What is a funeral celebrant?
Last updated 9th March 2026 by the SunLife Content Team
3 min read
A funeral celebrant is a qualified person who plans and leads a personalised funeral service. They’re the main host and conductor of the funeral, with the aim of creating a meaningful service that celebrates the life of the person who has died.
Funeral celebrants will typically be arranged by the funeral director on behalf of the family. They’ll be fully qualified, usually from a non-clergy background, and generally hold services in non-religious settings. However, the celebrant can organise the funeral service according to the family wishes.
Continue reading our guide to learn more about what a funeral celebrant does, how much they typically cost in the UK and how to find the right funeral celebrant for you.
What does a funeral celebrant do?
A celebrant works with family and friends of the deceased to plan a personalised funeral service. Their role is to help families plan and lead a funeral that reflects the life of the person who died.
A funeral celebrant can help with:
- Meeting the family to discuss the service
- Offering ideas for a personal funeral service
- Writing or delivering the eulogy
- Suggesting music, readings or poems
- Creating the order of service
- Leading the ceremony on the day
The two types of funeral celebrant
Celebrant funerals can be religious or non-religious, which is a great way to reflect the exact wishes of the deceased. There are two types of funeral celebrant: a civil celebrant and a humanist celebrant. Which one you choose depends upon the content you’d prefer at the funeral.
Humanist celebrant
A humanist funeral celebrant leads a secular or non-religious service. They organise a personalised funeral that focuses on celebrating the life of the person who died, with no religious content such as the reading of bible passages or prayers.
This choice of funeral celebrant may be best for someone who identified as an atheist.
Civil celebrant
A civil funeral celebrant is not associated with religion, however can curate a funeral that follows the wishes of the family and friends. This can include religious hymns and readings which bring comfort to those attending the funeral, or best reflects the deceased’s wishes.
This choice of funeral celebrant may be best for someone who identified as agnostic.
How much does a funeral celebrant cost?
Funeral celebrant fees in the UK usually range from £180 to £300, depending on location and the complexity of the ceremony.
This fee usually includes:
- Meeting the family
- Writing the ceremony
- Helping plan the service
- Leading the funeral on the day
It's always best to ask how much their services cost when contacting a funeral celebrant, as well as if there are any additional charges.
How do you find a funeral celebrant?
You can easily find funeral celebrants online or through your local funeral directors. If you’ve already begun planning the funeral, the funeral director may recommend a number of celebrants to get in touch with. They will have worked with a variety of different celebrants, so will be able to recommend the most appropriate celebrant to reflect your family’s values and wishes.
Once your contact details have been passed to the celebrant, they should be in touch to arrange an initial phone or face-to-face conversation to see if they’re a good fit. If you’re unsure, you may want to get in touch with multiple funeral celebrants to keep your options open.
If you’re finding your funeral celebrant independently, you may want to double check their qualifications, which can be covered easily by asking them a few questions.
Questions to ask a funeral celebrant
If you’re having an initial conversation with a celebrant to see if they’re the right fit, you may want to ask them a few questions:
- What are your values and beliefs?
- How do you conduct the service on the day of the funeral?
- Do you offer help with writing eulogies?
- What experience do you have?
- What other services do you offer?
- Are there any additional charges we should be aware of?
- Do you have any reviews we can read?
Once you’ve chosen the right funeral celebrant and a funeral date is set, they should reach out to you to begin talking about planning the funeral.
What to read next
For more funeral planning guidance and ideas, visit our Funeral Planning hub, or continue reading with these blogs on celebrating life:
The thoughts and opinions expressed in the page are those of the authors, intended to be informative, and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SunLife. See our Terms of Use for more info.