Estimate the annual premium for a whole life insurance policy.
Preferred Plus
Preferred
Standard Plus
Standard
Substandard (Rated)
Non-Smoker
Smoker
Understanding Whole Life Insurance Costs
Whole life insurance is a type of permanent life insurance that provides coverage for your entire life, as long as premiums are paid. Unlike term life insurance, which covers a specific period, whole life insurance also builds cash value over time, which grows on a tax-deferred basis. The cost of a whole life insurance policy, often referred to as the premium, is determined by several key factors.
Factors Influencing Your Premium:
Desired Coverage Amount: This is the death benefit your beneficiaries will receive. Higher coverage amounts naturally lead to higher premiums.
Age: Younger individuals generally pay lower premiums because they are statistically less likely to die during the policy's term. As you age, the risk to the insurer increases, leading to higher costs.
Health Rating: Insurers assess your health through a medical exam and application. Your health rating significantly impacts the premium. Categories typically range from "Preferred Plus" (best health, lowest rates) to "Substandard" (pre-existing conditions, highest rates).
Tobacco Use: Smokers and users of other tobacco products face significantly higher premiums than non-smokers due to the increased health risks associated with these habits.
Gender: While not included as a direct input in this simplified calculator, historically, women have paid lower premiums than men due to longer life expectancies. This difference is becoming less pronounced as life expectancies equalize.
Policy Type & Riders: The specific features, guarantees, and any optional riders (like accidental death benefits) added to the policy can also affect the overall cost.
How This Calculator Works:
This calculator provides an *estimated* annual premium for a whole life insurance policy. It uses a simplified model based on common actuarial principles:
Base Premium Calculation: The core premium is influenced by the coverage amount and age. This calculator uses a baseline rate per $1,000 of coverage that increases with age. For simplicity, we've embedded these rates into a multiplier factor.
Health and Lifestyle Adjustments: The baseline premium is then adjusted by factors representing your health rating and tobacco use.
A base rate per $1,000 coverage for a young, healthy, non-smoking individual is established.
This base rate is multiplied by an age-based factor (implicitly handled by the scale of base rates).
The result is further multiplied by the Health Rating multiplier and the Tobacco Use multiplier.
The BaseRatePer1000 values are embedded within the JavaScript logic, representing typical industry averages for a standard health profile for a given age. This calculator uses a set of simplified, representative base rates.
Important Disclaimer:
This calculator is for educational and estimation purposes only. It does not provide a formal insurance quote. Actual premiums can vary significantly based on the specific insurance company, underwriting guidelines, detailed medical history, and the exact features of the policy. For an accurate quote, please consult with a licensed insurance professional.
function calculateWholeLifeCost() {
var coverageAmount = parseFloat(document.getElementById("coverageAmount").value);
var age = parseInt(document.getElementById("age").value);
var healthRatingMultiplier = parseFloat(document.getElementById("healthRating").value);
var tobaccoMultiplier = parseFloat(document.getElementById("tobaccoUse").value);
var resultDiv = document.getElementById("result");
// Basic validation
if (isNaN(coverageAmount) || isNaN(age) || coverageAmount <= 0 || age 85) {
resultDiv.innerHTML = "Please enter valid numbers for all fields.";
resultDiv.style.backgroundColor = "#dc3545"; // Error red
return;
}
// Simplified Base Rate per $1000 based on age bracket
// These are illustrative rates and will vary by insurer.
var baseRatePer1000;
if (age >= 18 && age = 26 && age = 36 && age = 46 && age = 56 && age = 66 && age = 76 && age <= 85
baseRatePer1000 = 20.00;
}
var estimatedAnnualPremium = (coverageAmount / 1000) * baseRatePer1000 * healthRatingMultiplier * tobaccoMultiplier;
// Round to two decimal places for currency
estimatedAnnualPremium = Math.round(estimatedAnnualPremium * 100) / 100;
resultDiv.innerHTML = "Estimated Annual Premium: $" + estimatedAnnualPremium.toLocaleString(undefined, { minimumFractionDigits: 2, maximumFractionDigits: 2 });
resultDiv.style.backgroundColor = "#28a745"; // Success green
}