When buying life insurance, questions like “How much is life insurance?” or “How much does life insurance cost per month?” often come to mind.
The truth is insurers rely on various factors to determine life insurance rates. This means no life insurance policies are the same, and your policy rates can differ slightly from your friend’s, even if you two buy a comparable amount of coverage.
To give you a better idea of how much life insurance costs, we will explore the estimated cost of life insurance associated with each influential factor.
How Much Does Life Insurance Cost: Influential Factors & Associated Cost Breakdowns
What Factors Affect Life Insurance Rates?
Life insurance is viewed as a practical, handy tool to protect your loved ones and business from financial strain. The coverage stays in effect as long as the premiums are paid.
Premiums are personalized to each individual, which explains you can’t find actual prices anywhere on insurance websites. Still, a calculator helps prospective customers estimate premiums after filling out the required information.
Another thing to remember is that each insurer uses its own underwriting process and methodologies to assess premium rates, so it is important to compare as many quotes as possible.
Some factors that impact premium rates include the following:
- Age: Your age or life expectancy is the most vital factor in determining premiums. In general, life insurance costs increase from 8% to 10% for every year of age. It can be understood that the younger you are, the more affordable the premiums, and vice versa. That’s why buying life insurance as soon as possible is a smart move, as it helps to avoid significant surges in premiums.
- Gender: Gender is another major factor most insurers use when calculating premiums. Women tend to pay less for life insurance since they outlive men.
- Health: The insurer will use plenty of metrics and results, including height, weight, cholesterol levels, blood pressure levels, the pre-existing conditions, from the health assessment to estimate your premiums. Sometimes, they may require you to check your heart with an electrocardiogram.
- Smoking: It is no shocker that smokers are at higher risk of developing many health problems related to the respiratory system, hence higher insurance rates. In fact, smokers pay twice as much as nonsmokers for the same coverage. In addition to traditional cigarettes, you may be classified as a smoker if you smoke cigars or vape.
- Family Medical Background: Applicants from a family with a medical background of chronic, ongoing health issues like diabetes, cancer, or stroke may end up paying higher premiums.
- Occupation & Lifestyle: Working in a hazardous environment could also increase life insurance rates, such as a miner, pilot, or police officer, due to increased mortality risks. Similarly, your lifestyle can be an indicator in assessing your rates. For example, you are more likely to pay a bit more if you drink excessively or regularly engage in risky activities like skydiving, bungee jumping, rock climbing, or motorsport.
- Driving Record: Insurers may charge higher rates if they find you have been convicted of multiple traffic violations or DUI/DWI. Living in high-traffic areas or cities can also be considered since you are more likely to get into a collision.
Average Life Insurance Rates by Age
There are two main types of life insurance: permanent and term life insurance.
Permanent life insurance, or whole, variable, and universal life insurance, is a type of coverage that lasts for a lifetime as long as the premiums are paid. Meanwhile, term life insurance is a simple form of insurance in which you only have to pay premiums for a limited number of years, typically between 10 and 30 years, to keep the coverage in effect.
They are distinguishable in various aspects, such as premium rates, in-effect periods, and benefits. The most significant difference that sets them apart is premium, with permanent life insurance costing 5 to 15 times more than term life insurance due to the lifetime coverage and cash value component included.
Term Life Insurance
Based on a $500,000 coverage with a 20-year term life insurance policy for super preferred applicants.
| Age | Average Annual Rate for Men | Average Annual Rate for Women |
| 30 | $223 | $188 |
| 40 | $334 | $283 |
| 50 | $821 | $644 |
| 60 | $2,361 | $1,660 |
| 70 | $9,297 | $8,204 |
Permanent Life Insurance
Based on a $500,000 permanent life insurance policy for super preferred applicants.
| Age | Average Annual Rate for Men | Average Annual Rate for Women |
| 30 | $4,652 | $4,015 |
| 40 | $7,028 | $5,937 |
| 50 | $11,163 | $9,443 |
| 60 | $19,150 | $15,943 |
| 70 | $33,325 | $28,093 |
Average Life Insurance Rates by Gender/Sex
As mentioned earlier, women are privileged for lower premium rates since their life expectancies are longer than men.
