Ordering a headstone for Portugal when you live abroad
There is a grave in Portugal that needs a new headstone, and you are in France, Switzerland, Luxembourg, the United Kingdom or Germany — with time off booked only for next summer.
You do not need to travel, and you pay nothing before seeing how the headstone will look. This page explains the whole process: how the grave is measured from a distance, how you approve the design from wherever you are, what each size costs and where we deliver.
- ✓ No payment before you approve the design
- ✓ The price of every size is shown on this page
- ✓ 5.0 across more than 30 Google reviews
Why a headstone is not bought like anything else
A headstone has a problem a piece of clothing does not: it has to fit a specific space that already exists, and that you cannot go and measure today. That is the knot — and it is why most of the questions that reach us from outside Portugal are about measurements, not about price.
The second difference is that the piece is engraved with a name. Once engraved, it is no use to anyone else. So we always work in the same order: first we settle the measurements, then we send the design for approval, and only after your yes is there payment and production. Never the other way round.
How the grave is measured from a distance
It is three measurements, and a tape measure is enough. Whoever goes to the cemetery needs to know nothing about headstones.
| What to measure | How | What it is for |
|---|---|---|
| Width | From one side to the other of the space where the plaque will rest | It is what sets the size |
| Height | From top to bottom of the same space | It is what sets the proportion of photo and text |
| What is already there | Old plaque, vase, lantern, flower box | Stops the new piece from not fitting |
What we ask of whoever goes to the cemetery
Photograph the grave with the tape measure stretched across it — one photo of the width and one of the height. With those two photographs we confirm the numbers you give us and catch mistakes before engraving. It is the simplest mechanism we know for avoiding surprises.
If you have family or someone you trust in Portugal
This is the most common case. A brother, a nephew, a neighbour — anyone takes these measurements in five minutes. Give them our WhatsApp and we explain directly what we need. You do not have to sit in the middle translating instructions.
If you have nobody who can go to the cemetery
Write to us saying which cemetery the grave is in and in which town. We will tell you frankly whether we can find someone to go and measure in that area — and if we cannot, we will say that too. We prefer that to promising what cannot be kept.
When nothing needs measuring
If the headstone is for an ossuary or for a plaque to add to an existing vault, the size is often standardised and a photograph of the space settles it. If the grave is in earth with nothing placed yet, the size is chosen by the space available and the amount of text. All three cases are explained in headstones for vaults and ossuaries and in headstones for cemeteries.
The ten sizes, with the price of each one
We publish the prices, and it is deliberate: someone far away cannot go asking for quotes door to door to compare. The amounts include VAT and the full engraving — colour photograph, name, dates and message.
| Shape | Size | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Retangular | 14×22 cm | 35 € |
| Retangular | 20×20 cm | 49 € |
| Retangular | 20×30 cm (folha A4) | 75 € |
| Coração | 25×25 cm | 75 € |
| Retangular | 30×20 cm | 90 € |
| Retangular | 24×32 cm | 100 € |
| Retangular | 32×24 cm | 120 € |
| Retangular | 30×40 cm | 130 € |
| Retangular | 40×30 cm | 150 € |
| Retangular | 53×33 cm (meio metro) | 230 € |
What the table does not include is transport: the cost of shipping changes with the destination and is stated in the quote. Tell us the size of the space and the delivery address, and you get the final figure, with nothing left unsaid.
Four steps, with your yes in the middle
Measurements and photograph
Three measurements and a photograph of the grave with the tape measure stretched across it. Whoever goes to the cemetery needs to know nothing about headstones.
Design to approve
We send the image of the complete design — photograph, name, dates and message — by WhatsApp or email. You can change anything, as many times as you need.
Payment after your yes
There is payment only once the design is approved. Nothing is engraved before that, and we ask for no deposit.
Production and delivery
7 to 14 working days from approval. Tracked shipping to the address you give us.
How you approve the design without being in Portugal
We send you an image of the complete design, with the photograph already placed, the name, the dates and the message exactly as they will be engraved. It arrives by WhatsApp or email, and you reply whenever you can, from whatever time zone you are in.
At that stage you can change everything: swap the photograph, correct a date, change the message, change the size. Many families forward the image between siblings in three countries before deciding, and that is normal — that is what it is for.
Nothing is engraved without that yes. Only after approval is there payment and production.
Two notes about the photograph
- Send the original photograph, not a copy that has been forwarded many times. Every forward through messaging apps takes away definition, and definition is what you see on the stone.
- If you only have the photograph on paper, photograph it head-on, in good natural light and with no shadow across it. That is perfectly enough.
If the photograph will not give enough sharpness, we say so — rather than engraving and letting the family find out afterwards. There are examples in headstones personalised with a photo.
Two requests that reach us often, and that are not a new headstone
Only the photograph is missing from the grave
The grave already exists, the name is there, and what is missing is the photograph — or a frame that has been damaged. In that case a new headstone is not made: a slate plaque with the photograph engraved is made, sized for the free space, to rest or be fixed beside what is already there.
Send a photograph of the grave as it is today and the measurement of the free space. We will tell you the size and the price.
Heart-shaped, 25×25 cm
It is one of the sizes most often asked for by name. It costs 75 €, with the same engraving as the rectangular ones: colour photograph, name, dates and message.
It sits well on small graves and in ossuaries, and it is the frequent choice for a child or for a second plaque beside the main one.
Where we deliver, and how you pay
To a relative in Portugal
This is the most used option. The piece travels tracked and the person only has to receive it.
To your address abroad
Tell us the country and the address, and the quote includes the cost and the time of transport there.
Collection at the workshop
Rua de João Maia 29, in Maia, Porto. If you are coming to Portugal on holiday, arrange it beforehand on WhatsApp and the piece will be waiting for you, finished.
