The cost of a $100,000 life insurance policy varies depending on the type of policy, and your individual factors such as age, gender, health, and lifestyle habits.
The most affordable option is a $100,000 term life insurance policy. See for yourself. Get a quote for $100,000 of term coverage instantly using our free quoting tool. No need to give away any contact information in order to see real-time pricing estimates.
Table of Contents
- How much is a $100,000 life insurance policy?
- When does $100,000 of coverage make sense?
- Is $100,000 enough life insurance?
- Can I get a $100,000 life insurance policy with no medical exam?
See what you’d pay for $100,000 of life insurance
Comparison shop prices on custom coverage amounts from the nation’s top carriers with Quotacy.
How Much Is a $100,000 Life Insurance Policy?
The cost of a life insurance policy is determined by a number of factors such as gender, age, and your health status. Another main factor is whether you decide to buy a term or whole life insurance policy.
A term life insurance policy is temporary coverage lasting 10-40 years. Because of its simplicity and affordability, it’s the most common choice for families.
Whole life insurance lasts your entire life and has a savings component you can access via policy loans. It’s typically 10-15 times more expensive than term. In addition, participating whole life policies in which you can earn dividends are often slightly more expensive than non-participating.
Below are cost examples for a few $100,000 term and whole life insurance policies, so you can compare rates.
Cost of a $100,000 Life Insurance Policy: Term vs Whole
| Life Insurance for a Healthy 35-Year-Old Male |
|---|
| Policy Type | Monthly Rate |
| 20-Year Term Policy | $8.77 |
| 30-Year Term Policy | $13.49 |
| 40-Year Term Policy | $19.79 |
| Whole Life Policy (non-participating) | $80.10 |
| Whole Life Policy (participating) | $119.71 |
The quotes shown are based on a Preferred Plus risk class. The whole life quotes are for policies with premiums payable to age 100.
One strategy people take is buying a large term policy for their big-ticket items, like the mortgage and cost of raising children, and supplementing it with a smaller $100,000 whole life policy.
This way, should you die unexpectedly, your family can continue to pay bills without struggle due to the death benefit they are paid. And if you outlive your term policy, you still have a whole life policy that provides a guaranteed death benefit for end-of-life expenses.
However, not everyone needs whole life and some families are better off saving that money and redirecting it toward other needs, like emergency funds or retirement savings.
Cost of a $100,000 Life Insurance Policy by Term Length
Term life insurance is the best option for most families. You choose how long your coverage should last between 10 to 40 years.
Ideally, you have this coverage in place during your prime earning years. The years you’re saving for retirement, raising kids, and paying off a mortgage. With a term policy, if you were to die unexpectedly, your family avoids financial struggle.
| Monthly Cost of a $100,000 Life Insurance Policy by Term Length |
|---|
| Term Length | Male, Age 35 | Female, Age 35 |
| 10-Year Term | $7.96 | $7.22 |
| 15-Year Term | $7.97 | $7.64 |
| 20-Year Term | $8.77 | $8.04 |
| 25-Year Term | $12.01 | $10.34 |
| 30-Year Term | $13.49 | $11.47 |
| 35-Year Term | $16.56 | $14.26 |
| 40-Year Term | $19.79 | $17.19 |
The quotes shown are based on a Preferred Plus risk class.
Cost of a $100,000 Life Insurance Policy by Age
Age is one of the biggest factors in determining the cost of life insurance. Because life insurance companies pay a large check if you die, the closer you are to the end of your life expectancy, the higher their risk. Therefore, older individuals pay more for life insurance than younger people.
And both term life insurance and whole life insurance offer fixed rates, which means your monthly premium will never increase during the life of that policy.
| Monthly Cost of a 20-Year $100,000 Life Insurance Policy By Age |
|---|
| Age | Male | Female |
| 25 | $8.38 | $7.77 |
| 30 | $8.47 | $7.88 |
| 35 | $8.77 | $8.04 |
| 40 | $10.53 | $9.43 |
| 45 | $15.18 | $12.74 |
| 50 | $21.34 | $16.68 |
| 55 | $33.52 | $24.06 |
| 60 | $52.27 | $37.14 |
| 65 | $96.91 | $65.31 |
| 70 | $201.61 | $167.78 |
The quotes shown are based on a Preferred Plus risk class.
| Monthly Cost of a $100,000 Whole Life Insurance Policy By Age |
|---|
| Age | Male | Female |
| 25 | $84.04 | $74.82 |
| 30 | $100.05 | $87.26 |
| 35 | $119.71 | $101.70 |
| 40 | $149.81 | $123.19 |
| 45 | $184.18 | $148.68 |
| 50 | $227.68 | $189.66 |
| 55 | $288.06 | $240.12 |
| 60 | $372.88 | $240.12 |
| 65 | $484.24 | $404.72 |
| 70 | $628.75 | $564.89 |
The quotes shown are based on a Preferred Plus risk class. Policy is a participating whole life policy with premiums payable to age 100.
