What affects the cost
We publish no rates, no rate tables, and no estimates. This page explains the factors that generally go into pricing so you can understand a real quote when a licensed professional gives you one.
A premium is the output of a specific insurer's rate filing for a specific product in a specific state, applied to a specific applicant. Published "starting at" figures are marketing: they usually describe the youngest, healthiest applicant in the cheapest state at the smallest face amount, and almost nobody pays them. A number that isn't tied to your actual application isn't information — it's an anchor. Ask instead for a written illustration from a licensed agent.
Factors that generally affect pricing
Age at issue
Age is typically the largest single driver. Premiums for a policy issued at 75 are generally substantially higher than for the same coverage issued at 60, and once issued, a level premium whole life policy's premium generally does not increase with age. Insurers also set minimum and maximum issue ages that vary by product.
Face amount
More coverage costs more. Insurers set minimum and maximum face amounts, and pricing is not strictly proportional — there are fixed policy costs, so the smallest policies are often the least efficient per dollar of coverage.
Health history and prescriptions
Simplified issue products use health questions to sort applicants into benefit structures and rate classes. Conditions commonly asked about include recent hospitalization, cancer treatment, heart or stroke history, kidney disease and dialysis, COPD and oxygen use, diabetes with complications, cognitive impairment, HIV, organ transplant, and use of a nursing home or hospice. Insurers commonly verify answers against prescription-history databases and industry data services. Different insurers treat the same condition differently, which is a real reason to compare more than one.
Tobacco or nicotine use
Tobacco use generally results in a higher rate class. Definitions vary — some insurers ask about cigars, chewing tobacco, vaping, or nicotine cessation products specifically, and lookback periods differ.
Sex
Rates commonly differ between men and women, reflecting mortality data, in states that permit this.
State of residence
Products must be filed and approved state by state. Availability, benefit structures, free-look length, and rates can differ, and some products are not offered in some states at all.
Benefit structure
Level, graded, and guaranteed issue policies are priced differently, as described in how coverage works. This is often the difference between two quotes that otherwise look alike.
Riders and payment mode
Optional riders add cost. So can payment frequency: paying monthly instead of annually often carries a modal factor, meaning twelve monthly payments can total more than one annual payment for the same year of coverage. Ask for both figures.
Costs the policy is often meant to address
Funeral costs vary widely by region, by provider, and by the choices a family makes — burial versus cremation, the type of service, cemetery and marker costs, which are frequently billed separately from the funeral home's charges. Rather than quoting an average that may not resemble prices where you live, we'd suggest getting real local numbers:
- The Federal Trade Commission's Funeral Rule requires funeral providers to give you an itemized general price list when you ask in person, and to quote prices over the phone. You are entitled to buy only the goods and services you want. See consumer.ftc.gov for the current rule and your rights under it.
- Call two or three providers in your area and ask for their general price list. This takes an afternoon and produces a far more useful number than any national average.
- Ask cemeteries separately about plot, opening and closing, vault, and marker costs, which are commonly not included in a funeral home's quote.
Alternatives worth pricing at the same time
Comparing a final expense policy only against other final expense policies can hide better options. Depending on your circumstances, some of these may be worth investigating with a professional:
- A fully underwritten life insurance policy, if your health would likely qualify you.
- Any existing coverage you may already have — an old individual policy, a group policy through a former employer, a union or association benefit, or a policy a family member took out years ago.
- Coverage that may be convertible or portable from a group plan.
- A dedicated savings account or a payable-on-death bank account, which avoids premiums entirely but requires the money to already exist.
- Preneed arrangements made directly with a funeral provider, understanding that these are a different product with different rules about refunds and portability.
- Veterans' burial benefits through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, if applicable, at va.gov.
Which of these makes sense — if any — is not something a website can determine. It depends on your age, health, income, existing assets, family situation, and goals.
Over a long period, the total premiums paid on a small policy can approach or exceed the death benefit, particularly when a policy is issued at an advanced age. That does not automatically make it a bad decision — insurance transfers the risk of dying early, and the benefit is paid whenever death occurs — but it is a calculation worth doing before you sign, and any competent agent should be willing to walk through it with you.
Last reviewed: August 12, 2026