Buying Life Insurance in Your 60s and 70s
People in their 60s and 70s should reevaluate their life insurance — and whether they need coverage at all.
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The value of life insurance is fairly clear to a young parent, homeowner or married couple. But things get more complex for older buyers. Many people in their 60s and 70s might no longer need life insurance. They may have already paid off the house, stopped working, sent the kids off to care for themselves or accumulated enough assets to offset the need for life insurance. But sometimes it makes sense to keep or buy life insurance after age 60.
Whether you decide to double down or drop coverage, your retirement years are often a good time to reexamine your life insurance. Here are some of the options.
Keeping your life insurance
As you enter your 60s, you might find you still need life insurance. Maybe:
You’re still working. If you and your spouse depend on your income, it’s wise to back that income up with life insurance.
You have a high net worth. Financial advisors often recommend permanent life insurance for people with estates that may be subject to estate tax. In 2026, the threshold is $15 million. This figure can vary year over year, based on factors like inflation and changes in laws.
Others depend on you financially. If you still support children or other loved ones, consider keeping coverage.
You intend to live off your cash value. Some people fund their retirement using withdrawals from their cash value policies.
Buying new life insurance
If you didn’t purchase life insurance when you were younger and are hoping to get a policy now in your 60s or 70s, you might find yourself in a tough position. Life insurance rates increase as you age, and any health problems you’ve developed may make it challenging to find an affordable policy.
How much is a $500,000 life insurance policy for a 60-year-old?
A healthy 60-year-old nonsmoker may qualify for average life insurance rates between $157 and $220 per month on a $500,000, 20-year term policy, according to LifeStein.com, a life insurance brokerage.
When it comes to whole life insurance, a policy for a healthy 60-year-old man who doesn’t smoke costs about $1,209 per month. For a woman of the same age and health, the price is around $1,056 per month. The same whole life policy for a healthy 30-year-old nonsmoking man costs, on average, just $305 per month and $274 for a woman.
While policies tend to get more expensive as you age, the payout your life insurance beneficiaries would receive might be larger than the amount you could save yourself over a few years if you didn’t buy a policy at all.
If you’re interested in buying a policy, explore these options:
If you’re in good health, you might be able to apply for a term life insurance policy. While whole life coverage lasts a lifetime and can increase in value, temporary term life coverage is usually much cheaper.
If you’re not in good health, consider guaranteed issue life insurance, which is open to those ages 50 and older, and approval is guaranteed. Coverage is capped at low amounts between $2,000 and $35,000, but you won’t need to answer health questions or take a medical exam. A $20,000 guaranteed issue policy costs an average of $113 per month for a 60-year-old man and $84 per month for a woman of the same age, according to Choice Mutual, a life insurance brokerage specializing in this type of coverage. Just know these policies often have a “waiting period,” meaning if you die within two years of buying the policy, the insurer generally won't pay out the full benefit and may only refund the premiums paid.
Combining life insurance with long-term care
You may have started to think about the costs of long-term care, such as home care or nursing assistance, as you age. If you’re interested in these types of benefits, consider combining life insurance with long-term care.
There are two main options:
Buy a life insurance policy with a long-term care rider. Depending on your insurer, you might be able to add a long-term care rider to your policy. These life insurance riders pay out if you’re unable to perform certain activities of daily living, such as eating and going to the bathroom by yourself
Look into a hybrid life insurance and long-term care policy. These policies offer more flexibility with long-term care benefits compared with those you would get with a life insurance rider.
» MORE: Compare life insurance quotes
Extending or converting your policy
If you have a whole life insurance policy, you can most likely continue with that coverage for the rest of your life. Whole life insurance is permanent coverage, which means you can keep it as long as you pay for it, up to a maximum age such as 95 or 120.
If you have a term life insurance policy, you have a few options for extending your coverage. You can:
Renew your policy. Many insurers allow you to renew your policy, regardless of your health, at the end of the term. This can be a good option in your 60s or 70s if you want to keep your existing coverage, because you won't need to take another life insurance medical exam. Keep in mind that your premium will probably increase significantly, and some companies don’t allow renewals after a certain age.
Extend your policy. Many term life insurance policies can be extended, though premiums increase each year. Some insurers offer this with a “decreasing death benefit,” which means your coverage will taper off over time as you need less life insurance.
Convert your policy to whole life insurance. Some policies offer the ability to convert term life to whole life insurance or another type of permanent policy before the end of your term. Though you shouldn’t have to undergo another medical exam, you might have to convert the policy well before your term expires. Typically, insurers only allow conversion to a policy of their choice.
Dropping your life insurance
Some people reach their 70s relatively free of financial worries. If no one depends on your income, you’ve paid off all major debts and your children's educations are sorted out, you can probably do without a life insurance policy.
Have term life insurance? You could keep your policy until it expires, or you could call your agent or insurer and ask to cancel your coverage. You may also simply stop paying the premiums.
Want to get out of permanent life insurance? This is a little trickier, and anyone considering it should talk to a fee-based life insurance advisor before canceling. If you’ve held the policy for decades, you may have built up significant cash value in your life insurance. Once you let your agent or your company know that you’d like to discontinue the policy, you should receive a check for the amount you’ve accumulated, minus any surrender fees or outstanding policy loans.
You can also consider a life settlement. This involves selling your life insurance policy to a third party, who becomes the new owner and/or beneficiary of the policy. The buyer pays future premiums and collects the entire life insurance death benefit when the insured dies. The amount of money you receive from the sale will depend on a variety of factors. It’s important to work with a fee-based life insurance advisor who can help monitor the process and explain the tax ramifications.
The bottom line
You may no longer need life insurance once you’ve hit your 60s or 70s. If you’re living on a fixed income, cutting the expense could give your budget some breathing room. Make sure to discuss your needs with an insurance agent or a financial advisor before making any major moves. If you drop coverage and decide later that you’d like to sign up again, it’s often prohibitively expensive to get a new policy.
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