Cost of a $100,000 Life Insurance Policy Based on Health and Lifestyle Habits
When you buy life insurance, your entire application is reviewed. In addition, insurers often review your medical history and other records, such as motor vehicle and criminal records.
During this process, called underwriting, you’re assigned a risk class. This classification ultimately determines the cost of your policy.
If you’re an average risk, you will be assigned the Standard risk class. If you’re less risky than the average person of your same age, you can qualify for Preferred risk classes. If you’re riskier than average, you may receive substandard ratings. If you use tobacco, you will likely be assigned either Preferred Tobacco or Standard Tobacco depending on your use and current health status.
| Risk Class | 20-Year Term Policy | Whole Life Policy |
|---|
| Preferred Plus | $8.77 | $104.14 |
| Preferred | $10.31 | $108.92 |
| Standard Plus | $14.03 | $111.01 |
| Standard | $14.32 | $113.10 |
| Preferred Tobacco | $25.62 | $135.81 |
| Standard Tobacco | $32.80 | $141.64 |
| Substandard Table 2 Non-Tobacco | $17.23 | $128.98 |
| Substandard Table 3 Non-Tobacco | $18.82 | $136.92 |
| Substandard Table 4 Non-Tobacco | $20.42 | $144.86 |
The monthly quotes shown are for a 35-year-old male. Whole life policy is a participating plan with fixed monthly premiums for life.
When Does $100,000 of Coverage Make Sense?
A $100,000 term life insurance policy makes sense:
- For those who are on a limited budget, but still want to ensure their loved ones are protected from the unexpected;
- If you don’t have a lot of debt you’d leave behind, but still want income replacement for your family;
- If you’re laddering policies and this policy is for a specific protection goal.
Example of Laddering
You and your spouse purchased a home with a 30-year $300,000 mortgage. You have a teenager graduating from high school next year and want to support her through college.
You can buy two different life insurance policies that are specific to ensuring your family can remain in their home and financially protecting your child.
- A 30-year $350,000 term life insurance policy will provide the cash your spouse needs to continue paying monthly living expenses if you die before the mortgage balance is paid.
- A 10-year $100,000 term life insurance policy will provide the cash your family needs to support your daughter through college and her young adult life until she’s financially dependent, even if you die and can’t physically be there to see her through it yourself.
A $100,000 whole life insurance policy makes sense:
- If you need lifelong protection for your loved ones. Perhaps you have a non-working spouse or a child with special needs.
- If you aren’t sure how long people will be relying on you, then whole life insurance may be a good option.
- As a supplement to a larger term life insurance policy.
Need some of both? Purchase enough term life insurance to cover all your debt and financial responsibilities. And choose a long enough term length to protect your family until all or a majority of your debt is paid off. Then buy a small whole life insurance policy to cover end-of-life expenses and leave behind a small inheritance.
Learn more about this strategy: Supplementing Term Life Insurance with Whole Life Insurance
Is $100,000 Enough Life Insurance?
A $100,000 term life insurance policy may not be enough for some people. And you may be surprised at how affordable higher amounts of term life insurance can be.
The difference in cost between a $100,000 and $250,000 term life insurance policy may be as little as $2-3 per month. How much more secure would your family be with an extra $150,000 if you died unexpectedly?
I encourage you to use our life insurance quoting tool and play around with the coverage amounts and term lengths. See for yourself how affordable term life insurance is.
If you’re looking to supplement term life insurance, a $100,000 whole life insurance policy is a good amount of permanent coverage. Not all families need permanent life insurance, however.
Buy what you can afford. $100,000 of term life insurance is a million times better than no life insurance.
Can I Get a $100,000 Life Insurance Policy With No Exam?
Many companies offer no-exam options for small face amounts like $100,000 life insurance. In fact, many of the companies we work with here at Quotacy have no-exam options up to $1,000,000 of term life insurance coverage.
Buying $100,000 of whole life insurance coverage without an exam is a bit trickier, unless you get guaranteed-issue whole life, but these policies have limited benefits and are more expensive than traditional whole life.
Contact Quotacy and speak with an agent directly to learn about what options you have to buy whole life insurance without an exam.
In most cases, to qualify for no-exam options you need to be in good health. But not all life insurance companies underwrite the same way, so some have more lenient qualification requirements than others. If you prefer to skip the medical exam, your agent will let you know if you qualify.
If something happens to you, life insurance can help financially protect the loved ones you leave behind.
Our life insurance needs calculator can help you determine the right amount of coverage you need. Check it out here: life insurance calculator.
If you prefer to talk with an advisor to determine how much life insurance you need, contact us directly here at Quotacy. Our agents are happy to go over your needs, but won’t push you into buying coverage you don’t need.
Note: Life insurance quotes used in this article are accurate as of March 14, 2023. These are only estimates and your life insurance costs may be higher or lower.