Pallbearers: Meaning, Duties, How Many and What They Wear

A pallbearer is a person chosen to carry or escort the casket at a funeral. Six pallbearers is the usual number, though four to eight is common depending on the casket and the handles it has. The role is traditionally given to close family members and friends, and it is considered one of the highest honors a family can offer at a funeral service.

If you are arranging a service and working out who to ask, this guide covers what pallbearers actually do, how many you need, who to choose, what they wear, and where the word comes from. For the wider process, see our guide to planning a funeral.

What Is A Pallbearer?

A pallbearer is one of the people who carries the casket at a funeral. In practice that usually means three specific movements: carrying the casket from the hearse into the venue, leading the funeral procession out at the end of the service, and — if burial follows immediately — carrying the casket from the hearse to the graveside.

Pallbearers are not pallbearers for the whole service. They sit with everyone else and step forward only when the casket needs to be moved. The funeral director will normally walk them through the sequence beforehand, including how to lift, which side to stand on, and when to set the casket down.

Is It Pallbearer, Pall Bearer, Or Paul Bearer?

The correct spelling is pallbearer, one word. "Pall bearer" as two words is an accepted older variant and still appears in some funeral programs and obituaries, so it is not wrong, just less standard.

"Paul bearer" is a misspelling. It is an extremely common one, because the word is far more often heard than read — and because Paul Bearer was also the ring name of a well-known professional wrestling manager, which reinforced the spelling for a lot of people. If you are writing an order of service, use "pallbearer".

Why Is It Called A Pallbearer? The Origin Of The Word

The word comes from the pall — a heavy cloth, usually black, purple or white, draped over a casket during a funeral. The term traces back through Middle English to the Latin pallium, meaning a cloak or covering.

Originally the pallbearers were not the people carrying the casket at all. They were the mourners who walked alongside it holding the corners and edges of the pall in place, while the casket itself was carried by hired bearers or drawn on a bier. As the practice of draping a pall faded in many Western funerals, the two roles merged, and the name of the cloth-holders stayed with the people doing the carrying.

You will still see a true pall used today, particularly in Catholic, Anglican and Episcopal funerals, where a white pall is placed over the casket as a symbol of baptism.

How Is A Pallbearer's Role Different At An Open Casket Funeral?

At an open casket service the pallbearers usually have less to do at the start. The funeral home sets the casket in place before guests arrive and opens it for viewing, so there is no entry procession to carry.

The pallbearers' work comes afterward. Once the casket has been closed and sealed at the end of the viewing, they carry or escort it out of the venue and, if there is a burial, on to the graveside.

How Many Pallbearers Do You Need?

Six pallbearers is the standard number — three on each side. Four to eight is the normal working range.

What determines the number is the casket's handles. Most caskets have swing bar or stationary handles running along both sides, typically with three positions per side, which is where the figure of six comes from. Caskets with handles at the head and foot can take eight. A smaller or lighter casket, or a cremation casket, may only need four.

A few practical points worth knowing:

• An adult casket with a body inside commonly weighs somewhere between 300 and 500 pounds in total, so the number of bearers matters for safety, not just symmetry.
• Even numbers are strongly preferred so the weight balances across both sides.
• Honorary pallbearers are unlimited. You can name as many as you like.
• If you are short of people, funeral homes can usually supply staff to make up the numbers, and most caskets can also be moved on a church truck or bier for part of the route.

What Is An Honorary Pallbearer?

An honorary pallbearer is someone given the recognition of the role without the physical lifting. They walk in front of, behind, or beside the casket as part of the procession.

It is the natural solution for people who should be honored but cannot carry — elderly relatives, someone recovering from surgery, a friend who would find it too much on the day, or a person who lives far away and is only there for the service. Naming someone an honorary pallbearer carries no lesser status; in many families it is treated as the more significant of the two.

Honorary pallbearers are normally listed by name in the order of service alongside the acting pallbearers.

Who Should Be Chosen As A Pallbearer?

Pallbearers are usually adult children, grandchildren, siblings, nieces and nephews, close friends, or long-standing colleagues. There is no rule restricting who may serve — the next of kin decides.

