Sung for someone we love.
Funeral hymns: twenty traditional choices, and when each one fits
Choosing hymns is one of the first decisions after a death, and often it falls to someone who hasn’t sung one in years. Here are twenty that people know, with a plain note on each. Every title links to the full words.
Updated November 5, 2026
The short answer
Most funerals have two or three hymns, spaced through the service. Choose ones that people already know, because a small group won’t carry an unfamiliar tune. Amazing Grace, It Is Well with My Soul and Abide with Me are three that nearly every American congregation can sing.
Set the hymns in your program
Choose your hymns and we will set the words in a finished program, ready to print.
Make a funeral programYou see the finished program first. It is $29 once, with no account.
For comfort
The hymn most Americans can sing without the book.
Written after the author lost his daughters at sea. Honest about grief.
Written near the end of its author’s life. Solemn, and very familiar.
Set to Finlandia. Strong, and very moving.
Simple and warm, for someone with a plain, steady faith.
Old-fashioned and tender, and known to older generations.
A gentle favorite, especially in the South.
Psalm 23, set to Crimond.
For thanksgiving and hope
Warm and joyful, for someone sure of their faith.
Steady and strong, with a tune that’s easy to sing.
Beloved across generations.
A hymn of pilgrimage, with a rousing tune.
Long, but a triumphant end to a service.
Gentle and well loved, and known to younger people too.
Bold, and especially fitting for Lutherans.
For a quiet ending
A traditional favorite at graveside services.
Simple and humble, and known to many.
For someone who loved the outdoors.
A familiar hymn of praise that lifts the room.
Solemn and steady.
For someone who served
The Navy Hymn, sung for those who served at sea.
Favorites that are still in copyright
Some well-loved songs are still in copyright, so their words can’t simply be printed. You can sing them, but the words need your church’s license or the rights holder’s permission. Our library doesn’t hold their words, and you can keep the title on your program.
- How Great Thou Art
- On Eagle’s Wings
- Here I Am, Lord
- In Christ Alone
- Great Is Thy Faithfulness
How to choose
- 1
Start with what they loved
A hymn from their wedding, their home church or their childhood is usually the right one.
- 2
Think about who is coming
A small gathering, or one with few churchgoers, needs tunes people know.
- 3
Ask about music
Ask the pastor or funeral home who can play, or whether a soloist would be better.
- 4
Check the length
You can leave out verses, which helps keep the service moving.
Once you have chosen, our funeral template shows where the hymns go in the service.
Set the hymns in your program
Choose your hymns and we will set the words in a finished program, ready to print.
Make a funeral programYou see the finished program first. It is $29 once, with no account.
Questions people ask
How many hymns should there be at a funeral?
Two is usual, and three is fine in a longer church service. Where time is short, one or two works better.
Can you have a funeral with no hymns?
Yes. Plenty of funerals have recorded music or none at all. If you are worried about thin singing, a soloist or a recording can help.
Can we print the words in the funeral program?
Every hymn on this list is public domain, so you can print the words freely. Modern songs need a license, or the rights holder’s permission.
What is the most popular funeral hymn?
There is no official count, but The Lord’s my shepherd and Abide with me are among the most familiar in Britain, and Amazing grace in America.