Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between funeral directors and funeral arrangers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a funeral director and a funeral arranger. Additionally, a funeral arranger has an average salary of $41,637, which is higher than the $39,048 average annual salary of a funeral director.
The top three skills for a funeral director include client families, veterans and compassion. The most important skills for a funeral arranger are customer service, funeral homes, and church services.
| Funeral Director | Funeral Arranger | |
| Yearly salary | $39,048 | $41,637 |
| Hourly rate | $18.77 | $20.02 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 5,746 | 24,452 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 48% | Associate Degree, 34% |
| Average age | 49 | 49 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A funeral director organizes and oversees funeral services, aiming to provide optimal service and support to grieving families. They typically meet with families to identify their needs and help them plan services, arrange transportation for the deceased, prepare and process the body for the service, and assist families every step of the way. They are also responsible for processing documents, liaising with vendors and suppliers, writing obituaries, and resolving conflicts or issues should any arise. Moreover, a funeral director must lead and delegate tasks among staff, monitoring the progress of all operations regularly.
Funeral Arrangers are responsible for assisting in managing funeral arrangements. Their duties include providing service advice, giving support to clients and families, facilitating family visits, answering phone calls, taking messages, and attending inquiries. They are also involved in assisting doctors at refrigeration units, accompanying family members, producing account reconciliations, and managing funeral accounts settlements. Funeral Arrangers also manage petty cash, handle card payments, and undertake administrative tasks such as filing and photocopying. They also take care of monumental masonry sales.
Funeral directors and funeral arrangers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Funeral Director | Funeral Arranger | |
| Average salary | $39,048 | $41,637 |
| Salary range | Between $29,000 And $51,000 | Between $22,000 And $78,000 |
| Highest paying City | Belmont, CA | - |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | - |
| Best paying company | Precoa | - |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a funeral director and a funeral arranger in terms of educational background:
| Funeral Director | Funeral Arranger | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 48% | Associate Degree, 34% |
| Most common major | Mortuary Science | Business |
| Most common college | University of Minnesota - Twin Cities | University of Minnesota - Twin Cities |
Here are the differences between funeral directors' and funeral arrangers' demographics:
| Funeral Director | Funeral Arranger | |
| Average age | 49 | 49 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 64.7% Female, 35.3% | Male, 36.7% Female, 63.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 2.6% Hispanic or Latino, 6.5% Asian, 1.8% White, 77.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 2.7% Hispanic or Latino, 7.5% Asian, 1.8% White, 80.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |