After a cremation, families are often handed a box, an envelope, or a temporary container and told, gently, that the cremation urns for ashes decision can come later. That sounds simple. In real life, it can feel like one more heavy thing to carryâbecause it is not only about choosing a container. It is about choosing how you want to keep someone close, how you want to protect what matters, and how to make sure nothing gets spilled or lost in the middle of an already difficult time.
If you have been searching what to put ashes in, you are usually balancing two needs at once: you want something respectful, and you want something practical. You may also be making decisions with other family members who are grieving differently, on different timelines. One person wants a permanent urn today. Another wants to wait until spring for a scattering. Someone else wants a small keepsake. None of those instincts are wrong. The goal is to find a plan that is secure, calm, and flexibleâso you can move at the pace your family can actually handle.
Why This Question Comes Up So Often Now
Cremation has become the majority choice in the United States, which means more families are navigating âwhat happens nextâ with ashes. According to the National Funeral Directors Association, the U.S. cremation rate is projected to be 63.4% in 2025. The Cremation Association of North America reports a U.S. cremation rate of 61.8% in 2024. When cremation becomes common, questions about storage, travel, keepsakes, and family sharing become common tooâespecially when the memorial service is planned weeks or months later as part of modern funeral planning.
So if you feel like you âshouldâ already know what to do, try to let that go. This is a new kind of decision for most people, and it is normal to need a clear, steady explanation before you decide what container makes sense for your life.
Start With the Container You Already Have
Many funeral homes provide a basic temporary urn or a container for cremains as part of the process. Sometimes it is a simple box; often the ashes are inside an inner bag, placed inside a rigid outer container. Families sometimes worry this is not âgood enough,â but it is usually designed for short-term holding until you choose a permanent plan.
The practical question is not whether it looks like an urn. The practical question is whether it stays closed, stays dry, and stays out of the way of accidental bumps. If you are not ready to make a purchase, the most important thing you can do is treat your current container as a temporary safeâstore it in a stable place, away from humidity, pets, and curious children, and avoid moving it more than necessary.
When you are ready to move from âfor nowâ to âfor the long term,â it helps to know what makes any container truly safe.
The Three Requirements for Any Safe Container
Whether you choose a traditional urn, a keepsake, jewelry, or a DIY option, the same three requirements apply. If you keep these in mind, it becomes much easier to evaluate DIY urn ideas without fear, and to choose a permanent urn without second-guessing yourself.
- Security: a truly secure urn lid or closure that does not loosen with casual handling.
- Protection: an inner bag or sealed inner container that helps prevent moisture intrusion and reduces spill risk.
- Capacity: enough space for the remains and any inner packaging, so the lid closes easily without forcing.
That last pointâcapacityâmatters more than families expect. A container that is âalmostâ large enough is the one most likely to create a stressful transfer, because it requires pressing, tamping, or forcing the closure. A little extra room is not waste. It is peace of mind.
Choosing a Permanent Urn: When Traditional Is the Simplest
A traditional urn is not âtraditionalâ because it is old-fashioned. It is traditional because it solves real problems: it is stable, it is made to close securely, and it is sized for the remains. For many families, especially those who plan on keeping ashes at home, choosing a primary urn becomes the calm center of the plan. If you want to browse broadly and then narrow down, start with Funeral.comâs main collection of cremation urns for ashes.
If you want a gentler, step-by-step explanation of how to choose, Funeral.comâs guide Cremation Urns 101 lays out the main types, materials, and âuse casesâ in plain language, and it pairs well with Choosing the Right Cremation Urn when you are thinking about sealing and long-term placement.
Full-size urns, small urns, and keepsakes are different tools
A full-size urn is designed to hold the entire remains of one adult. A smaller urn is often chosen when the plan involves sharing, travel, or a secondary memorial. A keepsake is designed for a symbolic portion. Those distinctions matter because they give you options: you can have one central memorial and still give multiple people a way to feel included without conflict.
If you are looking for a compact, shareable option, Funeral.comâs small cremation urns collection is a good starting point for families who want something bigger than a tiny keepsake but smaller than a full adult urn. If your goal is a truly small portion for multiple family members, Funeral.comâs keepsake urns are designed for exactly thatâespecially when siblings or adult children live in different states.
