How to Build a Simple Casket: Plans, Materials, and Legal Considerations

Is It Legal to Build Your Own Casket?

Yes. Building a casket for a family member is legal in all fifty U.S. states. The FTC Funeral Rule guarantees your right to provide your own casket to a covered funeral home, which cannot charge a handling fee for accepting it. Confirm a crematory's container requirements separately.

The only practical constraints come from your chosen method of disposition. Crematories set their own acceptance and handling requirements, so confirm that the facility accepts your design and ask whether it requires a combustible, rigid container or restricts metal hardware. Cemeteries may require a vault or liner but rarely regulate the casket itself. Natural burial grounds typically prohibit treated wood, metal fasteners, and synthetic finishes — which a simple pine box already avoids.

Materials and Dimensions

A basic rectangular casket (sometimes called a toe-pincher or straight-sided box) needs about $75 to $200 in lumber, depending on wood species and local prices. Pine is the traditional choice — lightweight, easy to work, and inexpensive. Poplar and unfinished plywood also work well.

Standard interior dimensions:

• Length: 78 inches (accommodates up to 6'2"; add length for taller individuals)
• Width: 24 inches at the shoulder
• Depth: 14 to 16 inches

You will need:

• Six 1×12 pine boards, 8 feet long (sides, bottom, ends)
• One sheet of 1/2-inch plywood for the bottom panel (if not using solid boards)
• Wood glue and wood screws (avoid metal nails if headed for a green burial)
• Rope handles or cotton webbing for carrying (four to six handles total)
• A lining of cotton, linen, or muslin (optional)

Basic Construction Steps

A straight-sided box is within reach of anyone who can make square cuts and drive screws. The entire build takes four to six hours with basic tools: a circular saw, drill, square, measuring tape, and sandpaper.

Bottom panel. Lay three 1×12 boards edge-to-edge and glue them, reinforcing with cross-braces screwed underneath every 18 inches. Or use a single sheet of 1/2-inch plywood cut to 78×24 inches.

Side walls. Cut two side boards to 78 inches and two end boards to 24 inches (plus the thickness of your side boards, so they butt cleanly). Glue and screw the walls to the bottom panel. Reinforce corners with a second screw from each direction.

Lid. Build the lid the same way as the bottom — three glued boards with two cross-braces underneath. Leave the lid removable; don't hinge it permanently if you want to open the casket during a vigil. Some families add small cleats along the inside top edge so the lid sits flush without sliding.

Handles. Drill holes through the side walls and thread cotton rope or webbing through. Tie a knot inside to hold the rope in place. Position six handles — two on each long side and one on each end — to distribute the weight evenly.

Finishing. Sand all surfaces smooth. Leave the wood unfinished for a natural look, or apply a thin coat of linseed oil (food-safe, non-toxic). For green burial, skip synthetic stains and polyurethane entirely.

A Meaningful Project

Many families build a casket together as part of pre-planning — well before anyone is dying. Some communities hold casket-building workshops where participants build their own and store them for later use. The process is straightforward carpentry, and it removes one major decision from the crisis window after a death.

If you are also managing the home vigil and legal paperwork yourself, the Home Funeral / Family-Directed Guide covers every step from body care through final disposition, including which states require specific container standards.