Natural and green burial costs in New Zealand

Written by Henry Smith · Reviewed by Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931) · Updated 2026-10-20 · Reviewed quarterly, when the underlying data is restated.

Financial advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). QuoteHub is a trading name.

A natural burial in New Zealand is a burial without embalming, in an untreated casket or a natural-fibre shroud, in a council cemetery section where a native tree or shrub is planted over the grave. Council fees for the plot and burial run from about $2,900 to $6,800 on the schedules where we could total them (Dunedin's is not totalled), and they are not reliably lower than a standard plot. Funeral director, casket and celebrant costs are extra.

What a natural burial is, and how it works here

Natural Burials NZ, a not-for-profit that certifies cemeteries, caskets and funeral directors, describes the aim as returning the body to the earth in nature's own way. Its expectations are shallow plots (750 mm deep), no embalming, no non-biodegradable accessories, burial in a coffin of untreated, sustainably grown wood, a native tree or shrub planted over the plot and a natural marker (Natural Burials NZ: What is a natural burial?).

Councils write their own rules. Auckland Council's Waikumete section allocates plots in sequence, requires at least 800 mm of cover, an untreated casket or natural-fibre shroud and no embalming, and allows temporary wooden markers only (Auckland Council: natural burial). Wellington City Council says the body is not embalmed, a biodegradable casket is used and a native tree is planted at the head or base of each plot (Wellington City Council: burials).

What the council charges

These are council fees for an adult weekday burial by a resident. They exclude the funeral director, casket or shroud, celebrant, flowers and any registration fee.

Council and ground	Plot or burial right	Burial fee	Total shown	Source date
Auckland, Waikumete natural burial area	$5,360	$1,410	$6,770 (our sum)	Page prints no fee year; read 20 October 2026
Wellington, Mākara natural burial	$1,669 plot + $774 maintenance	$1,172	$3,615 as printed	Pages published 12 June and last modified 30 June 2026
Christchurch, green burial	Not split out	Not split out	$2,925 "or actual costs if greater"	2026/27
Dunedin, Green Park	$2,863.40 burial rights	No separate line printed	Not totalled	2026/27

Sources: Auckland Council fees, Wellington City Council: Mākara fees, Christchurch City Council fees and Dunedin City Council burial fees. Several of these councils review fees each 1 July, so check the date on the page you use. Our other fee pages cover Auckland and Wellington in more detail.

Natural Burials NZ also publishes a price list that adds each council's plot and interment fee, from $1,455 (Taupō) to $7,596 (Marlborough, Fairhall) across 20 listed grounds. The page carries no date and some lines differ from current council schedules (it shows Wellington's Mākara at $2,779, against $3,615 on the council's own page), so treat it as a guide to which grounds are cheaper, and check the council page for the price (Natural Burials NZ: price list).

Is it cheaper than a standard plot?

Not consistently. Against the standard adult lawn fees for the same council:

Wellington: Mākara's plaque-lawn plot costs $2,754 in total, so the natural ground is $861 more.
Christchurch: a full-size plot and weekday adult interment come to $3,460, so green burial at $2,925 is $535 less, unless actual costs are higher.
Auckland and Dunedin: the Waikumete natural-area burial right ($5,360) matches the lawn right at Manukau Memorial Gardens, and Green Park's burial rights ($2,863.40) match the main Dunedin cemeteries' rights. Dunedin's schedule prints no separate interment line for Green Park, so ask the council what else applies.

Other costs to add

Registration. Natural Burials NZ charges a registration and donation fee of $199 plus GST on certified natural cemetery burials, and $199 plus GST for an engraved grave marker if you want one. Funeral directors certified by it pass the fee on; you still pay the council's fees (Natural Burials NZ: how to get a natural burial).
Casket or shroud. The Funeral Directors Association of NZ (FDANZ) gives $1,200 to $5,000 for a casket as an indicative range (FDANZ: financial matters). One Auckland funeral director lists eco caskets at $3,055 to $5,435 (Dils price list, May 2026), so a natural casket is not automatically cheap. Our casket cost guide has more.
Embalming. Natural cemeteries do not allow it, so you avoid FDANZ's $700 to $1,050 range for preparation if you would otherwise have chosen it. Natural Burials NZ says no law or by-law stipulates embalming (Natural Burials NZ: FAQ). See embalming costs.

