Guide
How much life insurance do you need?
A calculator plus an explanation of the four parts: income years, debts, education, and what you already have.
A practical method is to start with your income, multiply it by the years your family would need support, add in major costs like debts and education, and subtract savings or coverage you already have. It does not have to be exact: people buy coverage in round dollar amounts, and the target is enough to keep things stable during the critical years.
Coverage estimate
Quick calculation: (annual income × years you want covered) + (debts you would want cleared) + (education costs) − (savings and existing coverage) = rough starting point. Round to the nearest $5,000. This is just a way to start thinking; it is not advice.
Why those inputs
Income years. Most advisors point to 10 to 20 years as typical; how many you need depends on how long your dependents would require income support. In Atwater, parents with young children often lean toward 20 or 25 years because childcare, housing, and school costs all hit at once.
Debts. A mortgage is usually the biggest one. Coverage large enough to pay it off removes the pressure for survivors to make that choice quickly and lets them decide what comes next based on what they actually want.
Education. A per-child amount in current dollars. It is simpler to build this in now than to take out a second policy later.
What you have. Money set aside, and any group life coverage from your employer. Since group coverage ends when you leave the job, most people do not count it, or count only a portion.
Once you have a number in mind, the quote tool will show you what it costs with each carrier for any term from 10 to 30 years. Many people buy slightly more than the estimate because the cost per month is not much higher when you are younger.