Memorial commissions are the work I am most reluctant to write about. The families pay carefully, the deadlines are emotional, and the pricing conversation is one most of us in this trade have learned to handle awkwardly. Twenty years in, I have settled on numbers and a process that I am willing to share.

What I charge

A traditional inscribed headstone in standard granite or sandstone, with one name, dates, and a short inscription, runs around $3,800 to $5,200 depending on stone selection and finish. A more elaborate piece with relief carving, a portrait medallion, or a non-standard shape ranges from $7,500 to $18,000.

These are 2026 numbers in Australian dollars. They are higher than they were five years ago by about 30%, which tracks the stone supply, labour, and insurance inflation that has hit this work.

How the conversation starts

I never quote on the first meeting. The first conversation is about the person who has died, what the family wants the marker to express, and what restrictions the cemetery has in place. Cemetery restrictions are real and limit options more than families expect.

I usually deliver a quote within a week, in writing, with a few drawn options at different price points. Families need to see what the differences buy them.

The mistakes I try not to make

Quoting too low to win the work. The work takes the time it takes. Discounting it short-changes the work and disrespects the family by producing something rushed.

Quoting too high because the family looks like they can pay. Memorial work is one place I think pricing should be relatively flat across families. If I charge a wealthy family double, I am taking advantage of grief.

Promising completion timelines I cannot reliably meet. Stone delivery times, weather, and the unpredictability of detailed work all stretch schedules. I add buffer.

How other carvers price

I have an informal network of about a dozen working carvers across the eastern states. Our pricing is broadly consistent within 15% of each other for comparable work. The biggest variation comes from stone sourcing, which has become harder to forecast in the last two years.

The discount carvers operating below the band I have described are doing one of three things. Subcontracting to overseas finishing shops. Using engineered stone composites instead of natural stone. Or losing money. None of these are sustainable.

A note on the family conversation

The most important thing I have learned is to give families options at different price points and let them choose. Telling a family what they should spend on a memorial is presumptuous. Showing them what their budget can produce, and what a bigger budget can produce, lets them make a decision they can live with.