Term life insurance cost: By coverage level and smoker status

A healthy 35-year-old woman pays $290 a year for $500,000 of 20-year term life insurance, and a man the same age pays $343. Doubling that coverage to $1 million costs $496 and $607.

How much you pay for life insurance comes down to your age, your gender, your health, whether you smoke, and how much coverage you buy for how long. Age and smoking move it the most — a 40-year-old man who smokes pays $1,691 for $500,000, against $470 as a non-smoker.

Whatever rate you qualify for is locked for the full term of your policy — buying at 35 instead of 45 saves a woman 49% a year for the next two decades. Every year you put off getting life insurance, the cost of your premium increases.

How much does term life insurance cost for non-smokers?

A healthy 35-year-old woman pays $290 a year for $500,000 of 20-year term coverage, and a man the same age pays $343. At 45, those rates rise to $564 and $723.

Your rate is set by your age on the day you apply and holds for the full 20 years. Buying at 35 instead of 45 costs a woman 49% less every year for two decades, and the increase gets steeper the longer you wait — rates roughly double between 45 and 55.

Rates below show average annual premiums for non-smokers in Preferred health on a 20-year term policy.

How much does term life insurance cost for smokers?

A 35-year-old woman who smokes pays $934 a year for $500,000 of 20-year term coverage, and a man the same age pays $1,127. At 45, those rates rise to $2,018 and $2,663.

Smoking significantly increases how much you pay for life insurance coverage. However, most insurers will reprice you at non-smoker rates after 12 months of going tobacco-free.

The chart below shows average annual premiums for smokers in Regular health on a 20-year term policy.

How does coverage amount affect term life insurance rates?

Doubling your coverage from $500,000 to $1 million costs a 45-year-old woman 82% more, not twice as much. For a man, it’s 85%.

That discount is biggest when you’re young and shrinks as you age — a 30-year-old woman pays 67% more to double her coverage, while a 60-year-old pays 90% more. It’s also why one larger policy beats buying a second one later: a woman who takes $500,000 at 45 and adds another $500,000 at 60 pays $2,744 a year, against $1,025 for the full $1 million at 45.

The chart below shows average annual premiums for non-smokers in Preferred health on a 20-year term policy and how much rates increase when doubling your coverage.

How does your term length affect your life insurance premium?

A longer term costs more because the insurer is covering you through years when you’re more likely to die. A 30-year policy taken at 35 runs through age 65, and the last decade of that stretch is far riskier to insure than the first. Buy the term that matches your obligations rather than the longest one available — if your mortgage is paid off and your kids are independent by the time you’re 60, a 20-year policy at 40 does the job and costs less than a 30-year policy that keeps paying for coverage you no longer need.

How term length affects non-smokers’ rates

The longer the term, the more you pay. A healthy 35-year-old woman pays $202 a year for 10 years of $500,000 coverage. Going to a 20-year term raises that to $290, and a 30-year term costs $462, more than double the 10-year rate.

The chart below shows average annual premiums for non-smokers in Preferred health for different term lengths. 

How term length affects smokers’ rates

Term length works the same way for smokers, just from a higher starting point. A 40-year-old man who smokes pays $1,092 a year for 10 years of $500,000 coverage. Going to a 20-year term raises that to $1,691, and a 30-year term costs $2,877, more than double the 10-year rate.

Doubling the term from 10 to 20 years adds 55% to his premium. Tripling it to 30 years adds 163%. Those increases are steeper than a non-smoker’s, since the added years carry more risk for someone who smokes. As with non-smokers, most insurers stop offering 30-year terms past 55.

The chart below shows average annual premiums for a smoker with a Regular health class in different coverage amounts.

How to figure out how much life insurance you need

Experts recommend getting at least 10 to 15 times what you make in a year. Go higher if you have a mortgage, young kids, or a spouse who doesn’t work. Go lower if you have savings built up or nobody counting on your income.

To figure out the exact amount you need, think about what your family would actually have to cover if your paycheck stopped tomorrow, plus whatever debts they’d inherit.

Add up these five, then subtract what you’ve already got saved and any coverage through your job.

• What you owe. Your mortgage, car loans, credit cards and student loans.
• The paychecks they’d be missing. Your salary times the number of years your family would need it.
• Childcare and school. Daycare costs now and tuition later, counted until each kid finishes school and can support themselves.
• End-of-life costs. Medical bills your insurance didn’t cover, plus the funeral itself, which runs about $8,300 with a viewing and burial, according to the National Funeral Directors Association.
• A cushion. Six to 12 months of household expenses, so one bad month doesn’t eat into the rest.

Factors that affect your term life insurance premium

Your age and whether you smoke aren’t the only factors that determine how much you pay for life insurance. Here’s what else insurers look at.

• Health history. Diabetes, heart disease and high cholesterol can push you into a lower health class, which costs hundreds a year. Conditions that are treated and well controlled usually cost less than untreated ones.
• Family history. A parent or sibling who died young of heart disease or cancer can affect your health class, even if your own health is excellent.
• Occupation. Commercial fishing, logging and piloting carry higher rates. So do high-risk hobbies like cave diving and recreational flying, though some insurers exclude the activity instead of charging more.
• Lifestyle choices. Insurers pull your driving record, so a DUI or several recent moving violations can raise your rate or delay approval. Heavy drinking and drug use show up in your blood work and application review.
• Coverage. More coverage and a longer term both cost more. Doubling from $500,000 to $1 million adds about 82% to a 45-year-old woman’s premium, and a 30-year policy runs well above a 10-year one because the insurer covers you into years when you’re likelier to die.

How to lower your term life insurance premium

Apply earlier, quit smoking, and compare quotes from multiple life insurance companies to get the lowest possible premium. 

Here’s how to save: 

• Shop around: Rates vary by carrier for the exact same age, coverage, and health profile, so comparing multiple quotes matters.
• Apply earlier: Rates only go up with age, so locking in a policy sooner rather than later saves money over the life of the term.
• Improve your health: Improving your blood pressure, cholesterol, and maintaining a healthy weight can lower how much you pay.
• Quit smoking: Non-smoker rates run significantly lower, and most insurers require 12 months nicotine-free to qualify.
• Choose the right term length: Don’t pay for 30 years of coverage if you only need protection for 10 or 20 years. 
• Avoid over-insuring: Buying more coverage than you actually need just increases your premium without added benefit

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