Why Trust Us

Investopedia reviews life insurance companies using in-depth, unbiased research to help you find the best option. Our team analyzed ಞdata from 45 companies, examining costs, coverage, financial stability, and other features to provide our recommendations. 

Investopedia has been a trusted source of financial info🏅rmation since 1999. We’ve reviewed 📖life insurance companies since 2020.

Why Should Sen🍷iors Consider Getting Life Insurance?

Life insurance can be useful for people who want to leave a legacy to their heirs or help their 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:beneficiaries pay off debt or a🔯ny final expenses, such a💛s medical bills and funeral costs. 

Seniors can also opt for various riders—add-on provisions that offer greater benefits at an additional cost. For example, seniors may find a critical il♕lness rider helpful: in the event you’re diagnosed with a qualifying medical condition, you can access your death benefit while you’re still alive.

But seniors should carefully consider whether taking out a new life insurance policy is the right option for them. Because older individuals are at a higher risk of dying than younger people, life insurance premiums become pricier as people get older. Unlike younger people, seniors may not have dependents who are relianᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚt on their income, so it ma♛y not make sense to take out a life insurance policy at a higher cost. 

In additio꧙n, many insurance companies have age limits for these policies: Some don’༺t offer life insurance for people over the age of 70 while others have an age limit of 90.

Types of Life Insurance For Seniors

Term Life Insurance

With 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:term life, policyholders only receive coverage for a fixed period of time—usually between 10 and 30 years. The 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:death benefit will only be paid to a policyholder’s beneficiaries, or the individuals they’ve designated to receive the money, if the policyholder dies while they’re covered.  If the plan expires, their beneficiaries won’t receive thඣe death benefit.

Term life insurance is typically much cheaper than permanent life insurance because coverage is temporary and a death benefit is only guaranteed during the duration of the pol♔icy. 

However, for policyholders who want the ability to enroll in permanent life insurance at a later time, some policies offer a 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:conversion rider. This rider provides the option of converting a term life insurance policy into a permanent life policy without having to 𓃲undergo an additional medical e💃xam.

Permanent Life Insurance

澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Permanent life insurance offers lifelong insurance coverage, so your beneficiaries are guaranteed a death benefit as long as you keep up with your premiums. Permanent life insurance policies include a savings component known as 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:cash value. Cash value can be tapped while a policyholder is still alive—you can borrow a🌼nd withdraw money from your cash value.🌺 

There are two primary types of permanent life insurance: whole life and universal life. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Whole life insurance usually has fixed premiums, a fixed death ﷽benefit,🉐 and a fixed interest rate on cash value. 

In contrast, universal life offers policyholders a bit more flexibility. With 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:universal life insurance, premiums and the death benefit are adjustable. The interest rate that policyholdಞers earn on cash value is variable too, fluctuating with changes in the market. However, there may be a minimum interest rate.

Final Expense Insurance

澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Final expense insurance is a type of perma🎀nent life insurance that’s meant to help beneficiaries cover burial, medical, and funeral expenses. Because of this, these policies tend to offer lower coverage amounts and ha꧋ve more affordable premiums than traditional permanent life insurance policies. Payouts range from $2,000 to $50,000. 

Since these policies have lower payouts, they usually have less extensive underwriting processes. Some policies may be 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:guaranteed issue policies, which don’t require a medical exam or questionnaire. These policies typically have a waiting period (often two to three years). If a policyholder diesꦡ during the waiting period, their beneficiaries won’t receive the death benefit. However, the insura🌠nce company will pay back the premiums, along with interest, to the beneficiary.

And despite the name🐎, beneficiaries don’t have to use the death benefit to cover final expenses. They can use it to pay off a mortgage, go on vacation, put their kids through college, or simply invest it.

Pros & Cons of Life Insurance for Seniors

Pros Explained

• Financial legacy: If you want to leave a legacy behind, a life insurance policy can help ensure that your spouse, children, or friends are taken care of even after you’re gone. Since death benefits are tax-free, life insurance policies can be a useful way to transfer wealth. 
• Can be used by beneficiaries to pay off debt: For people who have a mortgage or who worry about leaving behind a financial burden, a life insurance policy can be used to assist your beneficiaries in paying off any financial obligations.

Cons Explained

• Higher premiums: As you get older, your risk of dying increases, and you may be in poorer health. Therefore, life insurance companies typically charge much higher premiums for seniors than for younger people.
• May not be eligible for all types of insurance: Insurance companies may have an age limit for life insurance policies, so you might not be eligible for every type of life insurance, especially if you’re above the age of 70.
• Lower coverage may be available: For seniors, final expense insurance may be easier to qualify for compared to traditional life insurance policies. However, they usually offer much lower payouts, typically less than $50,000.
  

How We Chose the Best Life Insurance Co𝓡mpanies for Senio👍rs

Investopedia’s list of the best life insurance companies for seniors is based on detailed ℱresearch of 45 providers. We surveyed 500 recent life insurance buyers in March 2024 to inform our research. 

The resul🐭ts helped us pick 70 criteria, including financial strength, customer satisfaction, policy options, and digital tools, which our editors and researchers used to evaluate each company. This ensures Investopedia’s rankings reflect what matters most to consumers.

Our data collection process lasted from May 20 to July 3, 2024. 🌊Our sources included company websites, inquiries to company representative🃏s, and information from rating agencies.

To rate each company, we sorted the criteria into six categorie✱s, which were scored according to the weights below for this article:

• Application and Underwriting: 22%
• Final Expense Policy Features: 19%
• Permanent Policy Features: 16%
• Term Policy Insurance Features: 12%
• Riders: 11%
• Customer Satisfaction: 10%
• Financial Strength: 5%
• Cost: 5%
  

For more information, read our 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:full methodology explanation.