And if you are worried about how keepsakes open, reseal, or transfer, Funeral.comâs practical guide Keepsake Urns 101 is a steady companion to this article, because it focuses on real-world handling rather than vague reassurance.
Urn Sealing and âSecure Enoughâ Without Making It Complicated
Search results can make urn sealing feel intimidating, as if you need special tools or professional training. In reality, most families just need a clear principle: choose a container that is designed to stay closed, and make sure you do not have to fight it to close it.
In practical terms, many urns use one of three approaches: threaded lids that twist closed, top lids with an internal closure design, or bottom-access panels. Any of these can be secure when the urn is made well and used as intended. The key is to avoid repeated opening and closing, especially if you are using adhesive or a manufacturer-recommended sealant. If you expect to open the container again laterâfor example, because your family plans to scatter in the springâchoose a closure style that supports that plan, and avoid permanently sealing it until you are truly finished.
If you want a âdo I need to seal this?â way to think about it, it often comes down to location. A stable, out-of-the-way memorial shelf may not require extra sealing beyond the built-in closure. Travel, frequent handling, or a household with pets and toddlers often calls for an added layer of protectionâmost commonly a sealed inner bag placed inside the urn. When families want a deeper explanation of how closures work in real life, Choosing the Right Cremation Urn covers closure types and planning considerations in a calm, practical tone.
How to Transfer Ashes to an Urn Without Turning It Into a Bad Day
When people search transfer ashes to urn, they are usually not looking for a technical process. They are looking for reassurance that they can do this without a spill, without panic, and without feeling like they are doing something disrespectful.
The most important thing to know is that you do not have to do it alone. Many funeral homes will help with a transfer, especially if you ask. If you are doing it at home, treat it like a âquiet task,â not a test of courage. Choose a stable table. Turn off fans. Create a catch area with a shallow tray or clean surface so that if anything falls, it falls into a controlled space. Move slowly. The goal is not speed. The goal is calm.
If you are transferring from a temporary container into a permanent urn, it can help to read through Funeral.comâs guidance on materials, closure styles, and planning first, because it reduces the chance you discover a size or sealing issue mid-transfer. The articles Cremation Urns 101 and Choosing the Right Cremation Urn are particularly helpful for that reason.
Keepsakes: When You Want a Smaller, More Personal Option
Not every family wants one urn on a mantle as the only memorial. Some families want a primary urn plus smaller pieces that let multiple people participate. This is where keepsakes become both practical and emotionally meaningful. A keepsake is not âless than.â It is simply a different choiceâone designed for sharing, for travel, or for the quiet comfort of having a small portion nearby.
Keepsake urns and small urns for sharing
If your family is thinking about sharing, start with the question of scale. Keepsake urns are usually intended for a small symbolic portion, while small cremation urns often hold a more substantial portion. Funeral.comâs collections for keepsake urns and small cremation urns help clarify the difference quickly, and Keepsake Urns 101 is useful when the question is really about sealing, opening, and respectful handling.
Cremation jewelry for a âcarry with youâ memorial
For families who want something wearable, cremation jewelry can be a gentle solution. It is typically designed to hold a very small, symbolic amountâenough to feel connected, without putting the majority of the remains at risk. If you want to browse by style first, Funeral.comâs cremation necklaces collection is a clear starting point for people searching for cremation necklaces specifically.
If your concern is more practicalâhow jewelry is filled, how it stays sealed, and how to wear it safelyâFuneral.comâs guide Cremation Jewelry 101 focuses on the âhow it worksâ details that matter when you are trying to avoid spills and protect the keepsake long-term.
Pet Urns: The Same Safety Rules, With a Different Kind of Love
When a pet dies, the grief can be acute and disorienting, and families often want something that reflects personality. That is why pet urns and pet urns for ashes come in so many shapes and styles. The safety rules are the same: secure closure, inner protection, and the right capacity. The emotional goal is often different: a memorial that feels like your companion, not like a generic container.
If you want to browse broadly, Funeral.comâs pet cremation urns collection includes a wide range of materials and sizes. If you want something that looks like a small sculpture or breed-inspired tribute, the pet figurine cremation urns collection is designed for that kind of memorial. And if the plan involves sharing a small portion among family members, Funeral.comâs pet keepsake cremation urns give families a smaller, more flexible way to keep a beloved companion close.
