This article offers information to help you understand what you might pay for life insurance based on age, sex, health, and more.

If you are shopping for life insurance, dozens of companies, terms, and coverage amounts are available, and price will undoubtedly influence your decision. To provide a snapshot, we compared average rates for men and women at different ages and health levels across multiple coverage options.

How Much Does Life Insurance Cost?

The average cost of life insurance is $26 per month. This price is based on data from policygenius.com for a 40-year-old buying a 20-year, $500,000 term policy, the most commonly sold term and amount. However, rates can vary dramatically among applicants, insurers, and policy types.

How Are Life Insurance Rates Determined?

Premiums are based primarily on life expectancy. Generally, the younger and healthier you are, the lower your premiums.

Insurers typically classify applicants using terms such as super preferred, preferred and standard , with "super preferred" being the healthiest category. They then calculate premiums based on your risk class.

Each insurer has its own evaluation process, known as 'life insurance underwriting ,' and weighs factors differently. That is why comparing quotes from several insurers is worthwhile.

These are the main factors insurers evaluate when setting your rate:

• Your age. Younger people generally pay less. As you age, your life expectancy decreases, and the likelihood that the insurer will pay your policy increases. Buying sooner is therefore advisable: the longer you wait, the more rates rise based on age alone.
• Your gender. Because women have longer life expectancies, they almost always pay less than men of the same age and health. U.S. life expectancy is 79.9 years for women and 74.2 for men, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.
• Your smoking status. Smokers face a higher risk of health problems such as respiratory disease, so their life insurance tends to cost more.
• Your health. This includes preexisting conditions, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels. Insurers also consider height and weight.
• Your family medical history. Your insurer may ask about family history of serious conditions such as heart disease, cancer, or diabetes.
• Your driving record. DUI, DWI, and major traffic violations may cause an insurer to classify you as high-risk and charge higher rates.
• Your occupation and lifestyle. A dangerous or high-risk job, such as bomb-squad police officer or race-car driver, generally costs more to insure than an office job. Risky activities such as skydiving may also lead to higher premiums.

The type of life insurance also affects average costs:

• Term life insurance is the least expensive because it lasts a specified number of years and provides coverage without building cash value.
• Permanent life insurance generally lasts a lifetime and includes cash value you can borrow against or withdraw later. Because of cash value and the potentially longer coverage period, permanent policies cost much more than term policies.

Adding riders to a life insurance policy increases premiums. For example, a rider with a $10,000 benefit could add $50 to $75 annually.

What Does Not Affect Your Life Insurance Premium?

These factors do not affect your quoted rate:

• Your ethnicity, race, and sexual orientation. Although insurers assess age and gender, they cannot discriminate based on these aspects of diversity.
• Your credit score. Although your credit score does not affect your premium, expect the insurer to review the past seven years of credit history. A bankruptcy may be associated with greater mortality risk, which can affect premiums.
• Your marital status. Unlike many auto insurers, life insurers do not charge different rates for married applicants.
• The number of life insurance policies you own. However, you must justify purchasing large amounts of coverage across multiple policies.
• The number of beneficiaries you name. Whether you have one beneficiary or five does not affect your rate.

Average Term Life Cost by Age

These annual rates are based on a 20-year term policy with a $500,000 benefit for super preferred applicants

Average Cost of Whole Life Insurance by Age

These annual rates are based on a policy with a $500,000 benefit for super preferred applicants.

Cost of Life Insurance Without a Medical Exam

If you want to skip the medical exam, here is what you can expect to pay annually for a 20-year, $500,000 no-exam term policy.

Average Term Life Cost by Health

These annual rates are based on a 20-year term policy with a $500,000 benefit.

Average Life Insurance Cost by Term Length

These annual rates are based on a $500,000 term policy for a 40-year-old applicant in the super preferred class.

Sources and References

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Mortality in the United States, 2020 . Accessed September 6, 2022.