What Goes in a Funeral Program (With Layout Guidance)

The sections every program needs, the order they go in, and the layout and printing decisions that keep the day running smoothly.

The funeral program is a modest document with three quiet jobs. During the service, it tells guests what happens next — when to stand, which hymn is coming, who is speaking. Afterward, it becomes the keepsake most people actually save; decades later, a program tucked in a Bible or a drawer is often the only printed record of the day. And for the family, assembling it is a gentle forcing function: once the program is written, the service is essentially planned.

Here is everything that belongs in one, in the order readers expect to find it.

The sections, in order

1. The cover

Keep the cover to five elements, and resist adding a sixth:

• A phrase: In Loving Memory of, Celebrating the Life of, or A Service of Remembrance for
• The full name — including a nickname in quotes if that is how everyone knew them ("Margaret 'Peggy' Anne Whitfield")
• Birth and death dates, often styled as Sunrise and Sunset in some traditions
• One good photograph — more on choosing it below
• Date, time, and location of the service

Choose a photo where the person looks like themselves at their best-known age, facing the camera, in decent light. A slightly older, genuinely warm photo beats a recent, stiff one every time. Crop tight enough that the face carries the cover.

2. The order of service

This is the working heart of the program: a simple sequenced list of what happens, with names attached. A typical order looks like this:

• Prelude / gathering music
• Processional
• Welcome and opening words — Rev. or celebrant's name
• Hymn or song — title and, if guests sing, the number or full lyrics
• First reading — reader's name and their relationship ("read by James Okafor, grandson")
• Eulogy — speaker's name
• Open remembrances, if invited
• Second reading or musical reflection
• Closing words and benediction
• Recessional
• Committal or interment details, if guests are invited to follow

Naming each participant matters twice over: it lets guests follow along, and it honors the people serving. If the sequence itself is still unsettled, our guide to the funeral order of service walks through building it element by element.

3. The obituary or life summary

A condensed life story — usually 150 to 300 words — covering birth, family, work, passions, and the people left behind. If you have already written an obituary, trim it to fit rather than writing something new; if you are starting from scratch, our guide to the difference between an obituary and a eulogy explains what belongs in this short written form versus what should be saved for the spoken tribute.

4. Hymn lyrics, readings, and prayers

Print in full anything guests will say or sing together: hymn verses, a responsive reading, the Lord's Prayer or its equivalent in your tradition. Guests who don't know the words otherwise spend the moment anxious instead of present. Readings performed to the congregation need only a title and reader credit — though printing a beloved poem in full turns the program into a better keepsake.

5. Participants and pallbearers

A short honor roll: officiant, eulogist, readers, musicians, pallbearers (traditionally six), and honorary pallbearers — a lovely way to include elderly friends or grandchildren who won't carry the casket but should be named. List relationships where they aren't obvious.

6. Photos, a favorite quote, or a timeline

Optional, and lovely when there's room. A small collage of three to six photos across the years, a line the person always said, the verse they lived by, or a brief timeline of milestones. One well-chosen page of this outweighs four crowded ones.

7. Acknowledgments

A short paragraph of thanks from the family, usually on the back page:

The family of Margaret Whitfield thanks you for your presence today and for every kindness shown during her illness and since her passing. Your love has carried us.

This printed thank-you covers the whole congregation; individual notes still go later to people who gave flowers, food, donations, or particular help — our guide to funeral thank-you notes has wording for each situation.

8. The back cover

Practical details and a gentle close: reception address and time, interment location, livestream link, memorial donation preferences ("In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to…"), and often a short farewell verse or the person's own words.

Layout guidance

Choose the format first

• Single-fold (bifold) letter sheet — one 8.5×11" page folded once, giving four 5.5×8.5" panels. The standard. Fits a cover, a two-panel interior (order of service plus life summary), and a back page. Right for most services.
• Two sheets folded together (8 panels) — room for full hymn lyrics, more photos, and a longer obituary. Staple on the fold ("saddle stitch") or leave nested.
• Trifold letter sheet — six slim panels; feels more like a leaflet. Works for brief graveside or memorial gatherings.
• Single flat card — order of service on one side, photo and dates on the other. Elegant for very simple services.

Count your content before choosing: full hymn lyrics are the usual reason four panels become eight.

Type and spacing rules that always work

• One serif typeface (Georgia, Garamond, Times) for everything, with bold and italic for contrast — decorative script fonts belong on the cover phrase at most, never in body text.
• Body text at 11–12 pt; many guests will be older, and a dim chapel is no place for 9 pt type.
• Margins of at least half an inch; let the pages breathe. White space reads as calm, and calm is the goal.
• Align the order of service consistently — element on the left, name on the right, or simply stacked and centered. Pick one pattern and keep it.
• Proofread names, dates, and hymn numbers out loud with a second person. A misspelled grandchild's name is the error families remember.

Printing tips

• Paper: 28–32 lb text or 65 lb cover stock feels substantial without jamming home printers. Ordinary 20 lb copy paper reads as flimsy in the hand; cream or soft-white stock is warmer than bright white.
• Quantity: print for your RSVP count plus 20 percent, and never fewer than 50. Extras go to relatives who couldn't attend, and into the memory box.
• Color vs. black and white: if budget forces a choice, print the cover photo panel in color and the interior in black and white — or print all mono on good cream stock, which looks intentional rather than economical.
• Timing: finalize the file 48 hours before the service. Print shops (including office-supply and online same-day services) can turn folded programs around in a day, but same-morning printing is how typos survive.
• Home printing: entirely respectable for under ~75 copies. Print one full test copy, check the fold alignment and double-sided orientation, then run the batch. Fold with a ruler or bone folder for crisp creases.
• Do a "stranger test": hand the draft to someone outside the family and ask them to find the reception address and the second hymn. If they hesitate, adjust.

Who should build it

Assign the program to one person — usually whoever is coordinating the service content — but have them gather names, readings, and the photo from the wider family early, since chasing a middle name on printing day is nobody's favorite errand. Families working in the NancyWell family planner build the program alongside the guest list and memorial page, so the order of service, participant names, and reception details stay consistent everywhere they appear instead of drifting across three documents.

However you build it, remember what the program is for. It is not a design contest. It is a steady hand on the guest's shoulder for one hour, and a small paper memory afterward. If it tells people what's happening, names the people who loved them enough to serve, and sends everyone home with a good photograph and a word of thanks — it has done everything a program can do.