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Term life ladder calculator
Your obligations end at different times, so your coverage should too. Stack layers that expire when the mortgage is paid and the kids are grown, and compare lifetime cost against one level policy carried the whole way.
Your layers
Estimated $291/year for 10 years.
Estimated $291/year for 20 years.
Estimated $337/year for 30 years.
Ladder, lifetime premium
$18,842
$920/yr in year one
One 30-year policy
$35,209
$1,174/yr for $1,050,000
The ladder costs $16,367 less over the full period — about 46% — because you stop paying for coverage once the obligation behind it is gone.
Coverage in force
Each step down is a layer expiring. Check that the drop lines up with the year the obligation actually ends.
Show the math — year-by-year coverage and premium
| Year | Age | Coverage in force | Annual premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 40 | $1,050,000 | $920 |
| 2 | 41 | $1,050,000 | $920 |
| 3 | 42 | $1,050,000 | $920 |
| 4 | 43 | $1,050,000 | $920 |
| 5 | 44 | $1,050,000 | $920 |
| 6 | 45 | $1,050,000 | $920 |
| 7 | 46 | $1,050,000 | $920 |
| 8 | 47 | $1,050,000 | $920 |
| 9 | 48 | $1,050,000 | $920 |
| 10 | 49 | $1,050,000 | $920 |
| 11 | 50 | $550,000 | $628 |
| 12 | 51 | $550,000 | $628 |
| 13 | 52 | $550,000 | $628 |
| 14 | 53 | $550,000 | $628 |
| 15 | 54 | $550,000 | $628 |
| 16 | 55 | $550,000 | $628 |
| 17 | 56 | $550,000 | $628 |
| 18 | 57 | $550,000 | $628 |
| 19 | 58 | $550,000 | $628 |
| 20 | 59 | $550,000 | $628 |
| 21 | 60 | $250,000 | $337 |
| 22 | 61 | $250,000 | $337 |
| 23 | 62 | $250,000 | $337 |
| 24 | 63 | $250,000 | $337 |
| 25 | 64 | $250,000 | $337 |
| 26 | 65 | $250,000 | $337 |
| 27 | 66 | $250,000 | $337 |
| 28 | 67 | $250,000 | $337 |
| 29 | 68 | $250,000 | $337 |
| 30 | 69 | $250,000 | $337 |
Each layer is priced separately at Preferred non-tobacco rates for a male issued at age 40, plus a $75 annual policy fee per layer. Total paid over the life of the ladder: $18,842 versus $35,209 for one level 30-year policy at $1,050,000.
Ready to price it for real?
Read the Texas term life page for carrier-by-carrier pricing, then bring these layers to a call. Not sure the class you picked is realistic? Check it in the health class calculator.
Quote this $1,050,000 ladder for a 40-year-old Preferred non-smoker →Premiums modeled on Texas level-term offers documented as of March 2026 in the Texas underwriting guide.
How laddering works
A 30-year level policy charges you for 30 years of the same death benefit even though most households need the most coverage in the first decade — young kids, a full mortgage, and the longest runway of income left to replace. A ladder splits that benefit into layers with different end dates, so the premium falls as each obligation clears.
The trade-off is complexity and separate policy fees: each layer carries its own annual fee (modeled here at $75), and each is separately underwritten, so a health change between applications can leave one layer priced worse. Apply for all layers at once with the same carrier and you avoid that.
Model assumptions
Premiums are modeled from Texas level-term offers documented in our underwriting guide, adjusted by term length, sex, health class, and tobacco status. It assumes every layer is issued on the same day at the same class, and it does not include carrier band discounts at $1M and $2M, which can make a large single policy cheaper than this model shows. Real quotes decide.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a term life insurance ladder?
- A ladder splits your total death benefit across several policies with different lengths — for example 10-, 20-, and 30-year terms — so coverage steps down as the obligations behind it end, instead of paying for one large policy long after you need it.
- How much does laddering term life insurance save?
- Savings depend on how front-loaded your obligations are. Households whose largest need is a mortgage plus young children commonly see a meaningful reduction in lifetime premium versus a single 30-year policy, because the excess coverage expires early instead of being paid for across the full term.
- Are separate policy fees a problem with a ladder?
- Each policy carries its own annual fee, and the calculator includes them. On small face amounts those fees can erase the savings, which is why a ladder is generally worth modeling above roughly $500,000 of total coverage.
- Should every layer be bought from the same carrier?
- Not necessarily. Buying layers from different carriers can capture each one's best band pricing, but it also means separate underwriting decisions. The calculator assumes one health class issued on the same day, so re-run it if your layers are approved at different classes.