What to Do With Ashes After Cremation: Every Option Explained
You've collected the ashes from the crematorium. Now what? If you're reading this, the funeral is probably behind you, the relatives have gone home, and you're left holding a small wooden box. There's no manual. No one tells you what comes next.
This guide walks you through every option families have — keeping the ashes at home, scattering them, burying them, dividing them, turning them into jewellery, returning them to nature. There's no right answer. There's only the answer that feels right for your family.
Quick answer
The seven main options are: keep the ashes at home in a cremation urn, scatter them at a meaningful place, bury them in a plot or garden, divide them between family members in keepsake urns, keep a small portion in memorial jewellery, return them to nature with a biodegradable urn, or combine more than one of these. There is no legal time limit for deciding - many families take weeks, months or years.
First - there is no deadline
One of the things people most often don't realise: there is no legal time limit for deciding what to do with cremated remains. You can keep ashes for as long as you need to - weeks, months, years, decades. Many families wait until a meaningful anniversary, a family gathering, or simply until they feel ready.
If you don't know yet, that's normal. Take the time you need.
Your seven main options
- Keep the ashes at home in a cremation urn
- Scatter the ashes in a meaningful place
- Bury the ashes
- Divide the ashes between family members
- Keep a portion in memorial jewellery
- Return the ashes to nature with a biodegradable urn
- Combine more than one option
1. Keep the ashes at home in a cremation urn
This is by far the most common choice. Keeping a loved one's ashes at home means they remain close, in the place they belonged, in a way you can revisit every day or only when you need to.
Modern cremation urns come in a huge range of styles - from quiet ceramic forms that sit gently on a mantelpiece, to wooden caskets that look at home in any room, to contemporary pieces that don't read as "urns" at all. There's no longer any need to choose something that looks ceremonial unless you want to. Many families find a piece that simply fits the home it lives in.
Practical points:
- You'll need a urn sized for the body weight of your loved one - a useful starting point is one cubic inch of urn volume per pound of body weight before cremation. See our urn size guide for a fuller explanation.
- Where to place an urn is a personal decision. Many families choose a quiet spot - a shelf, a bedroom dresser, a bay window - rather than a centrepiece location.
- Most ceramic and wooden urns are best kept indoors, away from direct sunlight or damp.
2. Scatter the ashes in a meaningful place
Scattering is the second most common choice. It's a way of returning your loved one to a place they cared about - a garden, a beach, a hilltop, a river, a stadium. Each scattering is its own ceremony, and there's no single right way to do it.
Common scattering locations include:
- The sea or a tidal estuary
- A favourite walking spot, hill or mountain
- Public lands and national parks (with appropriate permission)
- The garden of a family home
- A river or other body of water
- A football, rugby, baseball or other sports ground (with the club's permission)
A purpose-made scatter tube makes the practical side much easier - they're designed to release ashes cleanly without spilling, and biodegradable versions are made for water scattering.
Legal rules differ by country and locality. See the legal considerations section below.
Browse scatter tubes and biodegradable water urns →
3. Bury the ashes
Burial of ashes is its own choice - separate from keeping or scattering. Common options:
- In a cemetery plot or churchyard. Most cemeteries have an ashes plot or "garden of remembrance" specifically for buried cremated remains. Plots are smaller and more affordable than full burial plots.
- In a family grave. Ashes can be interred in an existing grave alongside a previously buried family member, with permission from the grave owner.
- In your own garden. Legal in many countries with the landowner's consent - though something to think carefully about if you might one day move house.
- In a natural or green burial ground. Woodland burial sites accept ashes in biodegradable containers and are an increasingly popular eco-conscious choice.
For garden burial in particular, a biodegradable urn is the right choice - designed to break down naturally over months or years, returning the ashes to the soil.
Browse biodegradable urns for burial →
4. Divide the ashes between family members
It's increasingly common to divide ashes - particularly when family members live far apart, when more than one person was close to the deceased, or when several different memorials feel right at once.
Keepsake urns are smaller versions of full-size urns, designed to hold a portion of ashes (typically 1-3 cubic inches each). They mean each family member can have their loved one with them, however many miles apart they live.
Some families choose matching keepsakes; others choose pieces that reflect each individual recipient. Both are fine.
5. Keep a portion in memorial jewellery
Memorial jewellery - sometimes called ashes jewellery or cremation jewellery - lets you keep a small, sealed amount of ashes with you in a pendant, ring or bracelet. For some people it's a way of carrying their loved one through the day; for others it's a piece they wear only on meaningful dates.
There are two main types:
- Self-fill jewellery - pieces with a small inner chamber you fill at home and seal yourself. Most affordable, very private.
- Incorporated jewellery - pieces made by a jeweller who takes a portion of ashes and fuses them into glass, resin or metal during the making. More expensive, takes longer, but the ashes become part of the piece.
