A free obituary writer
Write an obituary, one question at a time
Answer a few gentle questions and get a first draft you can shape, free and without an account.
No account to begin.
Answer the questions and read your draft before you sign in to anything.
Your words, your voice.
Your answers stay in this browser until you ask for a draft, and every word is yours to change.
A page when you want one.
Turn the draft into a memorial page with photographs and a slideshow, or simply copy it into a newspaper notice.
Step 1 of 4
The guide
How to write an obituary
An obituary has three jobs: to tell people someone has died, to say who they were, and to say what happens next. You don't have to be a writer. Start with the facts, add what made them who they were, and read it aloud once before you share it.
What to include
Most obituaries follow the same quiet order. You can leave out anything that doesn't fit.
- The announcement. Their full name, age, where they lived and the date they died. The place and cause of death are optional.
- Their life. Where they were born and grew up, school, work or service, faith, the people and things they loved, and what they were known for.
- Family. Who survives them, such as a spouse or partner, children, grandchildren and siblings, and who died before them. “Survived by” and “preceded in death by” are the usual phrases.
- The service. The date, time and place of visitation, the funeral or the celebration of life, and whether it is open to everyone or private.
- Donations. If the family prefers gifts to flowers, name the charity and say how to give: “In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to …”.
How long it should be
Newspapers often charge by the line or the word, so printed notices are usually 100 to 300 words. Online, nothing limits you: most obituaries on a funeral home or memorial page run 200 to 800 words.
A good plan is a short version for print and the full version for the memorial page. Write the long one first; it is easier to trim than to expand.
What to leave out
An obituary is public, and the details in it are useful to people who would misuse them. This is standard advice from funeral directors and consumer groups.
- The home address. Notices are public, and some thieves read them. Name the town, not the street, and think twice before saying when the house will be empty during the service.
- The exact birth date. A full birth date, with a mother’s maiden name or an address, is what identity thieves look for. In print, the birth year and the age are enough.
- Account details and private names. Leave out anything you would not put on a postcard, such as the names of young grandchildren’s schools.
- A cause of death you would rather not give. It is entirely the family’s choice.
The writer above asks for the birth date so it can work out an age. If the notice is going to a newspaper, delete the day and month from the draft and print only the year.
A fictional example
A sample obituary
Peggy Doyle and her family are made up. The shape is the useful part: an announcement, a life, a character, family, then the service.
Margaret “Peggy” Ellen Doyle, 84, of Dayton, Ohio, passed away on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, at home with her family.
Born in Springfield, Ohio, in 1941, Peggy was the daughter of the late Frank and Helen Marsh. She graduated from Springfield High School in 1959 and spent thirty-one years teaching second grade, where generations of Dayton children learned to read at her table. In 1963 she married Walter Doyle, and they shared fifty-eight years of Sunday dinners and summers at a small cabin on Lake Erie.
Peggy sang alto in the Grace Church choir, kept a garden the neighbors envied, and could not hear a joke without telling it again. She will be remembered for her patience, her stubborn streak, and the casseroles she carried to anyone who needed one.
She is survived by her sons, Daniel (Karen) and Paul (Sarah) Doyle; six grandchildren; and her sister, Ruth Marsh. She was preceded in death by her husband, Walter; her parents; and her brother, Thomas.
Friends may call from 5 to 7 p.m. on Friday, March 6, at Hale Funeral Home. A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 7, at Grace Church, with burial to follow at Woodland Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the Kettering Elementary library fund.
Questions people ask
Common questions
Is the obituary writer free?
Yes. You can answer the questions, read your draft and copy it without an account or a payment. If you choose to turn it into a memorial page, you sign in or create a free account first. Building a memorial is free; publishing the page is a one-time purchase that is shown before you pay.
What happens to the answers I type?
They stay in your browser while you answer, and a refresh will not lose them. When you ask for a draft, they are sent to Memoriam to put the draft together. Memoriam does not store them. Your answers are cleared when you close the tab. If you choose to make a memorial page, the draft is kept on this device for up to seven days so it can carry into your new memorial.
How long should an obituary be?
Most printed notices run 100 to 300 words, because newspapers often charge by the line or the word. Online obituaries are usually 200 to 800 words. The draft is built from the details you give, so it is as long as your answers. Add or trim as you like.
Do I have to say how they died?
No. That is the family's choice. Many obituaries say only that someone passed away, and some name an illness or ask for gifts to a related charity. If you are unsure, leave it out; you can always add it later.
Can I put the draft in a newspaper?
Yes. Choose Copy, then paste the text into the newspaper's notice form or send it to your funeral home. Memoriam does not submit notices to newspapers, so check the paper's word limit, price and deadline first.
When you're ready
Give their words a place to stay
A memorial page keeps the obituary beside their photographs and a slideshow for the service. Begin with the draft, and add the rest in your own time.
Begin their memorial