How much does a $10 000 life insurance policy cost

Life insurance policies come in a variety of terms and amounts. One of the most common and affordable life insurance coverages most insurers offer is $100,000. However, as with any other insurance product, some $100,000 insurance policies and providers will be more affordable or better for your needs than others.

Table of Contents

  • How Much Is $100k Life Insurance?
  • Cost by Term Length
  • Cost by Age
  • Cost for Smokers & Poor Health
  • Cost of Permanent Coverage
  • $100k Insurance With No Exam
  • Is a $100,000 Life Insurance Policy Right for You?

Key Takeaways

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Factors like age, gender, smoking habits and medical history can affect your life insurance premiums.

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Life insurance policies can be purchased without a medical exam, but this coverage is significantly more expensive.

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If you're on a tight budget or need the life insurance policy to cover temporary or specific expenses like funeral costs, a $100,000 term policy may be the best option for you.

How Much Is a $100,000 Life Insurance Policy?

Your life insurance premium's face value — also known as your policy amount — is of utmost importance. However, the cost of the policy can vary depending on several factors, such as term length, age, health history and more. MoneyGeek dissected $100,000 life insurance policies to determine the average premium for 10- and 20-year term lengths.

The average monthly cost of life insurance for a 10-year $100,000 policy is $11.02 or $12.59 for a 20-year policy.

Winner: Cheapest $100,000 Life Insurance

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MoneyGeek Top Pick

According to MoneyGeek, Transamerica is the cheapest $100,000 term life insurance provider. Its average policy cost for a healthy individual, as well as the ratings it earned from MoneyGeek and other rating agencies, are as follows:

  • MoneyGeek Score: 80
  • J.D. Power Rating: 75.8
  • AM Best Rating: 80
  • Average Policy Cost (20-Year Term, $100k Coverage): $8.60/month

Transamerica is the cheapest $100,000 life insurance provider, quoting around $8.60 monthly for a 20-term policy. This insurer offers term and permanent life insurance policies. The terms range from 10–30 years with five-year increments and coverage amounts ranging from $25,000–$10 million (or more based on individual considerations).

Runner-Up: Cheapest $100,000 Life Insurance

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MoneyGeek Top Pick

The second-cheapest insurance company for a $100,000 policy is MassMutual. Its average premium for a healthy individual and its quality ratings from various sources are quite competitive.

  • MoneyGeek Score: 84.5
  • J.D. Power Rating: 82
  • AM Best Rating: 100
  • Average Policy Cost (20-Year Term, $100k Coverage): $10.10/month

For $100,000 life insurance, MassMutual is the second-cheapest insurer, charging $10.10 a month on average for a 20-year term policy. It offers both 10- and 20-year term life insurance plans. Additionally, the company provides permanent life insurance policies.

Average Cost of a $100,000 Term Life Insurance Policy by Term Length

Term life insurance is purchased for a specific length of time, usually between 10 and 30 years. Renewable life insurance policies can be extended for an additional term or until the policyholder reaches a particular age.

Transamerica's $100,000 term life insurance policies are the cheapest amongst the companies MoneyGeek evaluated for 10-, 15-, 20- and 30-year terms. Prudential is typically the most expensive of all insurers across the terms we assessed.

The following are the average monthly premiums for a $100,000 life insurance policy from the various insurers for the most common term lengths:

Average Monthly Rates for $100,000 Coverage for Different Term Lengths

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Find Cheap $100,000 Life Insurance In Your State

Average Cost of a $100,000 Term Life Insurance Policy $100,000 by Age

As you grow older, the risk that an insurer may be required to pay out on your insurance increases, and as a result, premiums rise. Also, you're more likely to be in better health while you're younger, which lowers your premium. People usually buy life insurance for the first time around age 40.

The average monthly premium for a $100,000 20-year life insurance policy is $12.59 for a 30-year-old policyholder and $68.31 for a 60-year-old policyholder — that's a difference of $55.72. However, the monthly premiums for a $100,000 10-year life insurance policy average $11.02 for a 30-year-old policyholder and $42.15 for a 60-year-old policyholder. In other words, the longer the term, the more significant the difference in price between age groups.

The table below illustrates the average cost of a $100,000 life insurance policy across various age groups and term lengths.

Average Monthly Rates for $100,000 Coverage for Different Ages

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  • Age

    10-Year Term Average Cost

    15-Year Term Average Cost

    20-Year Term Average Cost

    30-Year Term Average Cost

  • 30

    $11.02

    $13.34

    $12.59

    $21.28

  • 40

    $13.77

    $16.67

    $16.93

    $28.61

  • 50

    $22.42

    $27.13

    $31.41

    $53.09

  • 60

    $42.15

    $51.00

    $68.31

    $115.44

  • 70

    $112.69

    $136.35

    Not available

    Not available

Average Cost of $100,000 Term Life if You Smoke or Are in Poor Health

Individuals with a poor health history are considered more likely to file an insurance claim, and insurers classify them as high-risk policyholders. A history of serious illnesses like heart disease or cancer will almost certainly increase your premiums. Additionally, smoking puts you at risk for various health problems and raises your rates. Even the cheapest life insurance policies for smokers can be so much more expensive.

For example, smokers pay an average of $13.93 per month for a 10-year, $100,000 policy, while those in poor health pay $7.71 per month for the same level of coverage. Notably, an average healthy policyholder would pay approximately $11.02 for comparable coverage. Smokers spend nearly $18.95 per month for a 20-year policy, while those in poor health pay roughly $9.90 per month. The monthly premium for the same term is around $12.59 for a healthy policyholder.

