Obituary Template Generator

What goes in an obituary

An obituary announces a death, says something about the life, names the family and gives the details of any service. Most follow the same order, which is what the outline above uses.

• Announcement: full name, age, where the person lived and the date of death.
• Life summary: where they were born, school, work, military service and what they loved doing.
• Survivors: the closest family, and sometimes those who died before them.
• Service details: the type of service, the time, the address and whether there is a visitation or a burial afterward.
• Donations: a charity for gifts “in lieu of flowers,” if the family wants one.

The suggested lengths below are ours, added up from the sections in the tool. They are a guide for planning, not a rule. A newspaper or memorial site may set its own limit.

What to leave out for safety

An obituary is public. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau warns that scammers read obituaries and then contact relatives pretending to be debt collectors. It is reasonable to keep out details that thieves could use or that double as answers to security questions.

• The full date of birth. The birth year is enough.
• The home address. Name the town or city instead.
• A mother's maiden name. List parents by first name only.
• Service numbers for a veteran. Branch and years of service say what readers need.

Think about the service details too. A notice that gives the home town and the exact time of the service tells strangers when the family will be away. Ask a friend or neighbor to keep an eye on the house.

An obituary doesn't replace telling the right agencies about the death. USAGov says the funeral director should report it to Social Security, and that you must do it yourself if they don't. It also lists banks, credit card companies and credit bureaus as places to report. Our after-death checklist and the guide to notifying government agencies cover the order.

From outline to published notice

1. Gather the facts first: full name, dates, places, names of survivors and the service details from the funeral home.
2. Pick a format. A short notice costs less in print, and a longer life story can go on a funeral home or memorial page.
3. Copy the outline, replace every bracket and delete sections that don't apply.
4. Read it aloud. Cut anything that doesn't sound like the person.
5. Ask a second family member to check every name, date and address.
6. Ask each publication for its word or line limit, deadline and price before you submit. Ask your funeral home whether it will send it for you.

Publishing prices vary by newspaper and by length, so get a quote first. The obituary cost calculator helps you compare, and our guides on obituary costs and obituary length and format explain the options in more detail.