With our scorching
summer bundle offers, you won’t have to compromise on quality to save money. Read on to find out more...
If you’re considering training to be a celebrant—but you’re
wondering: Should I become a funeral celebrant or a wedding celebrant? Or do
I train to do both? It’s a great question.
Unlike many celebrant training providers who cram everything together into one generic course, here at Celebrant Training School, we do things differently.
We offer separate, in-depth funeral and wedding celebrant training courses, each crafted with care to give you the proper skills, knowledge, and confidence to work professionally in that specific area.
But we also offer brilliant bundle offers for those who want extra coaching on marketing themselves and for those who want to train in both weddings and funerals, without having to compromise on content, skills development and quality of learning experience.
You might be surprised by just how much these two paths
share:
- You
work with a wide variety of people. No two families are the same. No
two couples are the same. Whether you’re creating a eulogy or telling a
love story, your job is to listen, understand, and adapt.
- Music,
ritual, and symbolism play a huge part. Whether it’s a personal poem
at a funeral or a unity candle at a wedding, celebrants use these elements
to create meaningful, moving moments.
- Presence
and voice matter. You’ll need to command the space, connect with the
audience, and lead with confidence and warmth—whether it’s a joyful
wedding or a more solemn funeral.
- You’re
crafting emotional journeys. The best ceremonies take people through a
range of emotions—tears, smiles, laughter, reflection.
- You
use storytelling to celebrate life. That might be a couple’s love
story, or a person’s life story. Either way, your words help others feel
seen, remembered, and celebrated.
If that all sounds like your kind of thing, you’re in the
right place.
While the role of a celebrant shares a common foundation,
the day-to-day realities can be quite different.
1. Tone and emotion
Weddings:
Joyful, uplifting, full of celebration.
Funerals:
Often sad, but with glimmers of humour and light.
2. Marketing and how you get bookings
Funeral
celebrants are booked by funeral directors and arrangers. You don’t
need a flashy website. You do need to build trust locally.
Wedding
celebrants are booked directly by couples. That means your website,
social media, reviews, and listings all matter a lot. You’re selling you.
→ Watch
this video on how celebrants get booked.
3. How clients share information
Bereaved
families may be reserved. Your job is to gently ask the right questions
and listen carefully.
Couples
can be the opposite—they often overshare! It’s your job to shape all that
detail into a beautiful, focused love story that hits the right tone.
4. Planning support
For
funerals, most of the logistics are handled by the funeral director.
For
weddings, you’re often guiding the couple through every step
yourself—especially if there’s no wedding planner involved.
5. Venues and logistics
Funeral
celebrants usually work locally in a familiar set of venues
(crematoria, chapels, cemeteries).
Wedding
celebrants could find themselves anywhere—from a rustic barn in
Yorkshire to a beach in Greece. Planning ahead is essential—especially
when you haven’t seen the venue until an hour before the ceremony starts!
Many of our trainees start with funeral celebrancy and then
add weddings later. Here’s why combining both just works:
1. Different peak seasons = steady work all year Winter:
busier for funerals
Summer:
peak for weddings
This natural flow helps you plan your calendar and smooth
out income dips.
2. Varying speed of business developmentFuneral bookings can happen fast by building relationships with local funeral directors, and you could be taking your
first funeral in weeks.
Weddings, in contrast, take longer: SEO, your website, and social media presence need time to
grow.
Watch a video about how long it takes to become a celebrant here. 3. Different cash flow realitiesCash flow is different too. With funerals, you’ll usually get paid 3–4 weeks after getting booked, often immediately you deliver the service. For weddings, you will get a 50% booking fee, but final payment often isn’t due until
2 months before the big day—even if they book you 18 months in advance.
4. Different Celebrant Fees
Funeral
celebrants typically earn £250–£275 per funeral service.
Wedding
celebrants can charge £500–£1000+ per ceremony.
Read more about how much a celebrant can expect to earn here. 5. You train when it suits you
Our funeral celebrant course and wedding celebrant
course are separate and are both online, flexible, and modular. You can train in either
area—or both—at your own pace. There are no start dates, deadlines, or expiry
periods.
And with our bundle offers, you save money and
gain the freedom to choose the right time and order to complete your training. Some people train to be a funeral celebrant one year and only start wedding celebrancy training a year later. Its up to you!