76.7% of Canadians chose cremation in 2024, that’s 3 in 4 deaths. A generation ago, burial was the default. Today it is the exception in every major Canadian city, and the trend shows no sign of reversing. By 2029, the Cremation Association of North America (CANA) projects Canada’s cremation rate will cross 80.7%, making burial a demographic minority for the first time in the country’s recorded history.
Canada has led the United States in cremation since the early 1960s. In 2000, when the US cremation rate sat around 25%, Canada was already at 48%. That structural gap, now approximately 15 percentage points, has persisted across recessions, a pandemic, and seismic shifts in immigration and religious affiliation.
We aggregated data from the CANA 2025 Annual Statistics Report, the Ontario Board of Funeral Services, Statistics Canada’s National Household Survey, the Pharos/Cremation Society of Great Britain International Cremation Statistics, CBC Radio’s Cost of Living research, the Ontario Funeral Service Association, and more than a dozen additional primary sources.
Key Takeaways
76.7% of Canadians chose cremation in 2024 (CANA 2025)
80.7% is CANA’s projected Canadian cremation rate by 2029 (CANA 2025)
$41,917–$94,689 range for a single plot at Mount Pleasant, the most expensive cemetery we compare (Mount Pleasant Group 2026 price list)
$700–$1,500, low end of direct cremation (Canadian Funerals Online 2026)
Canada leads the US by ~15 percentage points (CANA 2025)
Every US bordering province surpassed 61% cremation by 2015 (CANA 2016)
Ontario crossed 50% by 2005, reaching 58.6% by 2011 (Ontario Board of Funeral Services)
24% of Canadians had no religious affiliation in 2011, up from 17% in 2001 (Statistics Canada NHS 2011)
Canada’s cremation rate grew 28.7 percentage points since 2000
Immigration from high cremation nations cited by OFSA as accelerating factor
1. Canada’s 20-Year Cremation Surge (2006–2026)
Canada did not stumble into a cremation majority, it marched there at a measured, predictable pace over 50 years.
A single plot at Mount Pleasant, the most expensive cemetery we compare, costs $41,917 to $94,689 depending on whether the lot permits a flat marker or an upright monument, before a casket, funeral home fee, headstone, or grave-opening charge is added.
Metric
Value
Source
Traditional burial, national average
$8,000–$15,000
OFSA; End of Life Tools 2025–2026
Mount Pleasant plot, single (range)
$41,917–$94,689
Mount Pleasant Group 2026 price list
Cremation with full service
$2,000–$6,000 +HST
Eirene.ca 2023
Direct cremation, national typical
$2,000–$4,000
End of Life Tools 2025–2026
Direct cremation, low end
$700–$1,500
Canadian Funerals Online 2026
CPP Death Benefit (maximum for deaths on or after January 1, 2025)
