A community reference · preview · October 2026

Jewish Burial Guide
Chicagoland

Every documented Jewish cemetery within about 45 miles of Chicago, town by town, with what each has confirmed — the Jewish funeral homes that serve the area — and what to do in the first hours.

41cemeteries

23towns

2funeral homes

PREVIEW EDITION — this guide has not yet been printed or distributed. The print date and final edition will be confirmed when the community partnership is signed; the listings themselves are live at everjewish.com.

A starting point for a hard week, and a better one for a calm year. It does not rank or recommend. It says what is documented about each cemetery, what its office has confirmed directly, and what a family should still ask.

The live guide, kept current.
Scan to open it on your phone — every cemetery in this guide has its own code beside its listing.

EverJewish

An independent reference of Jewish cemeteries and funeral homes · everjewish.com

If you are holding this today

In the first hours there are two decisions that must be made today and many that can wait. The order below is the order that spares a family the most.

Call the Jewish funeral home first — not the cemetery.

The funeral home brings the deceased into their care, contacts the cemetery and the rabbi, arranges the chevra kadisha and a shomer, and knows what every office in this guide needs. If a hospital or hospice asks which funeral home, name a Jewish one; if the death was at home, the funeral home tells you whom to call.

Call your rabbi, or ask the funeral home to.

The rabbi guides the family through the day, leads the service, and answers the questions about custom and law that come up in the hours ahead. If the family has no rabbi, the funeral home and the Federation's chaplaincy can find one.

Decide where.

If there is a family plot or a synagogue cemetery, say so; the funeral home confirms the space is available. If not, the cemeteries in this guide marked as selling to the public or confirmed by their office are the place to start, and the funeral home will call the offices for you. Take the time the family needs to choose well; the funeral home and the rabbi will tell you what timing is possible.

Decide when.

Jewish tradition favors burial soon after death, and funerals are not held on Shabbat or festivals. Within that, the funeral home proposes a time once the cemetery and rabbi are confirmed, and the family's needs — people travelling, a rabbi's availability — shape it. Your rabbi will guide you on what is right for your family.

Let the rest wait.

The monument, the wording, the meal of consolation menu, the thank-you notes, the estate — none of it belongs to today. Ask one relative or friend to hold the list of what can wait, and to keep it away from the mourners.

Decide today

Which Jewish funeral home

Which cemetery, and that a space is confirmed

Who the rabbi is

The day and hour, once the cemetery confirms

Bring, or have at hand

The full Hebrew name of the deceased and of their parents, if known

Any deed, contract or letter about an existing plot

The name of the synagogue, if any

A photo ID for the person making arrangements

The names and phone numbers of the immediate family

Jewish tradition generally avoids autopsy and embalming. If a hospital raises either, ask your rabbi before deciding — hospitals accommodate the question when it is asked promptly, and a Jewish funeral home will know what to do.

The area 41 cemeteries · 23 towns · numbers match the listings

Map of the Jewish cemeteries and funeral homes in Chicagoland

Verified by the cemeteryConfirmed by the cemeteryDetailed listingBasic listingJewish funeral home

How to read the listings

Each cemetery carries one of four labels, the same words used on everjewish.com. They describe how much has been confirmed — never quality, and never a ranking. Verification cannot change what a page says about a cemetery; it only adds the cemetery's own confirmed details.

✓ Verified by the cemetery — identity verified; the cemetery keeps its own page current.

Confirmed by the cemetery — its office confirmed availability, contact and hours with EverJewish, free.

Detailed listing — compiled by EverJewish from the cemetery's own website.

Basic listing — location and phone on record; details not yet confirmed.

As of this edition, 41 of the 41 cemeteries in the area have not yet confirmed whether plots are available. Their offices can confirm details with EverJewish at no cost, and the next edition will show it. Families: always call the office before deciding.

Forest Park, IL · 1, 2, 3 · 2 mi

Chicago, IL · 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 · 3 mi

Broadview, IL · 13 · 4 mi

Norridge, IL · 14 · 5 mi

Hillside, IL · 15, 16 · 5 mi

Lincolnwood, IL · 17 · 8 mi

Skokie, IL · 18 · 11 mi

Evergreen Park, IL · 19 · 13 mi

Northbrook, IL · 20 · 16 mi

Arlington Heights, IL · 21, 22 · 16 mi

Blue Island, IL · 23 · 17 mi

Lisle, IL · 24 · 17 mi

Naperville, IL · 25 · 22 mi

Vernon Hills, IL · 26 · 25 mi

Hammond, IN · 27, 28 · 25 mi

Aurora, IL · 29 · 27 mi

Geneva, IL · 30 · 27 mi

Libertyville, IL · 31, 32 · 28 mi

Elgin, IL · 33 · 29 mi

Joliet, IL · 34, 35, 36 · 32 mi

Crystal Lake, IL · 37, 38, 39 · 36 mi

Portage, IN · 40 · 39 mi

Zion, IL · 41 · 39 mi

Cemeteries by town nearest to Chicago first

Forest Park, IL 2 mi from Chicago · 3 cemeteries

scan for the live page
& to ask the office

1Free Sons Cemetery Association

Basic listing — details not yet confirmed

1600 S Des Plaines Ave, Forest Park, IL 60130 · (708) 366-4541 · Standalone Jewish cemetery · Burial society · Waldheim Cemetery Company