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Fact Checked
If you’re over 50 and looking for the best life insurance, you’ll want to make an informed decision when choosing a life insurance policy. Your age will play a major role in the cost of insurance and options available, but so will your health and financial goals.
To find the best life insurance for people over 50, we evaluated companies based on their term and cash value policy features and rates.
Start by choosing what type of life insurance policy you need. There are many options available, but initially, you’ll need to choose between two main types: term life or permanent life. Both policy types have pros and cons to consider.
Term Life Insurance for People Over 50
Term life insurance offers a locked in rate for a specific period, or “term,” typically between 10 and 30 years. If you pass away during the term, your beneficiaries receive the death benefit. If you outlive the term and don’t choose to renew, the policy expires with no payout. If you decide to renew, expect rates to increase significantly with each renewal.
Term life insurance generally has lower premiums than permanent life insurance, making it more affordable.
Permanent Life Insurance for People Over 50
Permanent life insurance (such as whole life insurance), on the other hand, provides lifelong coverage as long as the premiums are paid. If you pass away at any point while the policy is in force, your beneficiaries receive the death benefit.
Permanent life insurance also generally has a cash value component that grows over time. You can borrow against this cash value, withdraw from it or use it to help pay your premiums. Any outstanding loans from the cash value at your death will reduce the death benefit.
When shopping around for life insurance, you’ll also need to crunch some numbers and determine how much life insurance you need. You should also decide if you want add-on coverage through life insurance riders. These considerations will be based on a few factors, including:
When comparing life insurance companies, financial strength and stability of the company is an important factor to consider. You want to make sure the company you choose will be around for the long term and can pay out a claim if necessary. You can check a company’s financial strength rating through independent rating agencies such as AM Best, Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s.
It costs an average of $977 a year for a $250,000 20-year term policy for a 60-year-old woman in good health, based on Forbes Advisor’s analysis. The same policy for a 60-year-old man in good health costs $1,370 per year.
| Companies | Policy name | Yearly average cost for female buyer age 60 | Yearly average cost for male buyer age 60 |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Classic Choice
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$874
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$1,244
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Term life
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$874
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$1,218
|
|
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Symetra SwiftTerm
|
$939
|
$1,295
|
|
|
Term life
|
$881
|
$1,245
|
|
|
PL Promise Term
|
$987
|
$1,290
|
|
|
Select-a-Term
|
$939
|
$1,295
|
|
|
TermAccel Level Term
|
$939
|
$1,295
|
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Rates are based on 60-year-old buyers who are healthy and qualify for the best rates. Source: Forbes Advisor research.
Source: Forbes Advisor research.
Age is one of the most significant factors that affect life insurance rates. The older a person is, the shorter their life expectancy becomes, which means the more likely the insurance company is to have to pay out a claim.
People over 50 are generally more likely to develop serious health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes or cancer, which increase the risk of death. So older adults will typically pay more for life insurance because there’s a higher likelihood the insurance company will need to pay out.
People in their 50s may be better off buying a term life insurance policy since it’s a more affordable option than permanent life insurance, and people in their 50s may not need coverage beyond 30 years.
On the other hand, permanent life insurance could be a good choice for people over 50 if you:
Another option to consider is burial insurance, a type of permanent life insurance with a small benefit designed to cover funeral expenses and final bills. This could be a good choice for those who don’t have savings set aside for these costs, but it won’t provide much of a payout beyond them.
Because there are many different types of life insurance available, it’s prudent to work with an experienced life insurance agent who can help you select the right one.
See Our Ratings Of The Best Life Insurance Companies
A 50-year-old should buy enough life insurance to provide a sufficient financial safety net for those who depend on you.
Exactly how much life insurance you need is highly dependent on your financial obligations. For example, a 50-year-old person who has a mortgage and two kids in college will likely require a policy with a higher death benefit than another 50-year-old person with adult children, very little debt and who is primarily concerned with covering final expenses.
To quickly determine your life insurance needs, use our life insurance calculator. If you prefer a more manual calculation, list your financial obligations, like a mortgage, and then list your assets that can be used to help pay for those obligations, like savings. Then, deduct your assets from your obligations. The difference is an estimate of the amount of life insurance coverage you need.
Getting life insurance at 50 can be worth it if there are people who depend on you financially. Regardless of your age, life insurance provides a financial safety net for loved ones (or business partners) who would experience financial hardship if you die.
Buying life insurance in your 50s will almost certainly cost you more than if you purchased a policy at a much younger age. But buying a term life insurance policy in your 50s is still significantly cheaper than waiting until you’re 60 or 70.
To find the best life insurance companies for people over 50, we evaluated term life and permanent life insurance for each company.
Our ratings are based on:
Term life insurance rates (50% score): We used term life insurance rates for healthy buyers age 60 for 10- and 20-year terms. The coverage amounts analyzed were $250,000, $500,000, $1 million and $2 million.
Cost competitiveness of cash value policies (15% of score): This measures the level of premiums and internal policy charges, including the cost of insurance, fixed administration expenses and cash value-based wrap fees.
Historical performance (10% of score): This measures whether the historical performance of the company’s investments that fuel cash value growth are superior to other companies’ comparable products.
Reliability of policy illustrations (10% of score): This factor measures the reliability over time of the company’s illustrations for its permanent life insurance products. When you plan to be holding on to a policy for decades and counting on cash value to accumulate, you want an illustration that’s accurate.
Access to cash value (10% of score): This measure evaluates the liquidity of cash value and a policyholder’s access to it. Some policies will build cash value better in the early years, and with other companies you may be waiting several years before you have meaningful cash value within a policy. Generally speaking, the higher the liquidity, particularly in early policy years, the better—but some insurers charge more for greater liquidity, so consider the possible tradeoff.
Financial strength (5% of score): This measure incorporates the insurer’s financial strength ratings from four major ratings agencies: AM Best, Fitch, Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s. Financial strength is particularly important when you’re relying on a company’s ability to pay claims many decades from now.
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