Two things are worth checking before you ask anyone:

• Whether the deceased already chose. If they did any funeral pre-planning, there may already be a list, which spares you the decision entirely.
• Whether the person can physically manage it. Carrying a casket over grass, gravel, steps or uneven ground is more demanding than people expect. If there is any doubt, offer the honorary role instead.

Women serve as pallbearers routinely, and there is no tradition that excludes them. Children are generally not asked to be acting pallbearers, but are often named honorary ones.

How Do You Ask Someone To Be A Pallbearer?

Ask directly, in person or by phone, and ask early — ideally as soon as the service date is set, so people can arrange travel and time off.

Be explicit about what is involved: that there will be lifting, roughly how far, and whether the ground at the cemetery is uneven. Make it genuinely easy to decline, and offer the honorary role as an alternative in the same conversation so that saying no does not feel like a refusal of the whole honor. Most people say yes, and many find it meaningful to have been asked.

If coordinating this on top of everything else feels like too much, Titan Concierge provides funeral planning services that handle the logistics and scheduling so families can concentrate on the service itself.

What Do Pallbearers Wear?

Pallbearers wear dark, formal clothing — most often a black, navy or charcoal suit with a white or pale shirt and a conservative tie. The aim is to look consistent as a group, since they will be seen together and moving together.

The details that matter in practice:

• Match as a group. Agree on suit color beforehand. Identical is not necessary; visibly coordinated is.
• Shoes with grip and a flat sole. This is the single most practical piece of advice. Carrying weight across wet grass, gravel or steps in smooth-soled dress shoes is how accidents happen.
• Nothing that restricts movement. A jacket you cannot lift your arms in is a problem.
• Follow the family's wishes. Some services ask for a specific color, a particular tie, or the deceased's team colors. That instruction overrides convention.

Women serving as pallbearers typically wear a dark suit, or a dress or skirt with flat shoes — heels are impractical on grass.

Why Do Pallbearers Wear White Gloves?

White gloves served two purposes. The practical one was grip and protection: they kept skin oils and fingerprints off polished wood and metal casket surfaces, and gave a firmer hold on the handles. The symbolic one was purity and respect, part of the same formal tradition that produced the pall itself.

They are optional today and much less common at civilian funerals than they were a generation ago. Where you will still reliably see them is at military, police and firefighter funerals, where gloves are part of the honor guard's dress uniform and the ritual is followed precisely. If gloves are being used, the funeral home usually supplies them.

Are There Pallbearers At Memorial Services?

No. A memorial service is held without the body present, so there is no casket to carry and no pallbearers are needed.

Pallbearers are only involved where a casket is physically moved — at a funeral service with the casket present, or at a graveside service. Families sometimes still name honorary pallbearers at a memorial as a way of recognizing people, but the role is symbolic. At a cremation service with an urn present, one person usually carries the urn; that person is not called a pallbearer.

Pallbearer FAQs

Can a woman be a pallbearer?

Yes. There is no tradition or rule that prevents it, and it is entirely common. The only consideration is the same one that applies to anyone: whether the person is comfortable with the lifting.

Do pallbearers get paid?

No. It is an unpaid honor extended to family and friends. If a family does not have enough people available, funeral home staff can serve instead, and that is included in the funeral home's service fee rather than billed separately.

What if we cannot find six pallbearers?

Ask the funeral director. They can provide staff, and most venues have a wheeled church truck that carries the casket for the indoor portion, reducing the number of people needed to a handful at the graveside.

Where do pallbearers sit during the service?

Usually together, in a reserved row near the front, so they can move as a group without disturbing other mourners when it is time to carry.

Which end of the casket goes first?

The feet lead the way in and out for most Christian funerals, with one traditional exception: a member of the clergy is carried head first, facing the congregation. The funeral director will confirm the correct order for your service.

Do pallbearers need to be told what to do beforehand?

Yes, and they will be. The funeral director briefs the pallbearers before the service — where to stand, how to lift, the route, and the signal to move. No prior experience is required.

Titan Casket makes caskets and urns directly, with handle configurations suited to four, six or eight bearers, and Titan Concierge offers free funeral planning support for families working through arrangements for the first time.