Guide
How much life insurance do you need?
An online calculator and guide to the four factors that drive your coverage need: your income replacement period, liabilities, schooling goals, and assets you already own.
Start by calculating what your earnings would have paid for—living expenses, debt obligations, education—then subtract any coverage that already exists.
Coverage estimate
(Income × Years of Coverage) + Debts + Educational Costs − Existing Coverage, then round to the nearest $5,000
Why those inputs
Income years. A typical planning horizon is 10 to 20 years of income replacement; your situation will depend on who depends on you and your obligations.
Debts. For most households, the mortgage is the greatest financial obligation. Providing enough coverage to pay it off gives your family room to breathe financially rather than forcing them into a specific decision based on monthly bills.
Education. Set aside a ballpark figure per child in current-day terms. Building education into your plan upfront is simpler than trying to adjust later.
What you have. Existing accounts and investments, plus any life insurance provided by an employer. Employer coverage typically terminates if you leave the job.
Once your target coverage is set, the calculator displays costs for each 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30-year option across all carriers at once. Lots of people choose more coverage than they first calculated—when you're young, the extra premium is usually very affordable.