Japan continues to see troubles related to funeral fees

The emergence of complex pricing structures among funeral service providers in recent years have led to many complaints from people who say that they had been made to sign a contract for a more expensive plan than what was advertised.

Amid the increasing popularity of scaled-down funerals in Japan, experts say the pricing of funerals has become more complicated. As such, they urge people to check price quotations carefully.

According to the National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan, consumer affairs centers nationwide received a total of 917 consultations regarding funeral services in fiscal 2025, up from 632 in fiscal 2019.

The number of consultations reached 900 for the first time in 2022 and has stayed high since.

Among the inquiries made in fiscal 2025, 52.6% were made in relation to complaints about high prices and fees.

In recent years, more people are choosing simpler funerals, such as private memorial services attended by only close family members and relatives; a one-day funeral in which a ceremony, final farewell and cremation all take place on a single day; and a direct funeral, in which the deceased is taken to the crematorium without a ceremony.

As funeral services became smaller in scale, providers started offering more options, which often result in extra charges.

A woman who lost her mother said she visited a funeral home whose online ad said it offers a family funeral at ¥500,000 ($3,100). The funeral home told her that the plan was for a secular funeral and that a religious one would cost ¥1.4 million.

Additional fees were charged for expenses including the hosting of a meal for mourners, and the woman ended up paying more than ¥2 million in total.

Kyoichi Matsuse, a 59-year-old funeral consultant who offers consultation services for both funeral homes and their clients, said demand for affordable funerals with small attendance has been growing since the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to a decline in prices per funeral.

“This is making some funeral homes take a hard sell approach,” Matsuse said.

He pointed out that how prices are set differs depending on each funeral service provider. Some of them include items placed on altars in their basic plan while others don’t, and some outsource services such as meals and the sending of return gifts for funeral offerings.

“It is difficult for consumers to grasp the total costs,” he said. “When you receive price quotations, it is necessary to go over each of the items one by one so that you don’t miss any unchecked payments.”