If you’ve lived in Washtenaw County for more than a minute, you know the local media landscape is... well, it’s complicated. People still talk about the "old" Ann Arbor News like it’s a lost relative. Honestly, it kind of is. When the daily paper stopped its 174-year print run back in 2009, it left a massive hole in how we keep track of our neighbors. Today, MLive obituaries Ann Arbor is the digital home for those records, but finding a specific notice or figuring out how to post one isn't always a straight line.
Life moves fast in a college town, but death has its own slow, heavy pace. Whether you’re trying to find a service time for a former U-M professor or tracing your family roots back to the old West Side, you’ve likely ended up on the MLive portal. It’s the primary database for the region, acting as a bridge between the physical legacy of the Ann Arbor News and the digital reality of 2026.
Why MLive Obituaries Ann Arbor Still Matters
Basically, the Ann Arbor News lives on as a brand under the MLive Media Group umbrella. Even though you only see a physical paper on your porch on Thursdays and Sundays, the obituary database is updated constantly. It’s not just a list of names. It’s a community archive.
You’ve got two main ways people interact with these records. Some are looking for someone who passed away this morning. Others are doing deep-dive genealogy. Because MLive partners with Legacy.com, the search functionality is actually pretty robust, but you have to know how to filter the noise.
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If you just search a name on Google, you might get a "scaper" site—one of those weird, AI-generated pages that tries to sell you flowers without giving you the actual service details. Stick to the official MLive portal to ensure you're getting the facts straight from the family or the funeral home.
Finding Recent Notices
Most people just want to know when the visitation is. To do this, you head to the "Southeast Michigan" section of the MLive obituary page. You can filter specifically by "The Ann Arbor News" to keep the results local.
It’s worth noting that "local" in Ann Arbor often spills over into Ypsilanti, Saline, and Dexter. If a name isn't popping up, try widening your search radius. Sometimes families choose to list a loved one in the Jackson Citizen Patriot or the Detroit Free Press if they had ties there, but MLive usually catches the bulk of Washtenaw's records.
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The Reality of Posting an Obituary in 2026
So, what happens if you’re the one who has to write it? It’s a stressful time, and the logistics don't make it easier.
To place an obituary in the Ann Arbor News/MLive, you’re usually looking at a starting cost of around $220. That’s for a basic text entry. If you want a photo—and most people do—or a longer story, that price climbs fast. It’s sort of a "pay-by-the-line" situation.
- Print vs. Online: When you pay for a notice, it automatically goes on MLive.com and Legacy.com. It stays online for a year, typically including a digital Guest Book where people can leave comments.
- The Print Schedule: Remember, the print edition isn't daily. If you want the notice in the physical paper, you have to time it for the Thursday or Sunday editions.
- The "Extras": They’ll offer you things like "Keepsake Plaques" or Facebook ads. Some people find these helpful; others see them as unnecessary upsells during a period of grief. You do you.
The "Ann Arbor News" Identity Crisis
There’s a bit of a misconception that the Ann Arbor News is gone. It’s not, but it’s essentially a digital-first publication now. In 2013, the site known as AnnArbor.com was folded back into the MLive brand. This is why when you look for MLive obituaries Ann Arbor, you’re looking at the historical continuation of that 1835-founded newspaper.
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If you are looking for something very old—like a Great-Aunt who passed in the 1950s—MLive’s search won't always be the best tool. For that, you actually want to visit the Ann Arbor District Library (AADL). They have a massive "Old News" digital archive that is a goldmine for local history.
Common Mistakes People Make
One thing people get wrong is the "deadline" for submissions. Because of the limited print schedule, if you miss the cutoff for the Sunday paper, you might be waiting until Thursday to see that name in ink. This can be a huge headache if the funeral is on Tuesday.
Always check with the funeral director first. Most local spots like Nie Family Funeral Home or Muehlig Funeral Chapel handle the MLive upload for you. They have direct portals and know the formatting requirements, which saves you the tech-support nightmare while you're mourning.
Actionable Steps for Navigating the System
If you need to find or place a notice right now, follow these steps to save time and money:
- Check the Source: Don't trust "Obituary-Database-Dot-Com" sites. Go directly to
obits.mlive.com/us/obituaries/annarborto ensure the info is verified. - Use the "Guest Book" Wisely: These are free to read, but they eventually get archived or require a fee to keep "open" indefinitely. If there are messages you want to keep, copy them into a Word doc or print them out sooner rather than later.
- Coordinate with the Funeral Home: Seriously, let them do the heavy lifting with the MLive submission. They often get slightly better rates or at least have the "template" ready to go so you don't get charged for weird spacing or formatting errors.
- Verification Check: If you're a researcher, cross-reference MLive with the Social Security Death Index (SSDI) if the person passed before the mid-2010s. It helps fill in the gaps that digital migrations sometimes create.
- Search Tip: Use quotes for specific names. Searching John Smith will give you thousands of hits. Searching "John Q. Smith" narrowed to Ann Arbor will save you twenty minutes of scrolling.
The transition from a daily local paper to a regional digital powerhouse hasn't been perfect. However, for those of us in the Ann Arbor area, MLive remains the most reliable way to say goodbye and keep the record of our community's lives intact.