The 9 Best Cheap Life Insurance Companies

Cheap Life Insurance Companies

Pacific Life

Pacific Life has been offering a large selection of life insurance products at affordable prices since 1868. They specialize in indexed universal life insurance, but also offer a variety of other policies.

They are a top-rated insurance company that offers great rates for cancer survivors and applicants with a family history of cancer.

They even offer competitive life insurance rates for applicants aged 60 and over, when premiums typically increase dramatically.

Premiums & Policies

Insurance rates here start at just $11 for healthy women at the age of 25 and $12 for healthy men at the age of 25.

Pacific Life offers a variety of life insurance policies including:

• Term life insurance in terms of 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 years with level premiums and annual renewable options which have increasing premiums each year
• Universal life and variable universal life including survivorship insurance which only pays out when both parties of a couple pass away, rather than just when one person dies

Haven Life

Haven Life is a newcomer to the insurance industry, as it just started in 2014. Don’t worry, they are backed by insurance giant MassMutual who has 160 years of experience in the insurance industry.

This insurance company operates solely online, making the insurance application process simple. They offer great customer service and don’t charge commissions.

Premiums & Policies

Haven Life specializes in the cheapest life insurance for seniors.

Since seniors are closer to the end of their life than their younger counterparts, they often pay much more for life insurance, but at Haven Life, that’s not the case.

Premiums start at just $10 per month for young women and $11 per month for young men but go up as much as $250 per month for female seniors aged 65 and older and $400 per month for male seniors aged 65 and older.

Haven Life only offers term life insurance:

• Term life – 10, 15, 20, and 30-year terms.
• $100,000 to $3 million coverage up to age 64.
• Seniors ages 65 and older may get up to $1 million coverage.
• You cannot convert or renew your policy.

Banner Life

Banner Life has some of the most flexible life insurance products available in the industry, not to mention their cheap premiums.

Where Banner Life shines is the low rates they offer across the board.

While most insurance companies offer low rates only for healthy applicants, this company offers cheap rates even for clients with certain health conditions such as asthma and sleep apnea.

Flexible Policy

Banner’s life insurance policies are issued by Legal and General America and their policies have built in flexibility allowing you to add time to your term, accelerate your benefits due to a terminal illness, or convert your policy to a whole life policy.

On average, consumers save between 15% – 25% on premiums with Banner Life. The term life insurance premiums start at just $8 for healthy women aged 25 and $12 for healthy men aged 25.

Premiums & Policies

Banner Life offers a variety of life insurance policies including:

• Term life insurance of 10 or 15 years up to age 75, 20 or 25 years up to age 70, and 30 years up to age 55.
• Universal Life up to age 85.
• Final Expense Insurance (guaranteed acceptance insurance) ages 50 to 80 and up to $15,000.

Transamerica

Transamerica started as a bank in the 1900s and today they offer affordable life insurance policies along with its affordable banking products.

This company makes it easy to understand their policies and they offer a nice selection of options for those buying their first policy as well as those looking for something more robust yet more affordable than what they have.

Premiums & Policies

Premiums start as low as $10 a month for healthy 25-year-old women and $12 a month for healthy 25-year-old men.

Transamerica offers 5 different life insurance policies including:

• Term life insurance of 10, 15, 20, 25, or 30-year terms up to age 85 with coverage amounts starting at $25,000 up to $10 million.
• Whole life insurance with level premiums and a guaranteed death benefit.
• Universal life insurance up to age 85 with flexible premiums and multiple investment options.
• Index universal life insurance with lifetime coverage that balances your ‘cash balance’ between an interest-bearing account and indexed investment account.
• Final expense insurance, which is a guaranteed whole life policy that covers your final expenses.

Mutual of Omaha

Mutual of Omaha has been around since 1909 offering insurance and other protections including long-term care and disability coverage.

They offer a large selection of life insurance policies with high limits and low-cost premiums. They also offer a variety of riders including a waiver of premium rider in the case of unemployment.

Moreover, Mutual of Omaha offers the longest coverage, in some cases you can be covered up to 120 years old.

Premiums & Policies

Premiums for term life insurance start as low as $10 a month for a healthy 25-year-old female and $11 a month for a healthy 25-year-old male.

Mutual of Omaha offers an impressive selection of life insurance policies including:

• Term life insurance in 10, 15, 20, and 30-year terms with coverage starting at $100,000 and for applicants up to 80 years old.
• Whole life insurance is available as a guaranteed issue policy or an underwritten policy in amounts up to $25,000 and $40,000.
• Universal life insurance with coverage amounts ranging from $100,000 to $1 million and with four different policies to choose from.

Principal

Principal has a long history dating back to 1879, offering a variety of products including life insurance.

This company offers straightforward policies that are easy to understand and with a variety of options for people from all different walks of life.

They also offer policies with unique aspects, such as their survivorship insurance which covers couples and only pays out upon the death of the second person.