When sizing is the main worry, it helps to read a guide that treats the question with clarity instead of vagueness. Funeral.comâs Pet Urns 101 and its pet sizing resources can help you choose with confidence rather than guesswork.
Scattering Tubes, Biodegradable Urns, and Water Burial Plans
Sometimes the right container depends less on display and more on the plan: travel, scattering, burial, or water burial. In those situations, the ârightâ choice is the one that works well in the real setting where your family will say goodbye.
If scattering is part of your plan, families often choose a scattering tube or a biodegradable scattering container designed for travel and handling. If water is part of the plan, families often look for water-soluble urns intended for a sea ceremony. Funeral.comâs Biodegradable & Eco-Friendly Urns collection gathers those options in one place, including containers intended for land scattering, green burial, or water ceremonies.
For families planning a burial at sea or a water ceremony, it helps to understand the legal and practical framework before you buy anything. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency explains the federal rules for burial at sea, including the requirement that placement generally occur at least three nautical miles from land. Funeral.com also breaks down what âthree nautical milesâ means in plain terms in Water Burial and Burial at Sea, which is especially helpful when your family is trying to match an urn type to a specific plan.
DIY Urn Ideas: A Personal Container Can Still Be Safe
Some families want a container that feels handmade, familiar, or personalâespecially when the person who died loved woodworking, ceramics, quilting, or crafting. Thoughtful DIY urn ideas can be deeply meaningful, but the safety requirements do not change just because the container is personal.
A DIY option works best when it is treated like a âshellâ around a properly sealed inner container. In practice, that often means the cremated remains stay in a sealed inner bag or a sealed inner vessel, and the DIY container becomes the protective outer layer. A well-made wooden memory box, a small chest, or a lidded ceramic vessel can work beautifully when it closes securely and sits stably. What tends to create problems are containers that look charming but were never designed to stay closedâespecially thin glass jars, brittle containers, or lids that pop off with minimal pressure.
If you are creating a DIY container, capacity still matters. A container that is too small forces you into a stressful transfer. A container that is comfortably sized lets you place the inner bag or inner vessel gently, without forcing the lid. If you want a simpler route that still feels personal, many families choose a durable, well-sealed primary urn and personalize it with engraving or a memory ritual. Funeral.comâs broader selection of cremation urns includes many styles that can serve as a long-term memorial while still leaving room for creativity in how you display and honor it.
Keeping Ashes at Home While You Decide
It is common to keep ashes at home for a period of timeâsometimes because the memorial is scheduled later, sometimes because the family needs more time, and sometimes because the plan is still being negotiated. If you are in that âin-betweenâ season, it helps to think of your current container as temporary storage and to focus on safety rather than final decisions.
For practical guidance on how to store ashes safely at home, including common household considerations, Funeral.comâs article keeping ashes at home walks through safe placement, respectful display, and what to consider if multiple people in the household have different comfort levels.
And if this decision is happening alongside broader funeral planning, it can be helpful to zoom out. A container decision often becomes easier when you have a clearer picture of timing, service plans, and budget. Funeral.comâs funeral planning guide offers a modern overview of timelines and choices, and if budget questions are part of the stress, the guide how much does cremation cost explains typical fees and the factors that change the total.
A Clear Answer, and a Gentle One
So, what can you put cremation ashes in? You can put them in a traditional urn. You can place them in keepsake urns for sharing. You can choose cremation jewelryâincluding cremation necklacesâfor a symbolic amount you can carry. You can select a scattering tube or biodegradable urn if your plan involves travel, scattering, or water burial. You can even create a DIY container, as long as it is secure, appropriately sized, and protects the remains inside an inner sealed layer.
The most helpful way to decide is not to chase a perfect container. It is to choose the container that fits the next step your family can actually take. If you are still unsure, start with one steady plan: keep the remains secure now, decide whether you want a primary home memorial, and then decide whether you want keepsakes for sharing. In many families, that is the path that turns an overwhelming questionâwhat to do with ashesâinto a series of gentle, manageable choices.