Payment, always after approval
We ask for no deposit or advance. Payment by MB Way to 910 053 138, the same number as the WhatsApp — it works well for anyone who keeps a Portuguese account and number, which is the case for many people living abroad.
If you have neither MB Way nor a Portuguese mobile number, tell us before we approve the design and we will agree on the means of payment. It is not a matter to leave until the end.
Where we are, and how our work can be seen
It is the question we are asked most in writing, and the fairest of all when buying at a distance. The workshop is at Rua de João Maia 29, 4475-129 Maia, in Porto. It exists, it has a door onto the street, and you can walk in when you come to Portugal — arrange it beforehand on WhatsApp so someone is there to receive you.
- To see finished pieces: the gallery on the home page has photographs of real work, and the headstones personalised with a photo show what colour engraving looks like close up.
- To read from people who have bought: the Google reviews are public and do not pass through us.
- To know who we are: the about us page has the names and the faces of who answers and who engraves.
And before any payment you see the piece as an image, with the name and the photograph already in place. If something is not as you want it, it is changed right there.
And what if the measurement is wrong?
It is worth saying this plainly, because it is the real fear of anyone ordering from far away.
If the piece arrives different from the design you approved, or faulty, we correct or replace it at no cost. The risk of damage in transit is ours until the piece is delivered: send photographs and we sort it out.
If the piece arrives matching the approved design but the measurement we were given was wrong, the situation is different — the piece is engraved with a name and cannot be reused. That is precisely why we insist on the photograph with the tape measure before engraving: the check exists so that this case does not happen. If it happens anyway, we talk and see what can be done.
By law, personalised pieces carry no right of withdrawal — article 17 of Portuguese Decree-Law no. 24/2014 — and ours are all engraved to order. The full conditions are in order conditions.
Tell us the measurement and we will tell you the price
Fill in what you know. If you do not have the measurements yet, leave it blank and we will explain how they are taken — a person replies, not an automatic form. No payment before you approve the design.
How long it takes, counted from outside Portugal
Production and delivery in Portugal take 7 to 14 working days, and that period counts from the approval of the design — not from the date you write to us. To the production time you add transport to the delivery address, which depends on the destination and is stated in the quote.
The slow part is usually not ours: it is the family's decision. Between siblings in three countries, choosing the photograph and the message takes days. Anyone with a date in mind — a birthday, a mass, All Saints' Day — should allow for that time as well.
If the date in mind is All Saints' Day, talk to us as early as you can — in preparing the grave for All Saints' Day we explain how to get everything ready in time.
Shipping cost, customs, time zone and currency change from country to country
This page explains what is the same for everyone. Each of these five countries has its own page with what changes: whether there is customs to cross, the time difference and the currency you are thinking in.
Questions from people ordering from outside Portugal
Can I order a headstone for Portugal if I live in France?
Yes, and it is one of the most common requests that reach us. Everything is handled remotely: measurements and photograph by WhatsApp or email, design approved by you before we engrave, and delivery to the address you give — in Portugal or in the country where you live.
How is the grave measured if I cannot go to the cemetery?
It is three simple measurements — width, height and the space already taken up — that any relative takes with a tape measure in five minutes. We always ask for a photograph with the tape stretched across, so we can confirm the numbers before engraving. If you have nobody who can go, tell us which cemetery it is: we will tell you frankly whether we can find someone to go and measure in that area.
Do I have to pay before seeing the design?
No. We send the complete design first, with the photograph, the name, the dates and the message. There is payment only after you approve it, and nothing is engraved before that. We ask for no deposit or advance.
How do I pay if I have no account in Portugal?
We accept MB Way on the number 910 053 138, after the design is approved. If you have neither MB Way nor a Portuguese mobile number, tell us before we approve the design and we will agree on the means of payment — we do not leave that part until the end.
How long does production take?
7 to 14 working days from the approval of the design, not from the date of the order. To the production time you add transport to the delivery address, which depends on the destination and is stated in the quote.
Where can you deliver the headstone?
To a relative's address in Portugal, which is the most used option; to your address abroad; or you can collect it at the workshop, at Rua de João Maia 29, in Maia, when you come to Portugal — arranging it beforehand on WhatsApp. The shipping cost is in the quote, because it changes with the destination.
How much does a slate headstone cost?
From 35 € in the 14×22 cm size up to 230 € in the half-metre size, 53×33 cm, with ten sizes between those two. The amounts include VAT and the full engraving: colour photograph, name, dates and message. Shipping is stated in the quote.
Do you make heart-shaped headstones?
Yes. The 25×25 cm heart costs 75 €, with the same engraving as the rectangular sizes — colour photograph, name, dates and message. It is one of the sizes most often asked for by name.
I only need to add the photograph to a grave that already exists. Do you do that?
We do. In that case it is not a new headstone: it is a slate plaque with the photograph engraved, sized for the free space on the grave or the slab, to rest or be fixed beside what is already there. Send a photograph of the grave as it is today and the measurement of the free space, and we will tell you the size and the price.
Who places the headstone on the grave?
Slate plaques are made to rest on the grave or on the slab, without building work, and many families place them with nobody's help. Before choosing the size, check with the cemetery whether there are rules on dimensions and whether a placement permit is needed — it is requested from the parish council or the municipality the cemetery belongs to.
Can I return a personalised headstone?
Pieces engraved to order — name, dates, photograph and message — are not covered by the 14-day right of withdrawal, under article 17 of Portuguese Decree-Law no. 24/2014. That is why the design is always approved by you before we produce. If the piece arrives faulty or different from the approved design, we correct or replace it at no cost.
Start with whatever gives you the least trouble
If you already have the measurements and the photograph, the form on this page will do it. If you still have doubts — and most people do — write on WhatsApp, from any country and at any hour.