Compare RealLife Insurance Prices

You need enough coverage to replace the income your family depends on and to cover what you owe and what you want to provide, after subtracting what they would already have. If you have no dependents and enough money to cover your final expenses, the Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I) says you may not need any life insurance at all.

A common shortcut is a multiple of your salary, such as 20 times your pay. Triple-I points out that this ignores inflation and other sources of income, so it can miss in either direction. Income-based math like the DIME method below is more useful because it uses your own numbers.

Do not forget income that does not show up on a pay stub. Triple-I notes that replacing just your employer's health insurance subsidy and retirement match could equal $2,000 a month or more. Social Security survivors benefits can help, but they rarely cover everything.

DIME is a four-part rule of thumb: Debt, Income, Mortgage and Education. You add the four, then subtract the savings and coverage you already have, and the result is the amount of life insurance to look at.

• Debt: car loans, credit cards, student loans and other balances apart from your mortgage.
• Income: your yearly income times the number of years your family would need it replaced.
• Mortgage: what you still owe on your home.
• Education: the college costs you want to cover for your children.

Two cautions. Triple-I advises against counting on life insurance that comes with a job, since you might leave or lose the job. DIME also leaves out final expenses and inflation, so add a cushion for both.

The calculator above has a quick estimate that does this math for you. Under the term tab, open Not sure how much? Quick estimate, then fill in your yearly income, the years to replace it, your mortgage and debts (put final expenses here too), college costs, and the savings and coverage you already have. It shows the total and suggests the listed coverage amount that covers it.

Replace your income for as long as your family would need it, which is usually until your youngest child is independent or until your spouse could be financially secure on their own. The quick estimate above starts at 10 years, and you can change it.

Think about what your family would actually need, not your gross pay. Subtract the costs that stop when you are gone, add the costs of replacing what you do around the house, and remember that prices rise every year. A short payoff period can be fine when a spouse earns well, and a longer one fits a single-income household.

The calculator above looks up each carrier's published rate table for the answers you give and lists the prices side by side. There is no email, no phone number and no Social Security number to enter.

1. Pick term or final expense. Term covers a set number of years. Final expense is a small permanent policy for funeral and last bills.
2. Enter your age, sex and tobacco use. Term prices cover ages 18 to 80. Final expense covers ages 40 to 85.
3. Choose an amount and, for term, a length. Term amounts run from $100,000 to $2,000,000 and lengths from 10 to 30 years. Final expense amounts run from $5,000 to $40,000.
4. Compare the prices. Each row shows the carrier, the plan, the monthly price and the carrier's A.M. Best financial strength rating where available.

Term prices use each carrier's regular (standard) rate class. If you are in great health, your real price can come in lower, and health issues can raise it. The prices are estimates, not an offer, because your final price depends on underwriting.

Five things drive the price of term life insurance: your age, your health, tobacco use, the coverage amount and the length of the term. The calculator above lets you change each one and see the price move.

Level term premiums are designed to stay the same for the whole term. The Texas Department of Insurance notes they go up if you renew at the end, because the new price is based on your age at that point. That is why many people pick a term that runs until the mortgage is paid or the children are grown.

The older you are when you buy, the more life insurance costs, because the insurer sets your price from your age at purchase and the chance of a claim rises as you get older. Buying while you are younger and healthy generally locks in a lower level price for the whole term.

To see it for yourself, change the age in the calculator above and watch the prices. Term tables stop at age 80 and final expense starts at age 40, so if you are outside one range the calculator will point you to the other product. We do not quote typical prices by age here because they change with carriers and health.

The calculator above prices level term, where the death benefit stays the same. Decreasing term is a policy whose death benefit shrinks over the term, and it is sometimes used to match a loan balance that falls as you repay it.

Triple-I says nearly everyone buys level term today. If you want coverage that tracks a shrinking debt, ask an agent for a decreasing term quote through our contact page, and compare it against a level policy of the same length.

Start with your funeral estimate, add any bills or debts you want covered, and subtract what you have set aside. The National Funeral Directors Association reported in 2023 that the median cost of a funeral with viewing and burial was $8,300, and with cremation $6,280. Those figures leave out cemetery costs, monuments and cash-advance items like flowers, so real bills can run higher.

Triple-I suggests planning for at least $15,000 for funeral costs and the expense of settling an estate. The calculator above offers final expense amounts from $5,000 to $40,000, and that kind of policy lasts for life, with a price that does not go up.

• Immediate: the full benefit from day one, for people who answer the health questions favorably.
• Graded: a smaller benefit for the first two years.
• Guaranteed: no health questions, with a waiting period, for ages 50 to 80.

Insurers use your height and weight to help set your price class, and every carrier has its own height and weight chart, so the same BMI can price differently at different carriers. BMI is your weight in pounds divided by your height in inches squared, times 703.

The CDC groups adult BMI like this: under 18.5 is underweight, 18.5 to 24.9 is a healthy weight, 25 to 29.9 is overweight, and 30 or more is obesity, which is split into class 1 (30 to 34.9), class 2 (35 to 39.9) and class 3 (40 or more). The CDC also notes BMI cannot tell fat from muscle, so very muscular people can score high.

The BMI tab above shows your number and a general guide to price classes. As a rule, a BMI from 18.5 to 29.9 often fits the best classes, 30 to 39.9 is often a standard class where carriers differ the most, and at 40 and up, simplified or guaranteed plans with no medical exam can be an option. A licensed agent can check carrier charts and shop the best fit.

A licensed agent confirms your exact rate by reviewing your health history, and the carrier completes underwriting. This can include health questions, a phone interview or a medical exam, depending on the policy. Your final price can be higher or lower than the estimate, and approval is not guaranteed.

When you are ready, use the book button in the calculator or our contact page. An agent will compare carriers for your health and budget and explain the policy before you decide.