The following estimates are based on 35-year-old male and female nonsmokers applying for $250,000, $500,000, and $1,000,000 coverages, respectively.
Term Life Insurance
| Sex | $250,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Male | $18.93 | $30.42 | $52.01 |
| Female | $16.60 | $25.60 | $42.92 |
Whole Life Insurance
| Sex | $250,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Male | $288 | $571 | $1,121 |
| Female | $243 | $481 | $947 |
Average Life Insurance Rates by States
Although location and demographic areas are not the primary factors in cost assessment, the cost of life insurance can fluctuate from one state to another.
The following data is based on 2019 data from the S&P Global Market Intelligence.
| State | Average Annual Life Insurance | Average Monthly Premiums |
| Alabama | $602 | $50 |
| Alaska | $655 | $55 |
| Arizona | $615 | $51 |
| Arkansas | $584 | $49 |
| California | $668 | $56 |
| Colorado | $645 | $54 |
| Connecticut | $724 | $60 |
| Delaware | $657 | $55 |
| District of Columbia | $636 | $53 |
| Florida | $627 | $52 |
| Georgia | $630 | $53 |
| Hawaii | $687 | $57 |
| Idaho | $597 | $50 |
| Illinois | $631 | $53 |
| Indiana | $593 | $49 |
| Iowa | $601 | $50 |
| Kansas | $601 | $50 |
| Kentucky | $599 | $50 |
| Louisiana | $597 | $50 |
| Maine | $641 | $53 |
| Maryland | $712 | $59 |
| Massachusetts | $718 | $60 |
| Michigan | $610 | $51 |
| Minnesota | $639 | $53 |
| Mississippi | $581 | $48 |
| Missouri | $590 | $49 |
| Montana | $601 | $50 |
| Nebraska | $603 | $50 |
| Nevada | $607 | $51 |
| New Hampshire | $708 | $59 |
| New Jersey | $732 | $61 |
| New Mexico | $588 | $49 |
| New York | $675 | $56 |
| North Carolina | $617 | $51 |
| North Dakota | $603 | $50 |
| Ohio | $599 | $50 |
| Oklahoma | $598 | $50 |
| Oregon | $627 | $52 |
| Pennsylvania | $658 | $55 |
| Rhode Island | $660 | $55 |
| South Carolina | $615 | $51 |
| South Dakota | $591 | $49 |
| Tennessee | $609 | $51 |
| Texas | $633 | $53 |
| Utah | $636 | $53 |
| Vermont | $655 | $55 |
| Virginia | $682 | $57 |
| Washington | $655 | $55 |
| West Virginia | $590 | $49 |
| Wisconsin | $607 | $51 |
| Wyoming | $601 | $50 |
Average Life Insurance Rates by Insurance Company
Since each insurance company sets up its own terms and conditions, underwriting process, and deciding factors, the cost of life insurance can vary from one carrier to another.
In addition to online calculators, customers are encouraged to contact insurance agents directly to obtain quotes. When buying insurance, insurance professionals can give the best answers regarding rates, factors, and involved risks.
Average Monthly Premiums of Some Insurance Companies
| Insurance Company | Monthly Coverage Quote |
| Assurity | $27 |
| United Omaha | $28 |
| Penn Mutual | $42 |
| Vantis Life | $44 |
| Mutual of Omaha | $51 |
| Ladder | $57 |
| Haven Life | $60 |
| Legal & General | $64 |
| American National Insurance Company | $65 |
| Amica | $67 |
| SBLI | $67 |
| Protective Life | $72 |
| Pacific Life | $77 |
| Minnesota Life | $78 |
If you have any questions about how much life insurance costs, please contact us for a free consultation.
LOOKING FOR AFFORDABLE INSURANCE?
Quotetopia matches you with what you’re looking for! We make your search a single step based on coverage and cost information from hundreds of top insurers, connecting you with the best match at the best value. From auto to health to life insurance, Quotetopia has you covered.
