Should I get a 20 or 30 year term life insurance policy?
A 20-year term is typically cheaper and covers kids through college, but a 30-year term locks in coverage for a standard mortgage and avoids qualifying in your late 50s. This leaves many torn between paying less now or securing long-term peace of mind without having to reapply later.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Splitting the difference by getting a combination of 10, 20, and 30-year policies (laddering)
- 2Relying on employer-sponsored life insurance and spousal coverage
- 3Investing the difference between 20 and 30-year premium costs to self-insure later
- 4Laddering multiple policies with staggered terms (e.g., 10, 20, and 30 years) to decrease coverage and premiums as net worth grows.
- 5Using general rules of thumb such as 10-12x annual salary or calculating the exact income replacement needed until children reach independence.
- 6Relying on existing savings, investment growth, and Social Security survivor benefits to cover expenses later in life.
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Finally thought about sorting term life insurance for my family but am totally stuck on term lengths. We just bought a home with a std mortgage and we have a toddler with plans for a second kid soon....”source ↗
“Looking at numbers it basically comes down to 20 vs 30 year term life insurance(tho some folks Keep suggesting 10 year as a laddering option) 20 year term feels practical cz it covers the kids until theyre thru college and its obviously cheaper. But a 30 year term would cover the mortgage period and would save us the nightmare of trying to qualify for coverage in our late 50s..”source ↗
“Is the 30 year term genuinely worth the peace of mind or is 20 year enough if you plan to invest the difference aggressively?”source ↗
“Need insight on enrolling in life insurance.”source ↗
“And what're your thoughts on laddering for a cheaper policy?”source ↗
“I initially didn't factor in that my wife and kids would get quite a bit in Social Security if I died before the kids are 18.”source ↗
Where this came up
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