Why this site exists.
Most people figure out funerals during the worst week of their life, with no preparation, while a stranger across a desk asks them to make a string of $1,000 decisions. The funeral industry knows this. A lot of the way the industry presents choices — bundled packages, omitted price lists, gentle pressure to upgrade — is built around that asymmetry.
We started this site because we kept seeing families pay thousands of dollars for things federal law gives them the right to skip. Embalming. Casket markups. “Protective vault” upgrades. Caskets bought from the funeral home instead of online for a third of the price.
The information that protects families exists. It’s just buried in 40-page government PDFs, industry trade publications, and one-line legal disclosures. Our job is to translate it into something a grieving family member can read in ten minutes and act on the same hour.
What we do.
We publish two kinds of content:
- The first days — the full walkthrough of what to do after a death, in the order it actually happens. Hour one. Day one. Week one. Month one.
- What it costs — the cost pillar plus deep guides on funeral insurance, loans, cremation, caskets, trusts, and every government benefit we could find that helps pay for a funeral.
Every guide is structured the same way: a one-paragraph answer at the top for readers who only have a minute, then a full walkthrough for readers who need it, and a copyable summary for readers who want to take the takeaway with them.
What we don’t do.
Things you will never find on this site:
- “Top 10 Best” affiliate-ranked lists. Most funeral product comparison pages online are pure affiliate stack-ranking dressed up as advice. We rank by category and channel, not by who pays the highest commission.
- Sponsored funeral home placements. We do not accept money to recommend a specific funeral home, and we don’t plan to.
- Hit pieces on competitors. An honest critique inside a balanced review is fine. “Worst X of 2026” clickbait is not.
- Synthesized AI fluff. Every guide on this site is researched, written, and edited by a human, with sources cited. No mystery ghost-articles.
- Death-anxiety upsells. We will not write fear-based copy that pushes people toward more expensive arrangements they don’t need.
How we make money.
We earn affiliate commissions on certain products and services we recommend — mostly final-expense insurance brokers (Choice Mutual, Funeral Funds, Policygenius), personal-loan marketplaces (LendingTree, Credible), online casket retailers (Trusted Caskets, Best Price Caskets, Costco), and direct cremation providers (Tulip, Solace).
When we link to a product we earn a commission on, you do not pay more than you would by going direct. The commission comes from the partner, not from you.
We only link to a partner we would recommend without a commission. If a partner is the wrong fit for the article or the audience, we do not include it — even when the commission is high.
You can read the full list of programs and how they map to specific articles on our sources page.
Editorial standards.
- Federal sources first. When we cite a price or a rule, the source is whoever sets it — FTC for funeral rule rights, NFDA for industry pricing, SSA and VA for benefits, IRS for tax treatment, FDIC for POD accounts.
- State variation is named. When something varies by state (death certificate cost, indigent burial program, water cremation legality), we say so and point at the right authority.
- Pricing is dated. NFDA’s pricing survey runs every year or two. We mark which year a specific number comes from.
- We update. Every guide carries a “Last reviewed” date. When a federal rule changes (the FTC Funeral Rule has open updates pending), we revisit the relevant guides.
- Mistakes get fixed. If you spot a factual error, email us — we publish corrections inline and add a note on the page.
Contact.
Email hello@sowhenyougo.com for corrections, story tips, partner inquiries, or just to say something the site got wrong. We read every message.
We are not licensed funeral directors, attorneys, financial advisors, or insurance brokers. The site is informational. When a decision involves your specific estate, finances, or legal situation, find a licensed professional in your state.