Loss comes with a hefty price tag. Here’s how to help families prepare.
We often talk about financial health in terms of the expected: saving for retirement, paying down debt, funding education. But there’s a massive gap in the conversation. One of the most common, costly, and underprepared-for life events all families experience: the financial toll of settling affairs after a death.
This is the reality revealed in The Grief Tax: Empathy’s 2025 Research Report. After a death, families begin making urgent financial decisions under stress, often without a roadmap. Many face immediate out-of-pocket costs they didn’t anticipate and can’t easily cover on top of the daily bills that don’t pause for loss.
When loss becomes a financial emergency
Our research shows that the average post-loss cost is $12,500. But the median U.S. savings account holds just $8,000. That’s a $4,500 shortfall that families are left scrambling to fill.
More than 200,000 Americans turned to crowdfunding last year alone, raising over $580 million on GoFundMe to cover funeral and end-of-life costs.
This is the Grief Tax in action: a financial burden that compounds emotional stress and can leave families vulnerable for years.
The Grief Tax may be inevitable—but it’s reducible
The multi-faceted, layered costs of loss will never disappear entirely. But the scale of the burden can be reduced when families have the right planning tools, document organization, and guidance in place long before the moment of need. Resources that are personal, secure, and easy to navigate can change the experience entirely, turning what could be chaos into clarity.
For insurers, wealth advisors, and financial partners, this represents a real opportunity to show up differently for families in the moments that matter most.
We break down these insights and the financial choices families are forced to make in our latest infographic:
➡️ Download: “The Financial Reality of the Grief Tax”
And for the full research, explore The Grief Tax: Empathy’s 2025 Research Report.