The table below details the average cost of a $100,000 insurance policy for smokers, individuals in poor health and those with a high body mass index (BMI).

$100,000 Monthly Rates for Smoking, Low-Health & High-BMI Individuals

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  • Criteria

    10-Year Term Average Cost

    15-Year Term Average Cost

    20-Year Term Average Cost

    30-Year Term Average Cost

  • Smoke

    $27.85

    $33.70

    $37.90

    $64.05

  • Poor Health

    $15.41

    $18.65

    $19.80

    $33.46

  • High BMI

    $14.29

    $17.30

    $18.33

    $30.98

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MONEYGEEK EXPERT TIP

If you buy a $100,000 life insurance policy and your beneficiaries claim it after your death, they will get $100,000. You have a say in how your death benefit will be distributed if you pass away. Most insurance policies still offer the option of a lump sum as the default payout option.

Some policies have an installment payment option in which the cash and accrued interest are paid out regularly over the beneficiary's life. Certain insurers provide checkbooks to recipients of large insurance policies in place of lump-sum or installment payouts.

Note that a $100,000 life insurance policy typically makes sense only if you are financially stable, have no ongoing financial obligations, have minimal liabilities or are debt-free.

Average Cost of a $100,000 Permanent Life Insurance Policy

The term "permanent life insurance" refers to policies that never expire, no matter when the insured passes. Whole life and universal life are the two most common forms of these policies offered by insurance companies. They might be up to 20 times more expensive than term life insurance. One of the most popular types of whole life insurance is guaranteed issue, which doesn't require you to take a medical exam, answer health questions or give the insurer access to your medical and prescription data.

Whole life insurance offers permanent death benefit coverage for the insured's whole life using fixed premiums. In addition, it also comprises a savings component known as cash value, on which interest may accrue. You can receive this interest in the form of payouts or dividends. On the other hand, universal life insurance provides both a death benefit and investment savings by paying flexible premiums or a minimum amount to retain the policy.

Annual Life Insurance Cost of Permanent vs. Term Life Insurance ($100,000 Coverage)

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Term Life Insurance

30-Year-Old Male

$159

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Permanent Life Insurance

30-Year-Old Male

$1,242

Permanent life insurance premiums are on average:$1,083 more

This is 681% more expensive.

$100,000 Life Insurance With No Medical Exam

Unlike a traditional life insurance policy that takes weeks to get approved, instant life insurance doesn't require a medical exam, and it's fast and convenient to apply for. It should be noted that it is only available to people in specific age groups who meet certain health criteria. Regardless, a $100,000 instant life insurance policy costs the same as a traditional policy with the same coverage.

The primary distinction between guaranteed issue insurance and instant life insurance is that the former does not require you to undergo an exam. However, instant life insurance may require you to answer a few health-related questions. Additionally, guaranteed issue insurance can be very costly. For instant life insurance using accelerated underwriting, you may have to answer many questions, whereas, with simplified issue underwriting, applicants only need to answer a few questions.

You may get an expensive quote if you apply for instant life insurance using simplified issue underwriting instead of a quote through accelerated underwriting, which costs the same as a policy with a medical exam. Instant life insurance policies are available from insurers such as Brighthouse SimplySelect, Ethos and Jenny Life.

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INSTANT LIFE INSURANCE

A medical exam may not be required at all by your insurance company if you're young and in good health. You could be covered for $100,000 in minutes if this is the case.

Is a $100,000 Life Insurance Policy Right for You?

It’s often recommended to have a life insurance policy with a coverage amount 10–12 times your annual income. In most cases, a $100,000 policy will suffice, if:

  • You want a life insurance policy to supplement your savings, retirement income or another life insurance policy.
  • You're making less than $20,000 a year or can't afford more insurance coverage.
  • You want your life insurance to cover only specified expenses like funeral costs or bills.

Additionally, if you're financially secure, don't have any dependents, have only a few financial liabilities or have little debt, a $100,000 life insurance policy can make sense. It can cover final expenses or leave a legacy to loved ones. Those who currently have a life insurance policy and wish to extend the amount of coverage or its term may consider using a $100,000 term policy for this purpose.

For instance, a $100,000, 10-year term life insurance policy may be enough to cover your daughter's college tuition. However, you should not anticipate this sum to cover major costs, such as your mortgage.

Life Insurance FAQs

By understanding the answers to some of the most common questions people have about life insurance, you can better determine if a $100,000 policy is the right choice for your needs.

About the Author

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What is the cash value of a $10000 life insurance?

So, the face value of a $10,000 policy is $10,000. This is usually the same amount as the death benefit. Cash Value: For most whole life insurance policies, when you pay your premiums some of that money goes into an investment account. The money in this account is the cash value of that life insurance policy.

What is the average life insurance cost per month?

The average cost of life insurance is $26 a month. This is based on data provided by Quotacy for a 40-year-old buying a 20-year, $500,000 term life policy, which is the most common term length and amount sold.

How much does $500000 worth of life insurance cost?

The cost of a $500,000 term life insurance policy depends on several factors such as your age, health profile and policy details. On average, a 40-year-old with excellent health buying a $500,000 life insurance policy will pay $18.44 for a 10-year term and $24.82 for a 20-year term.

How much is life insurance a month for a single person?

The average cost for a single policy per month ranges from $40 for a variable life policy to $55 for a universal life policy. There are various types available, from guaranteed-to-pay-out whole life policies to cheaper, temporary term life policies.