everyone to a memorial at a church hall, community room or home on a Saturday. See what a memorial service is.
2. Weekend service, weekday burial. Hold the public service when people can attend and bury privately on the following weekday.
3. A weekday morning graveside service. It can avoid weekend and late-day charges, if people can attend.
4. A livestream for people who cannot travel. Our guide to virtual funeral services covers how this works.

What if you need to wait until the weekend?

No state law requires routine embalming for every death, the FTC says, and refrigeration is an acceptable alternative in most cases. Ask the funeral home if it charges for refrigeration and how much per day. The Funeral Consumers Alliance of Central Texas noted in its 2026 survey that many homes it surveyed charge more than $50 a day.

Some states set rules about how a body must be kept after a period of time, so ask the funeral home what applies where you live. Our guide to embalming explains when it is and is not needed.

Mistakes that add cost

• Booking the funeral home before the cemetery. Confirm the cemetery, the officiant and the venue are free on the same day first.
• Not asking for the surcharge in writing. The FTC says a funeral home must give you an itemized statement listing every good and service you select and its price. Check any weekend charge appears there.
• Assuming the funeral home quote includes the cemetery. They usually bill separately.
• Paying for a rush you do not need. If your tradition does not require quick burial, waiting a few days can save the surcharge.

What to do next

1. Call the cemetery first and ask for its price list, with weekday, Saturday, Sunday, holiday and late-day rates.
2. Ask the funeral home for its General Price List and any weekend or after-hours charges in writing.
3. Check your faith's timing rules with your clergy.
4. Compare at least two providers. See how to negotiate funeral prices.