6. Return the ashes to nature with a biodegradable urn
Biodegradable urns are designed to break down - either in soil, in water, or both - returning the ashes naturally to the environment. They're the choice for families who want a final resting place that doesn't sit indoors and doesn't involve a permanent grave.
Land burial urns are typically made of compressed plant fibres, sand, salt or recycled paper. Buried in a garden or natural burial site, they break down over weeks or months, releasing the ashes into the soil. Some, like tree-planting urns, are designed to grow into a living memorial - a sapling planted with the urn becomes a tree that carries the memory.
Water burial urns are designed to float briefly when placed on water, then sink and dissolve gracefully - ideal for sea or lake scattering ceremonies where you want a moment with the urn before it's released.
7. Combine more than one option
Many families don't choose just one of these. Some common combinations:
- Keep most of the ashes at home in a full-size urn, with a small portion in a piece of jewellery
- Divide between siblings using keepsakes, with the larger urn buried at a family grave
- Scatter the ashes at a meaningful place, but keep a small portion at home in a memento urn
- Bury part of the ashes with a tree-planting urn, scatter another portion at a separate location
If a single decision feels too final, splitting between options is genuinely common and can take some of the pressure off the moment of choosing.
Legal considerations - by country
Rules around scattering, burying and transporting ashes vary by country and even by region. Always check local guidance before any public scattering or burial.
United Kingdom
You don't need formal permission to scatter ashes on your own land or at sea in the UK. For other locations - National Trust land, public parks, sports grounds, private estates - you should ask the landowner or managing organisation first. The Environment Agency advises scattering more than 1 km from any water source used for drinking. There is no legal time limit on keeping ashes at home, and burial of ashes in a private garden is permitted with the landowner's consent.
United States
US scattering rules are set primarily at state and local level rather than federally. Most states allow scattering on private land with the owner's permission, on inland waters with EPA guidance (typically 3 nautical miles offshore for marine scattering), and in national parks with a permit. Some states have specific rules about scattering on public land or in cemeteries - check your state's department of health guidance before scattering publicly.
If you're transporting ashes across borders
Bringing cremated remains across international borders requires a sealed urn (some countries require it to be x-ray transparent), the original certificate of cremation, and the death certificate. We'll cover country-specific transport requirements in separate detailed guides.
Frequently asked questions
How long can you keep ashes at home?
Indefinitely. There is no legal time limit on keeping cremated remains at home in either the UK or the United States. Properly sealed in a urn, ashes are stable and don't deteriorate.
Is it legal to scatter ashes?
Yes, in most cases - but rules vary by country. In the UK, scattering at sea, on your own land, or on public land with the landowner's permission is generally legal. In the US, rules are set at state level - most states allow scattering on private land, on inland waters with EPA guidance, and in national parks with a permit. Always check local rules before scattering on public land.
Can ashes be split between multiple urns?
Yes. Many crematoriums will divide the ashes for you on request, or it can be done at home using a small funnel. See our separate guide on dividing ashes after cremation for the practical steps.
Can you bury ashes in your garden?
Yes, with the landowner's consent, in both the UK and most US states. Many families use a biodegradable urn so the ashes return to the soil naturally. Bear in mind you may not always live at the same address - some families choose a permanent location like a cemetery plot for that reason.
What if more than one family member wants the ashes?
Dividing the ashes between keepsake urns is a practical and increasingly common solution. Each person has a portion of their loved one, and no one is asked to give up that closeness.
How long do families typically wait before deciding?
There is no average. Some families know within weeks. Others wait years - until an anniversary, a meaningful family event, or simply when it feels right. Both are valid. Don't let anyone rush you.
What happens to ashes that are never collected from the crematorium?
Most crematoriums will hold uncollected ashes for a defined period - typically 12 months - and will then scatter them in the crematorium's own garden of remembrance. If you're not ready to collect, contact the crematorium and let them know - they will hold the ashes for longer.
Can ashes be turned into jewellery, glass or diamonds?
Yes. A small portion of cremated remains can be incorporated into glass pendants, resin pieces, or even synthetic diamonds via specialist services. Most ashes jewellery on the market is "self-fill" - pieces with a small inner chamber the family fills at home, which is more affordable.
Where to go from here
If you're ready to start looking, our collections are organised around the most common decisions:
- Adult cremation urns - for keeping ashes at home
- Keepsake urns - for dividing between family members
- Ashes jewellery - pendants, rings and bracelets
- Biodegradable urns - for burial, scattering or water release
- Urn size guide - to help you choose the right capacity
If you're not ready to choose yet, that's also fine. We're here when you are. Contact our team if you'd like to talk to a real person - no pressure, no script.
Last updated: 9 May 2026.
Urns For Angels is a family-run specialist supplier of cremation urns, ashes jewellery and pet memorials, with worldwide shipping. This guide is written to help families navigate the choices that follow a cremation; nothing in it constitutes legal advice. For specific questions about scattering, burying or transporting ashes, contact your local authority or funeral director.
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