United States Obituary Search
In the United States, start with recent newspaper and funeral-home notices when the death was recent, then move to digitized local newspapers for older searches. A city, state or county is often more useful than a precise death date because obituary coverage is local and no single national source contains every notice.
Editorial review: Obituary Search · Last reviewed September 15, 2026
Search these sourcesRecent obituaries and death notices
Start here when the death or publication was within the last 30 years.
GenealogyBank
PaidHistorical and modern United States newspaper obituaries, death notices and related family-history records.
- Coverage
- United States newspapers from 1690 onward
- Last reviewed
- September 15, 2026
Dignity Memorial
FreeObituaries and service information from a large network of funeral locations in the United States and Canada.
- Coverage
- Recent obituaries from participating funeral locations
- Last reviewed
- September 15, 2026
Legacy.com
FreeRecent newspaper and funeral-home obituaries from participating publishers and funeral providers.
- Coverage
- Primarily recent notices; coverage varies by publisher
- Last reviewed
- September 15, 2026
Historical newspapers and archives
Use place and a date range to narrow title-specific collections.
GenealogyBank
PaidHistorical and modern United States newspaper obituaries, death notices and related family-history records.
- Coverage
- United States newspapers from 1690 onward
- Last reviewed
- September 15, 2026
Newspapers.com
Paid or trialDigitized newspapers useful when a name, location and approximate publication date are known.
- Coverage
- Digitized newspapers; dates vary by title
- Last reviewed
- September 15, 2026
FamilySearch
Free accountHistorical obituary collections, civil records and family-history indexes from many countries.
- Coverage
- Historical collections; dates vary by collection
- Last reviewed
- September 15, 2026
Find a Grave
FreeCommunity-contributed cemetery memorials with burial details, photographs and short biographies from many countries.
- Coverage
- Worldwide memorials; dates and detail vary
- Last reviewed
- September 15, 2026
Search by region
Search the city and state together, then identify the newspapers serving that place at the time. County libraries, state archives and local genealogical societies may hold titles that national databases do not cover.
Free and paid access
Funeral-home notices and many current searches are free. Large newspaper archives often require a subscription or trial, while FamilySearch may require a free account.
If the name search fails
Try a married or maiden surname, initials, a nearby city, and a publication window several days after the death. If no obituary appears, look for a funeral-home notice, cemetery memorial or civil death index.