Funeral home software migration guide

Keep serving families while you change systems. Review a sample import, agree where each open case will be worked, and verify the records before choosing the final cutover date.

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What switching actually involves

Six things to prepare before you pick a go-live week
A day-by-day plan for week one
What carries over, and what is set up fresh
How to verify the import before you trust it
Who owns open cases and changes made during the move

We aim for a first live case in about a week. We confirm the schedule after reviewing your records, forms, and accounting setup. Migration support is included.

What to prepare before you switch

A little preparation makes migration smooth. Gather these before you start, and the rest of the move stays simple.

Export your current cases

Pull your existing cases and contacts from your current system or spreadsheets. A clean export of recent and open cases is the starting point for the import.

List your locations and staff

Note each location and who needs access. This lets us set up role-based permissions so the right people see the right cases from day one.

Gather your documents

Collect the packets, forms, and contracts you generate most often. These become your document templates so signed paperwork looks the way families expect.

Confirm your QuickBooks setup

Have your QuickBooks access ready. FuneralHQ syncs with QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop, and we connect the sync so invoices and payments flow without retyping.

Note your preneed contracts

If you carry preneed, gather those contracts so they come in ready to convert to at-need when the time comes, without re-entry.

Pick a go-live week

Choose a week that works for your team. We schedule the import review and training around it so your first live case lands when you are ready.

Agree the import scope before loading records

Review a representative export with our team. For each record group, write down what will become structured data, what will remain in an accessible archive, and what needs separate setup. This is a scoping checklist, not a promise that every source system exports every field.

Cases and people

Check original case references, names, contacts, dates, status and location. Record any renamed fields, duplicate contacts or source values that need review.

Signed documents and attachments

Open the original files and match them to the correct case. Recreating a form template does not by itself preserve an earlier signed agreement or its signature evidence.

Balances and payment history

Reconcile the open balance by case and in total. Confirm whether historical activity will appear as individual transactions, an opening balance or an archive; a matching total alone does not prove the same transaction history.

Preneed records

Check the contract reference, selected services, associated documents and funding references against the source. Agree what staff must review when the record becomes at-need.

Open tasks and service dates

List the responsible director, next deadline and supporting document for each open case. Decide which tasks must be recreated or checked before the team works in the new system.

Notes and history

Confirm the date range and types of history supplied by the old system. List anything missing or retained separately and prove that authorized staff can retrieve it.

Keep an untouched copy of the source export. Use a working copy for cleanup and record any transformation or omission in the agreed mapping. Review the sample and unresolved exceptions before expanding the import.

The week-one plan

This is an example schedule, with our help at each step. We confirm your dates after reviewing the export, forms, and accounting setup; complex records or connections may need more time.

01
Day 0: import review
We review your export and field mapping with you before loading records. You check a sample against the source so the right details reach the right fields.
02
Days 1 and 2: cases and contacts
Your open and recent cases are confirmed in FuneralHQ, with family and decedent details checked against your records.
03
Days 3 to 5: documents, payments, and QuickBooks
We set up your document templates and e-signatures, connect online payments, and link QuickBooks so invoices and payments sync.
04
Days 6 and 7: training and first live case
Your team is trained on the daily workflow, and you run your first live case end to end, from arrangement to signed documents and a recorded payment.

Review the import separately from the new setup

Confirm the exact records, years and locations in scope. The sample review determines what imports and what needs an archive or a separate setup step.

Review for import

Open and recent case fields in the approved mapping
Family, decedent and contact records in the source export
Services, merchandise and reconciled case balances
Preneed records and their agreed document scope

Set up fresh during onboarding

Document and packet templates for e-signature
Online payment configuration for card and ACH
The QuickBooks connection
Locations, staff, and role-based permissions

Keep one owner for every open case

Choose the handoff with your team before go-live. A migration schedule must account for services, payments and documents that continue arriving while records are being prepared.

01
Choose where active work lives
Either finish designated open cases in the old system or move a reviewed set at cutover. Keep a roster with the case reference, responsible director, next action and authoritative system. Confirm which approach your source access and agreed import scope support.
02
Capture changes after the first export
Log new payments, revised service dates, new documents and contact corrections. Agree who will transfer and verify those changes, and whether a final update import or checked manual entry is needed. Avoid two competing editable versions of the same case.
03
Approve the handoff and recovery path
Check open cases, document retrieval, balances, role and location access, and the workflow your staff will use. Name who can stop the cutover if a critical check fails. Agree where new activity will be recorded and reconciled while the issue is resolved.

Decide when old reminders, payment links, website publishing and accounting feeds will stop or change ownership, so both systems do not act on the same case. Do not cancel source access merely because an import job has finished; first verify the agreed records and archive.

Common questions

How long does migration take?

We aim for a first live case in about a week. We confirm the schedule after reviewing your records, forms, and accounting setup. Export quality, record volume, and connection requirements can change the timing; the sample import and your review come before go-live.

Will I lose any case history?

Review the source export and a sample with us before agreeing the scope. Check case fields, signed documents, attachments, notes and financial history separately, and document anything retained in an archive or requiring extra work. Verify retrieval before ending access to the old system; a completed import is not evidence that every historical item transferred.

Can I keep using QuickBooks?

Yes. FuneralHQ syncs with QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop, so invoices, payments, and customer records flow without retyping once the connection is set up.

What happens to preneed contracts?

Preneed contracts come in during migration and convert to at-need without re-entering the details when a family needs to move forward.

Plan your migration with us

In 20 minutes we map your current cases to FuneralHQ and outline your week-one plan, so you know exactly how the move will go.

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