Best Term Life Insurance Companies of October 2025

Why You Should Trust Us

Investopedia’s team of researchers and editors analyzed 45 life insurance companies using dozens of key criteria, including financial stability, customer satisfaction, coverage options, and cost. Our goal is to provide unbiased, detailed reviews to help you choose the right term life insurance company for your needs. 

Investopedia was founded in 1999 and has helped readers find the best life insurance providers since 2020.

How Does Term Life Insurance Work?

Term life insurance is a type of life insurance that gives policyholders coverage for a fixed period of time, typically between 10 and 30 years. If a policyholder dies while they have term life insurance, their beneficiaries (the people they choose to receive the money) will receive a tax-free payment known as a death benefit. 

However, if the policyholder outlives their term life insurance or allows their coverage to lapse, their beneficiaries will not receive the death benefit and the insurance company will keep the premiums the policyholder has paid. 

Many term life insurance plans have level premiums–meaning premiums are fixed through the life of the policy. 

However, there are many other types of term life insurance. For example, if you opt for a decreasing term life insurance policy, the death benefit payout is reduced periodically during the duration of your coverage. These plans are typically more affordable because your coverage declines over time. These plans may have level premiums or premiums that decrease over the plan’s term.

Some companies also offer convertible insurance, which allows policyholders to convert their term life insurance policy to a permanent life insurance policy. This provides lifelong coverage, usually without having to provide an additional medical exam.

Who Is Term Life Insurance Good For?

Term life insurance is a good choice for people who want more affordable premiums and only need coverage for a fixed period of time. These plans may be especially beneficial for people with financial obligations that might not last forever.

For example, someone might take out a term life insurance plan that matches the length of their mortgage. That way if they die before their mortgage is paid off, they can leave money to a spouse to help pay it off. 

Term life insurance policies can also be a solid option for people who have dependents. If you  take out a term life insurance policy while your children are young, you can help ensure that there’s money to raise your child or to pay off their college education if you die before the child becomes an adult. 

And since term life insurance expires after a period of time, you might want to choose a policy with a term that ends once your child is an adult. Sometimes as people get older, they have fewer people relying on them financially.

What Is the Difference Between Term and Permanent Life Insurance?

Term life insurance offers coverage for a fixed term while permanent life insurance provides lifelong coverage. 

With term life insurance, insurance companies only pay out a death benefit if a term life insurance policyholder dies while they’re covered. 

In contrast, permanent life insurance policies provide lifetime coverage, so a policyholder’s beneficiaries are guaranteed to receive the death benefit as long as the policyholder’s coverage doesn’t lapse. Because of this, permanent life insurance tends to be much more expensive than term life insurance, as companies are taking on more risk with permanent life insurance policies.

Additionally, permanent life insurance policies often offer a feature known as cash value, a cash savings component that enables policyholders to accumulate money over time. When permanent life insurance policyholders pay their premiums, a portion of that money goes toward building cash value. 

Depending on the policy, you can withdraw from that cash value, borrow from it, or even use it to pay premiums.

Pros and Cons of Term Life Insurance

Pros Explained

• Affordable premiums: Typically, term life insurance policies are significantly more affordable than permanent life insurance policies because coverage is limited to a certain period of time.
• Could be convertible to a permanent life insurance policy: Some term life insurance policies offer policyholders the ability to convert their policy to a permanent one once the term expires (or sooner). This can be useful for people who decide they want lifelong coverage and don’t want to complete another medical exam to qualify for a new policy.
• Might be beneficial if you have dependents: For people who have children, a spouse who depends on their income, a mortgage, or other significant financial needs, a term life insurance policy can be a good choice. By purchasing a term life insurance policy, you can leave your family money that can be used flexibly, whether it’s to pay for your child’s college education or to pay off a mortgage. With term life insurance, you can buy a policy that lasts for as long as your children are considered dependents, as you may not need insurance once they’re no longer dependents.

Cons Explained

• No cash value: Cash value is a savings and investment component that’s offered with most permanent life insurance policies. These policies normally pay interest on the cash value as it accumulates.
• Coverage expires after a set period of time: Insurance companies typically don’t end up paying out the death benefit on term life insurance policies because policyholders tend to outlive their coverage. This means that many policyholders could pay premiums for years or decades, and their beneficiaries won’t receive any money.
  

How We Review the Best Term Life Insurance Companies 

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

The results 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 representatives, and information from rating agencies.

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

• Policy Features and Riders: 31%
• Application and Online Service Features: 27%
• Cost: 18%
• Customer Satisfaction: 10%
• Policy Types: 8%
• Financial Stability: 6%

For more information, read our full methodology explanation.