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Burial or cremation: a coffin is almost always needed. Which woods are usual, what crematoria require and when the municipality provides the coffin.
In Switzerland a coffin is part of almost every funeral, including cremation. Around 90 percent of people who die are cremated, yet every one of them needs a coffin, as a report on the largest Swiss coffin maker in the newspaper Blick points out. The choice is usually made in the first one or two days, often during the meeting with the funeral director.
Practices differ from country to country, and if you have not arranged a funeral here before, a few Swiss rules may be new to you. This page helps you decide calmly: which woods and shapes exist, what the fittings include, what crematoria and cemeteries require, what a coffin costs and when the municipality provides one free of charge. The prices come from official lists and press reports and are a guide only.
Swiss coffins are almost always made of softwood. Poplar used to be the norm; today fir accounts for about half of the largest maker's production, and four out of five people who die are laid in a Swiss-made coffin. The Basel-Stadt guide names fir and poplar as usual, and the City of Geneva also mentions cremation coffins in fir or poplar.
Which wood is right depends less on taste than on three questions. Will the person be cremated or buried? Is a viewing at an open coffin planned, with the coffin on view for several days? And what budget is set aside for the funeral as a whole? For a cremation without a viewing, many families deliberately choose a simple model and would rather spend the money on the service or the grave.
What the City of Zurich offers shows the range well:
Switzerland has one peculiarity when it comes to shape: the usual coffin has no right angles but is bevelled at the head and foot ends. According to the manufacturer, this is the standard shape throughout the country. There are also chest-shaped coffins and coffins with a domed lid. Coffins made of chipboard or metal, which are common in some countries, are not permitted in Basel-Stadt according to its guide.
The interior consists of a fleece or padding as a base, a pillow and a cover. The pillow is often filled with wood shavings, the covering made of viscose or cotton. The City of Zurich offers its basic coffins with white padding or with a wood wool filling.
On the outside come handles, feet and decorative screws, and on request a cross or another symbol on the lid. Some models have a viewing window. You can usually choose the colour of the cover and pillow; many families pick white or cream, others a colour that suits the person.
What the person wears in the coffin and what may be placed with them is explained under Washing and dressing the deceased. In the City of Zurich, relatives can also paint the coffin or urn themselves in rooms at the Nordheim crematorium; paint and brushes are included, and prices start at approx. CHF 66.
For both, the material should break down. The canton of Bern's funeral ordinance requires environmentally compatible coffin or urn material that hinders decomposition as little as possible. Basel-Stadt requires a coffin of readily biodegradable wood.
For a burial there is a practical reason: in the canton of Bern a grave lies undisturbed for at least 20 years, and in that time the coffin and the body should be able to decompose. We therefore recommend softwood without a thick coat of lacquer for burial as well. A heavy hardwood coffin is possible but brings no advantage in the ground.
Crematoria set their own requirements, and they differ:
Before ordering, we check what the crematorium or cemetery in question requires, so that no coffin is turned away. How the cremation itself works is explained under Cremation, burial in a coffin under Burial.
Transport in a coffin across a border requires a coffin with a soldered zinc lining. Once sealed, it is not opened again, and it is considerably heavier. More under Zinc coffin.
Prices depend on the wood, the workmanship and the fittings, and on what the municipality covers. Two publicly available reference points:
Ask for a quote that lists the coffin as a separate item. That way you see how much goes on the coffin and how much on services. An overview of every cost item of a funeral is under Funeral costs in Switzerland.
In some cantons and cities, a simple coffin is part of a free funeral for residents. If you want a different coffin you can still choose one, but you then pay for it yourself. The rules vary a great deal, even between neighbouring cantons:
The municipal coffin is simple but dignified. For many families it is the right choice, especially for a cremation, where the coffin is only seen briefly. Where the municipality does not provide a coffin, the family bears the cost. We find out what your municipality covers.
We have found no Switzerland-wide rule requiring you to buy the coffin from a funeral director. In Basel-Stadt, the guide mentions buying a private coffin from a funeral director licensed in the canton. If you order a coffin online or from a carpenter, three things matter: that it meets the crematorium's or cemetery's requirements, that it arrives in time and that someone places the person in it.
Eco-friendly coffins are available in Switzerland too:
For a burial, it is worth looking at the municipality's cemetery regulations: they may set their own rules on material and size. If you would like a particular option, tell us early. We ask the crematorium or cemetery office beforehand whether it will be accepted.
We show you models in different woods and price ranges, tell you openly which are suitable for your type of funeral and take the municipal coffin into account where there is one. What follows a cremation is explained under Choosing an urn. The whole process is set out under Burial and Cremation.
Questions & answers
Yes. Even with a cremation, the person is cremated in a coffin. The Bern crematorium requires a coffin of softwood without lacquer.
A simple fir coffin costs approx. CHF 350 to 1,050, hardwood coffins approx. CHF 1,000 to 4,000. In the City of Geneva, the City of Zurich and Basel-Stadt, a simple coffin is provided free to residents under certain conditions.
For city residents: a standard coffin with no choice, washing, dressing and placing in the coffin, three days in a viewing room, transport within the city, a chapel, and cremation with a standard urn. Only if the city's own funeral service arranges the funeral.
We have found no national rule against it. But the coffin must meet the requirements of the crematorium or cemetery, arrive in time, and someone has to place the person in it. In Basel the guide refers to licensed funeral directors.
Softwood, mainly fir, spruce and poplar. Finer woods such as lime, ash or mahogany are possible but cost more. Basel-Stadt does not permit coffins made of chipboard or metal.
Yes. Untreated natural wood is the simplest option. The City of Zurich also offers a mushroom coffin made of mycelium and hemp fibres for approx. CHF 990. Whether a cardboard coffin is accepted is up to the crematorium.