Guide
How much life insurance do you need?
A tool and the reasoning: how many years of income to replace, what major debts matter, education budgets, and what coverage already exists.
A standard approach is to total the years of income you want to replace, add any major debts, subtract any existing coverage, and round to a number that fits the insurance market's standard increments. It does not have to be perfect—term policies come in round numbers, and the goal is to cover your household's core needs through the years when they matter most.
Coverage estimate
A rough formula: (annual income × years of replacement) + major debts + education savings − existing coverage, rounded to the nearest $5,000. This is a starting point, not financial guidance.
Why those inputs
Income years. The typical range is ten to twenty years; the right amount for you depends on how long your family would need that income. In Pomona, families with young children frequently go toward the higher end because childcare, housing, and education expenses tend to cluster in the same years.
Debts. For many households, a mortgage is the single largest liability. Coverage that would pay it off gives your survivors the choice to stay in the home—the decision is theirs to make, not the lender's.
Education. Set aside a rough number per child in today's dollars. It is simpler to include it in your initial coverage amount than to buy another policy down the road.
What you have. Savings available if needed, and any group coverage your employer provides. Group insurance typically ends when employment ends, so many people include only a portion in their total.
Once you have an estimate, the quote tool tells you what each carrier charges monthly for that amount over 10, 15, 20, 25, or 30 years. Many people pick a little more than they calculated because at younger ages the extra cost per month is modest.