Families often hear three names for what is, at heart, one decision: how the memorial sits on the grave. An upright headstone, a flat marker, and a slant marker are three forms of the same purpose. This page compares them together. You do not need a separate article for each.
An upright headstone is the standing monument most people picture. The tablet, called the die, rises from a base. It gives the name, the dates, and any emblem the most room, and it can be read from a short distance. It needs a lot that allows a standing stone, and it needs a foundation sized for that height and weight. Companion uprights are wider so two names can share one stone.
A flat marker lies flush with the ground, or nearly so. Grounds crews can mow over it, which is why many cemeteries require flat markers in some sections. The inscription is read from above. The face is smaller than an upright, so the lettering is usually limited to the name, the dates, and a short line. Flat markers are still granite, still lettered, and still meant to last. They are not a lesser memorial. They are the form that lot allows.
A slant marker sits on a low base with the face tilted toward the reader. It is easier to read than a flat marker without rising as tall as an upright. Cemeteries that limit height sometimes allow a slant where they will not allow a standing headstone. The inscription area is larger than a typical flat marker and smaller than a tall upright.
Start with the cemetery, not with a catalog photo. Ask what your section allows: upright, slant, flat, or more than one of those. Ask the maximum width, height, and thickness for that lot, and whether a companion stone is permitted. A beautiful upright that the cemetery will not accept is not a choice. It is a delay.
After the rules are clear, choose by how the family will visit. A standing stone carries a name across the lawn. A flat marker stays quiet in the grass. A slant meets you at a lower line of sight. The words, the granite color, and any emblem come after the form is allowed. Personalize that form on this site and look at the inscription on the stone before you order.