What Is Human Composting, and Where Is It Legal?

Detailed Explanation

Human composting is one of the newer ways of caring for a body after death. It's often described as an alternative for people who don't want cremation's energy use or the land and materials of a conventional burial. The law generally calls it natural organic reduction; Washington State defines it as "the contained, accelerated conversion of human remains to soil". Some providers market it under names such as terramation or recomposition. For how it compares with the other lower-impact choices, see what makes a funeral environmentally friendly.

How the process works

The details vary by provider, but the broad steps are similar:

1. The body is prepared. It isn't embalmed, and the provider will ask about medical devices and anything else that won't break down. Metal such as joint replacements is typically screened out at the end.
2. It's placed in a closed vessel with plant material, commonly wood chips, alfalfa and straw.
3. Microbes break everything down. The provider manages air, moisture and temperature so the process stays controlled and odour-free. Providers typically describe this stage as taking around 30 to 60 days, followed by a further period of curing.
4. The family receives soil. Providers commonly describe the result as around a cubic metre (about a cubic yard) of soil, far more than the volume of ashes after a cremation.

A funeral or memorial service can happen before or after, just as with burial or cremation. Many families hold a gathering when the soil is returned or used, for example at a memorial tree planting.

Where it's legal

Human composting is only lawful where legislation specifically allows it. Most places have no law on it at all, so providers can't operate there. The position is changing quickly, so treat the summary below as a starting point and check the current law where the death happens.

• United States. Funeral law is set state by state. Washington was first: its law was signed in May 2019 and took effect on 1 May 2020, and it now lists natural organic reduction alongside burial, cremation and alkaline hydrolysis as a permitted method of disposition. Colorado followed in 2021 and New York in 2022, and a growing number of other states have since passed their own laws. California approved it in 2022, but its licensing rules only become operative on 1 January 2027. Rules differ between states on licensing, who may operate a facility and what may be done with the soil.
• United Kingdom. It isn't currently offered. The Law Commission of England and Wales describes new methods such as human composting and alkaline hydrolysis as unregulated there, and is working on a possible legal framework as part of a wider review of burial and cremation law. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own funeral laws, and as of 2026 human composting isn't offered there either.
• Australia. As of 2026 it isn't legal in any state or territory, although proposals to change this have been raised. See the Australian page below for where things stand.

Elsewhere, availability is very limited. A handful of other countries have seen pilots or proposals, but in most of the world it isn't an option yet.

How it compares with other choices

Human composting is often weighed against cremation, water cremation and natural burial:

• Flame cremation is available almost everywhere and produces ashes within hours. See how cremation works.
• Water cremation (alkaline hydrolysis) uses water and alkali instead of flame. It's legal in more places than composting but still not everywhere. See what is water cremation.
• Natural burial needs no special law in many places and returns the body to the earth directly, in a grave. See what is a natural burial.

If human composting isn't available where you live, natural burial is often the closest option in practice, because it also ends with the body becoming part of the soil.

Prices vary a lot by provider and state, so compare written quotes. In the US, a provider covered by the FTC Funeral Rule must give itemised prices on request. Whatever a family chooses, some also create an online memorial so relatives who couldn't be there can share stories and photos.

How it works where you are

• In Australia: is human composting legal in Australia?, covering the current legal position and the options available instead.

Things to Consider

• Check the law where the death is likely to happen. A method being legal in one state or country doesn't make it available anywhere else.
• Write the wish down and tell people. Because it's new and not widely offered, family members may not know it's what the person wanted. Put it in a funeral wishes document and name a provider if possible.
• Allow for the timeline. The soil isn't ready for several weeks, and sometimes a few months, so plan any gathering around when it will be returned.
• Think about the soil. Decide early whether the family will keep, use or donate it. The amount is much larger than a container of ashes.
• Have a back-up plan. If the person dies somewhere composting isn't possible, decide in advance whether natural burial, water cremation or cremation would be their second choice.

Common Mistakes

• Assuming it's legal because it's in the news. Coverage of a bill or an overseas provider doesn't mean the practice is available locally.
• Treating a law's passage as its start date. Some laws take years to become operative. California's, for example, was approved in 2022 but its licensing rules start in 2027.
• Leaving the decision to the family at the last minute. Without clear written wishes, relatives under time pressure may default to burial or cremation.
• Not asking what the price includes. Transport, the vessel process, soil delivery and any service can be priced separately.