Premiums & Policies

Principal’s term life insurance starts at just $10 per month for a healthy 25-year-old woman and $11 per month for a healthy 25-year-old male.

Principal offers a wide selection of insurance products including:

• Term life insurance with 1, 10, 15, 20, and 30-year terms and coverage starting at $200,000 available for customers up to age 85.
• Universal life insurance including indexed and variable universal life insurance with flexible premiums and coverage starting at $200,000.
• Survivorship life insurance with a cash-deferred cash balance and the ability to use it to leverage estate planning and tax liabilities.

Cheap Life Insurance For Seniors

It’s no secret that if you wait to get life insurance, the cost only increases. Many people assume they won’t need it because they’ll have their retirement set up and won’t have a mortgage or be raising a family.

But what happens when life doesn’t work out like you thought it would?

What if you have a mortgage at 60-years-old or you don’t have the retirement account you thought you’d have?

You may find that you need life insurance to cover your liabilities as well as to leave your loved ones with money to take care of your final expenses. Why leave the burden on those you love?

How much should you pay?

Because life insurance premiums increase as you age, it’s no wonder most seniors worry if they’ll be able to afford it once they hit retirement age. Just how much should you pay for senior life insurance?

It truly depends on your health and the type of coverage you need.

Are you looking just for final expense insurance so your loved ones don’t have to pay for your funeral and burial? Or do you need to leave loved ones with a legacy?

There are vast differences between the two scenarios.

Final expense insurance is available with no medical exam and guaranteed coverage for affordable premiums.

Permanent life insurance with higher coverage amounts and medical underwriting will cost more.

How much you should pay depends on what you can afford and the type of coverage you need.

Insurance companies give seniors in good health the lowest premiums, but even those start higher than standard premiums because of the higher risk of a payout.

Best Life Insurance for Seniors

AIG

AIG offers term life insurance, universal life, and final expense insurance for seniors starting at age 50.

They commonly recommend that their clients convert an existing term policy to a whole policy to avoid the medical exam, but their universal life policies offer flexible death benefits, which are great for seniors whose needs continually change.

Pacific Life

Pacific Life offers the largest selection of universal life policies, which are great for seniors.

With the variable coverage options, ability to cover your premiums with your cash balance, and the cash balance accrual, seniors have many options at Pacific Life.

North American Company for Health and Life Insurance

North American Company for Health and Life Insurance boasts some of the lowest rates for senior life insurance including three types of universal life insurance policies.

Cheap Life Insurance For Smokers

Smokers face a disadvantage when it comes to buying life insurance because insurance companies base their approval on the risk of bad health.

People who smoke are more prone to serious illnesses such as COPD, cancer, and heart disease to name a few.

This is why smokers pay two to three times more than non-smokers for the same policy, with the same health issues.

Anyone is considered a smoker if they:

• Smoke cigarettes.
• Smoke cigars.
• Smoke pipes
• Smoke e-cigarettes.
• Use the nicotine patch or gum.

Most insurance companies don’t consider you a non-smoker until you’ve quit for at least 12 months, but the exact time frame varies depending on the company.

Simplified Issue

Smokers often do best with simplified issue policies. You won’t need a medical exam, which helps keep your premium down should any other major issues come up during the medical exam.

You do, however, need to be able to answer a few specific questions and answer them correctly, in order to pass, which pertains to your health.

The questions have to be answered with complete honesty, you cannot lie in your answers or lie about the fact that you’re a smoker as that’s insurance fraud and is punishable by law.

The best policy for smokers depends on your overall health and the type of coverage you want.

On average, smokers do well with the following insurance companies which have favorable premiums even for smokers:

• Banner Life.
• Pacific Life.
• AIG.

How To Get Cheap Life Insurance

In order to find cheap life insurance, you must be willing to do some research.

Many companies offer quotes online in an instant, which does make it a little easier, but you’ll still have to put in the work to find the best policy for you.

Use the following steps:

• Stick with term life insurance as it has the lowest premiums out of any of the insurance options.
• Buy life insurance as early as you can (the younger you are, the cheaper the premiums).
• Try to get life insurance that requires a medical exam as you’ll get cheaper premiums. No-exam policies that take a major risk insuring you, make up for it with higher premiums.
• If you smoke, stop for at least one year before applying for insurance.
• Improve your health as much as possible by losing weight, getting active, and getting off as many medications as you can, especially high blood pressure or high cholesterol meds.
• Don’t choose unnecessary riders that you probably won’t use.
• Bundle your policies if you have the option, as many insurance companies sell more than just life insurance. You may be able to bundle with your car, home, or health insurance and get a discount.

Most importantly, you’ll need to shop around.

Like we said above, many insurance companies offer quotes online, but you’ll still need to compare policies and the actual costs based on your qualifications.

When shopping for life insurance, make sure you know what you’re paying for and don’t overpay. Get quotes from at least three insurance companies so you can see what else is available.

Look for companies that have an A+ A.M. Best rating, provide the coverage you need, and offer affordable premiums that won’t change as you age.