Guide
How much life insurance do you need?
Use the calculator here, which explains its logic: years of household income, outstanding debts, educational funding needs, and resources already in place.
The common approach: tally what your earnings would cover over your dependents' years of need, subtract existing resources, and round to the nearest $5,000. It needn't be precise—term coverage sells in round numbers and aims for adequacy, not perfection.
Coverage estimate
Estimate = income × years + debts + education − existing coverage, rounded to the nearest $5,000. This is a beginning point, not professional guidance.
Why those inputs
Income years. Financial planners typically recommend ten to twenty years; your situation determines the right timespan based on how long dependents would rely on your income. Households in Brentwood with small children often lean toward the higher range because expenses for care, housing, and school cluster in those years.
Debts. Most households carry a mortgage, the most substantial debt obligation. Life insurance sufficient to discharge it gives survivors the freedom to choose their next steps rather than having finances dictate their future.
Education. Set aside an estimated amount per child in current-year dollars. Incorporating this now is simpler than purchasing additional coverage in the future.
What you have. Include accessible savings and employer-provided coverage. Keep in mind that group policies typically disappear when you leave the job, so you might account for just a portion.
Once you've identified an appropriate amount, the quoting tool lets you compare costs across 10–30 year terms with quotes from each carrier. Many buyers choose to go slightly higher—the monthly cost difference tends to be minimal at younger ages.