What is green burial?

A short note before you start

This guide is general information for the United States, not legal, tax, financial or medical advice. Cemetery rules and state laws both shape what a family can choose, so confirm specifics with the cemetery and, for questions about land or a family burial ground, a local attorney.

What is green burial?

Green burial, also called natural burial, buries a body without embalming, in a biodegradable container, without a concrete or metal vault, so the body breaks down naturally and returns nutrients to the soil. The Green Burial Council says the practice "foregoes toxic embalming" and "does away with vaults," using biodegradable containers instead of exotic wood or metal caskets, and avoids herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers and non-native stone markers on the grave¹.

It is not a new invention. Jewish, Muslim and other traditions have used unembalmed bodies, simple shrouds and direct earth burial for a long time. What is newer is a formal certification system that lets a family compare cemeteries and products against a consistent standard instead of relying on marketing language alone.

What is a green burial, in practice?

The person is not embalmed, or is embalmed only with a formaldehyde-free fluid if a short delay is unavoidable. The body goes into a biodegradable casket made of pine, wicker, bamboo or cardboard, or into a natural-fiber shroud, with no vault or liner around it. The grave is often marked with a native stone, a plant or a GPS coordinate instead of an upright headstone.

How does a green burial work, step by step?

A green burial follows most of the same legal steps as any burial, with different choices at a few key points: the container, the vault, and the cemetery.

1. Choose a green or hybrid cemetery. Not every cemetery allows a vault-free burial, so this decision usually comes first. See "How do I find a green burial cemetery?" below.
2. Decide on embalming. No state requires it, and refrigeration is an accepted alternative if burial will not happen right away⁴.
3. Choose a biodegradable container. A shroud, or a casket made of untreated wood, wicker, bamboo, cardboard or another natural material, without metal fittings or a plastic liner.
4. Confirm the vault rule with the cemetery. No state law requires a vault, but most conventional cemeteries require one anyway to keep the ground from settling; green and hybrid sections waive this⁴.
5. Get the burial permit. As with any death, this comes from the local vital records office or funeral home, regardless of whether the burial is green.
6. Hold the burial. Many families choose a simpler, more hands-on ceremony, sometimes lowering the casket or shroud themselves, though this is a personal choice, not a requirement of green burial.
7. Record the marker and location. Since headstones are often small, flat or absent, note the plot's row, section and any GPS coordinate somewhere the family can find it later.

What does green burial cost?

A green burial plot and interment typically run $1,000 to $4,000, and a funeral home handling a simple green burial with a pine casket typically charges about $2,000 more, though some charge $5,000 or more³. The main savings come from skipping the items that add the most to a conventional funeral bill: embalming, a metal casket and a concrete vault.

These are national ranges. The cemetery plot, not the container, is usually the largest single cost, and it varies by region and by cemetery, so ask any cemetery you are considering for its current, itemized price list. The FTC's Funeral Rule requires a funeral home to give you a written General Price List you can keep, and it cannot refuse to handle a casket you bought elsewhere or charge a fee for doing so⁴.

What does Green Burial Council certification mean?

The Green Burial Council (GBC) is the nonprofit that sets independent standards for cemeteries, funeral homes and burial products, so a family can tell what a "green" claim actually means instead of relying on a seller's word¹. GBC certifies four categories of provider: cemeteries, funeral homes, burial products and body care products, each against its own written standard¹.

Cemetery certification has three tiers:

• Hybrid. A conventional cemetery with a green section, or a green option throughout. No vault is required, and biodegradable containers such as shrouds and softwood caskets are allowed. This is the most common entry point¹.
• Natural. The entire cemetery is dedicated to sustainable practice: no vault of any kind (including a lid, slab or partitioned liner), no toxic chemicals, no non-native stone markers, and only natural or plant-derived burial containers¹.
• Conservation. Natural burial standards, plus permanent land protection arranged with a land trust or conservation organization, usually through a conservation easement or deed restriction¹.

Certification does not by itself make a burial legal in every state; it tells you what the cemetery or product has agreed to, on top of whatever your state and local rules already require.

How do I find a green burial cemetery?

Ask a prospective cemetery directly whether it is GBC-certified, and at which tier, since not every cemetery that markets itself as "green" has gone through third-party review. A hybrid section inside an otherwise conventional cemetery is the easiest option to find in most metro areas; natural and conservation grounds are less common and may require travel. Visit or call ahead to confirm current container and vault rules in writing, since practices vary even among certified providers.

How does green burial law vary by state?

State law mainly affects two things: whether a vault can be required, and whether burial is allowed anywhere other than a licensed cemetery. No state law requires a vault, but a few states go further and restrict where burial can happen at all. Always confirm current rules with the cemetery and, for anything involving private land, your state or county government, since these rules change.

What should you record in a family guide?

Because green burial markers are often small, flat or absent, and because green sections can be laid out differently than the rest of a cemetery, the location details matter more than usual. Record the cemetery name and address, the section, row and plot number, any GPS coordinate given at the time of burial, the name of the GBC tier if the cemetery is certified, and where the burial permit and any prepaid contract are kept. This is the kind of detail a family guide keeps in one place, so it is not lost between the burial and the day someone needs to find the grave again. Deciding on a burial plan alongside the rest of a funeral planning checklist also makes it easier to compare a green burial's total cost against what a cremation typically costs or direct cremation prices.

What mistakes do families commonly make?

• Assuming any cemetery will allow a vault-free burial. Many will not, so confirm this before choosing a container.
• Believing a vault is legally required. It is not, anywhere in the US, though a specific cemetery can still require one as its own private rule⁴.
• Buying a plot in an uncertified "green" section without asking what standard, if any, the cemetery follows.
• Assuming home burial is legal everywhere. It is restricted or banned in some states and allowed under specific conditions in others, so check state and county rules before planning one.
• Under-recording the grave location, especially where a marker is small, flat, or a coordinate rather than a headstone.

When to get professional help

Talk to the cemetery directly about its current container, vault and marker rules before you commit, since these vary by provider even within the same state. If you are considering a family burial ground on private property, talk to a local attorney about zoning, deed restrictions and what happens to the burial site if the land is later sold. For a prepaid green burial contract, ask a consumer-protection resource such as your state's funeral or cemetery regulator to review the terms before you sign.