Father’s Day Index 2025: Dad’s salary jumps more than 5% to nearly $61,000

Wages for many U.S. workers are increasing, and that includes American fathers. Dad’s “salary” in the last year jumped more than 5% to nearly $61,000 from just under $58,000, according to an analysis by Insure.com.

Each year around Father’s Day, Insure.com’s editors look at 17 household chores fathers do and estimate an annual salary for each task based on wage data for comparable jobs from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).  

Examples of such work include landscaping and groundskeeping. The editors estimate that fathers spend about two hours a week cutting the lawn in the summer, raking leaves in the fall and shoveling pathways during wintertime. 

Landscapers and groundskeepers, according to the BLS, make $19.66 an hour. At that rate, for working two hours a week across 52 weeks, the annual pay for that work would be $2,045. When the editors added the pay for yard work with the salaries for other common jobs fathers do, such as working on the car (auto mechanic) and killing bugs (pest control worker), they came up with an annual salary of $60,957. 

The purpose of the annual Father’s Day Index, which Insure.com has done for the last 15 years, is to recognize the value of all the unpaid work dads do for their families every day.

Just about all of Dad’s jobs saw an increase this year. Among the roles that boosted Dad’s paycheck were laborer, teacher, mechanic and cook, which all saw decent salary bumps: 

• Laborer and freight/stock mover: Up 21.7%
• Teacher: 7.8%
• Automotive service tech/mechanic: Up 6.4%
• Cook: Up 5.1%

There are good reasons those salaries are rising. Laborers and cooks are two of the jobs on the BLS list of occupations that will add the most workers between 2023 and 2032. 

Overall, fathers’ salaries appear to be growing faster than workers in general. In its May jobs report, released June 6, 2025, the BLS said U.S. hourly earnings increased 3.9% over the past 12 months.

However, despite his recent salary increase, Dad’s contribution to the household account pales in comparison to Mom’s. In the past year, if mothers were paid for all the work they do around the house, they would have received a salary of more than $145,000, according to an earlier analysis by Insure.com.

Why it’s important for fathers to get life insurance

As we celebrate Father’s Day and recognize all the contributions fathers make, it’s a good time to make sure dads have an adequate level of life insurance protection. If a father dies, in addition to the emotional loss, there’s often a significant reduction in household income.

Four out of 10 fathers are very worried about leaving their dependents in a tough financial position if they died unexpectedly, according to the 2025 Insurance Barometer Study. The study, which tracks consumers’ insurance perceptions, is conducted annually by LIMRA, the life-insurance industry research organization, and Life Happens, a nonprofit life insurance education group.

For many families, the absence of a second parent necessitates hiring outside experts for household repairs, lawn maintenance and other essential tasks. Using the Father’s Day Index as a benchmark, the cost could add up to around $61,000 per year – and maybe more.

Life insurance can ease the financial burden many families face when a parent dies.

The LIMRA study found that 63% of fathers report having life insurance. However, 40% say they need more.

One reason many people don’t buy life insurance – or don’t buy what they believe they need – is cost. However, previous LIMRA studies have found that three-quarters of Americans overestimate the cost of basic term life.

Another issue is a lack of familiarity with life insurance products. People often wonder about the right time to buy a policy, how much life insurance they need and what type of life insurance they should buy.

The right time to buy life insurance

There is no right or wrong time to get life insurance, according to the experts – although starting early can get the lowest rate for a policy. The cost of buying coverage increases with age. 

“The sooner, the better,” says Karen Terry, corporate vice president and head of LIMRA Insurance Research. “Life insurance premiums increase with age, so the younger you are when you buy, the lower the cost.”

Which brings up the next question: How much life insurance do fathers need?

There are several factors fathers should consider when deciding how much life insurance they need, including income replacement and family support, mortgage payments and funeral expenses.

“Every dad’s situation is different,” Terry says. “The amount of coverage he needs depends on his income, any debt the family may carry, future college saving needs, etc. It’s best to work with an advisor who can help you identify your coverage needs.”

To give families an idea of how much life insurance they need, Insure.com built a pair of valuable tools: Life Insurance Advisor and Life Insurance Coverage Calculator. 

Insure.com’s Life Insurance Advisor offers a way to quickly analyze your assets and how much life insurance you may need.

Insure.com’s Life Insurance Coverage Calculator is designed to answer the big questions about life insurance: What type of policy do we need and how much coverage should we buy?

And to help dads choose the right one for their needs, Insure.com has put together a list of the best life insurance companies.

How to choose a life insurance policy for dad

Another question families often have is what type of policy to buy, usually deciding between term life insurance or permanent life insurance.

Term is a type of life insurance that provides coverage for a set period — typically 10, 20, or 30 years — and pays a death benefit if the policyholder passes away during that term.

“Term insurance is an affordable option if you are looking for a higher face amount or you are at a point in life where your available cash to pay the premium is limited,” Terry says. 

The average premium for a $250,000 to $500,000 term insurance is about $519 or less than $45 a month, according to LIMRA’s 2024 sales data, but the cost for an individual could be lower, depending on your age and exactly how much coverage is purchased. 

For instance, an Insure.com analysis of rates from Compulife Software, which provides life insurance quotes, found that a  35-year-old female in a preferred health class pays $298 annually for a 20-year term policy with $500,000 in coverage, while a 35-year-old male pays $349.

Term is also a great option if you know that you only need insurance for a limited period of time, she says, such as to cover a mortgage or to put toward college savings while your kids are young.

Permanent life insurance works differently. The policy is active as long as you’re alive and your premiums are paid.

Permanent life insurance — such as whole life,  universal life and indexed universal life — is more suited for those looking for coverage for longer periods of time and supplemental offerings, such as cash value accumulation. Unlike term life, permanent life insurance doesn’t expire after a set period but remains active your entire life. 

“Permanent insurance provides lifetime coverage, so it is a good option for people with longer-term needs,” Terry says. “It also has a savings, or cash value, component. Part of the premium you pay covers the death benefit that the policy will pay, while the remainder of the premium goes to fund the cash value. That cash account can be used for many purposes.”

Whole life is the most popular type of permanent life.

Certain whole life policies are eligible for annual dividends that can be received as cash, used to reduce or pay premiums, or be reinvested into the policy — thus increasing the total amount of coverage, according to New York Life. The insurer last year told Insure.com that the average annual price for a whole life insurance policy with a face value of $154,000 for a 35-year-old male non-smoker is $2,108.

In general, New York Life said to consider whole life if you’re looking for:

• Permanent lifetime death benefit protection.
• Fixed, predictable premiums that are guaranteed not to increase.
• Guaranteed cash value accumulation that grows tax deferred and can be accessed, under certain conditions, tax-free, to meet various financial goals.
• Additional potential cash value and death benefit growth through dividends.
• Tax-free life insurance death benefit.

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