What exactly do you need when you are planning for a funeral in Kenya? What are the expenses and the total budget? This article will answer all the questions in regards to giving the deceased a good send off.
The first thing is to look at hospital or mortuary costs. Assuming the deceased does not have hospital costs, the burial ceremony starts from mortuary. First you need a coffin, hearse and at least 2 vehicles to carry the deceased family. The budget for hiring hearse is Ksh 10,000 to Ksh 30,000 while the budget for a coffin is between Ksh10,000 and Ksh 50,000.
Then you need food for visitors, a tent, chairs and the amount to pay the mortuary. The following table will break down the total expenses for funerals in Kenya, we will give the average figure:
| ITEM | COST(KSH) |
| Coffin | 20,000 |
| Mortuary bill | 20,000 |
| Hearse | 20,000 |
| Tent and seats | 50,000 |
| Food | 30,000 |
| Transport | 30,000 |
| Entertainment | 10,000 |
| Attire | 50,000 |
| Miscellaneous | 50,000 |
| Total | 280,000 |
Essentially, funeral costs should be between Ksh200,000 to Ksh 500,000. But if you decide to provide more expensive coffin and executive funeral, you’ll spend up to Ksh2 million.
The cheapest funeral is one which is conducted at the cemetery, it can cost as little as Ksh50,000.
Some people prefer cremation, which is also cheap. Cremation cost is Ksh 15,000 to Ksh30,000. The total burial cost when you are preforming cremation does not exceed Ksh100,000
