What is the first thing to do when someone dies?

Get a legal pronouncement of death. If the person was in hospice or a care facility, staff handle it; in a hospital, the medical team does. If someone dies at home unexpectedly, call 911. Nothing else — notifications or arrangements — can proceed until the death is formally pronounced and documented.

How long do you have to arrange a funeral after a death?

There is no single legal deadline, but the body must be kept properly (refrigerated or embalmed) while you decide, and some faiths call for burial within a day or two. You generally have several days — enough time to compare providers and prices rather than deciding under pressure.

Do I have to use the first funeral home involved?

No. If a hospital or hospice transfers the body to a funeral home, you are not obligated to use that home for the funeral or cremation. You can have the body moved to a provider you choose, and under the FTC Funeral Rule you are entitled to compare itemized prices first.

What to do when someone dies: a step-by-step guide

By Karl-Gustav Kallasmaa

Published July 2026 · 10 min read

The practical steps in the first hours, days, and weeks after a death — getting the legal pronouncement, caring for the body, notifying who matters, and starting arrangements without being rushed into spending.

Where to start

Losing someone is disorienting, and the to-do list can feel impossible. It helps to know that very little has to happen immediately. After the death is formally pronounced and the body is cared for, almost everything else — the service, the paperwork, the accounts — can wait days or weeks. This guide breaks it into the first hours, the first week, and the first month.

You are allowed to slow down

Except for the legal pronouncement and safe care of the body, there is rarely a real rush. Taking a day to breathe and compare options is normal — and usually saves money and regret.

The first few hours

In the first hours, only a few things truly matter:

Get a legal pronouncement of death. In a hospital, hospice, or care facility, staff do this. If someone dies at home while on hospice, call the hospice line — not 911. If a death at home is unexpected, call 911.
Arrange care of the body. Once pronounced, the body is transferred into refrigeration or to a funeral home. You do not have to use the first funeral home involved, and you can ask for the body to be held while you decide.
Tell the closest people. Reach immediate family and a few people who can help — you do not have to notify everyone now.
Secure the home and dependents.See to any children, dependents, or pets, and lock up the person's home if it is now empty.

If the person was an organ or body donor

Organ donation is time-sensitive and usually initiated by hospital staff. If the person registered for whole-body donation, contact that program quickly — acceptance often must happen within a short window.

The first week

Over the next several days, you begin arrangements and formal notifications:

Find any final wishes — a will, a preneed plan, or written instructions about burial or cremation.
Choose a funeral home or cremation provider. Under the FTC Funeral Rule, you can request itemized price lists and compare before committing.
Decide on disposition — burial, cremation, or another option — and the kind of service, if any.
Order death certificates(get about ten certified copies; you'll need them for banks, insurance, and benefits).
Write and publish an obituary if you want one.
Notify the person's employer, and begin telling wider friends and family.

Order extra death certificates

Almost every account, insurer, and government agency wants a certified copy. Ordering ten at once through the funeral home is far easier than requesting more later, one at a time.

The first weeks and months

The first weeks and months are about settling affairs. None of this is urgent in the first days — see our guide to paperwork after a death for the detail:

Notify Social Security (the funeral home often reports the death; a surviving spouse or child may claim the $255 death benefit and survivor benefits).
Contact life insurance companies and the person's bank(s).
Reach the executor or start probate if there is an estate.
Cancel or transfer accounts, subscriptions, and benefits; notify the credit bureaus to prevent identity theft.
Look after yourself — grief support and time matter as much as the checklist.

Take your time — and your rights

Grief makes people easy to upsell. Two protections are worth remembering. First, the FTC Funeral Rule gives you the right to an itemized General Price List, to buy only what you want, and to decline package deals — including using a casket or urn bought elsewhere. Second, you are never obligated to use the first funeral home the body was taken to.

If you want a simple, printable version of these steps, Calla's funeral planning checklist walks through them in order.