Casket and shroud rules

Natural Burials NZ's standard asks for New Zealand sustainably grown materials with no preserving treatment, with soft woods, flax and wicker encouraged and imported woods not allowed. Plywood and MDF are out, apart from a single piece of composite in a low-impact cardboard casket or shroud bearer. Shrouds must be naturally grown fibres with no synthetic colourings, and handles and fixings must be natural, with metal screws and nails the exception (Natural Burials NZ: casket standard). Individual council cemeteries may add their own limits, so ask the council and the funeral director before you buy anything.

Where natural burial is offered

Natural Burials NZ lists cemeteries by region. Its certified grounds, as listed in October 2026, are Waikumete (Auckland), Omahu Natural Burial Garden (Thames), Hillcrest (Whakatāne), Taupō public cemetery on Rickit Street, Awanui (New Plymouth), Ōtaki (Kāpiti), Claireville (Carterton), Mākara (Wellington), Fairhall (Marlborough), Marsden Valley (Nelson), Motueka, Orowaiti (Westport), Diamond Harbour (Christchurch and Banks Peninsula) and Ashburton. It also lists grounds that follow most of its protocols without certification, including Whangārei, Hamilton, Hastings (Mangaroa), Whanganui, Yaldhurst in Christchurch, Dunedin and Invercargill. It says certification changes over time (Natural Burials NZ: where are natural cemeteries?).

Tree pods and burial on private land

Overseas products that place a body or ashes in a capsule under a planted tree are sometimes searched for as "tree capsule burial". We found no New Zealand council schedule or Natural Burials NZ listing that offers one, and no New Zealand price. The natural burial options above use a casket or shroud and a tree planted over the plot. If you are thinking of a product from overseas, ask the council that runs the cemetery before you buy.

The Burial and Cremation Act 1964 (s46) generally requires burial in a cemetery or burial ground if one is within 32 km of the death, and burial in a "special place" needs the Minister's certificate (s48) (New Zealand Legislation: Burial and Cremation Act 1964). Health NZ says you cannot set up private burial grounds (Health NZ: burial permissions). Natural burial in practice means a natural section of a cemetery.

Writing your wishes down

The executor decides the funeral arrangements and, if there is none, the closest relative, who must take whānau views and cultural, religious and spiritual practices into account (Community Law: funerals and tangihanga). A note of your wishes does not bind them, but it tells them what you want. Natural Burials NZ sells a $35 living will pack with a template for expressing a wish for natural burial (Natural Burials NZ: living will pack). Name the cemetery, say whether you want a shroud or casket, and give a copy to your executor and a close family member.

Paying for it

Work and Income counts shrouds among the reasonable costs for its Funeral Grant, which has a maximum of $2,697.43 as at 1 April 2026 and is subject to income and asset tests (Work and Income: Funeral Grant, Work and Income: essential funeral expenses). Our funeral grant guide sets out the tests.

Some people plan ahead with funeral insurance. Momentum Life's Funeral Insurance, issued by Momentum Life Limited, accepts New Zealanders aged 40 to 75 and pays a fixed benefit of $3,000 to $30,000 towards costs, not the whole bill. In the first 24 months a policy pays only for accidental death (death within 90 days of the accident), and total premiums can end up larger than the benefit. Momentum Life is rated B (Fair) by A.M. Best (Momentum Life: financial strength). The buttons on this page open Momentum's online application. For the wider choice see burial versus cremation, what a burial plot costs and the funeral costs hub.

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Adviser's view

A natural burial is not reliably cheaper at the council counter. In Wellington it costs more than a standard lawn plot, in Christchurch it costs less, and in Auckland and Dunedin the burial right is the same price. The savings, where they exist, come from skipping embalming and choosing a plain casket or shroud. Choose it for the way it is done, then check the fees for the cemetery you have in mind.

Henry Smith, Financial Adviser (FSP1010699). General information, not personalised financial advice.

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Cite this page QuoteHub NZ (2026). Natural Burial Cost NZ: Green Burial Options. www.quotehub.co.nz/funeral-costs/natural-burial-nz. Updated 2026-10-20.