Do I need life insurance?

Take our 1 minute quiz to find out if you need life insurance based on your circumstances.

Life Insurance

Quiz: Do I need life insurance?

When to think about taking out life insurance

People think about life insurance around these life stage changes:


Office worker

New job


Wedding ring

Married


Baby cloth

Had a baby


House

Bought a house


Investment

Made a large
investment


Money bag

Come into a large
amount of money

The most common are:

  • Having children. Parents-to-be often consider life cover to be a high priority when having kids enters their life.
  • Buying a house. Getting a mortgage is the biggest financial commitment most people make in their lives. It stands to reason that you'd consider protecting yourself ahead of your first mortgage payment.
  • Employment circumstances change. Going self-employed is one example of a time you'd want to consider life cover, especially if you lose other types of insurance that were tied to your former employers.
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Finder survey: At what age do Australians get life insurance cover?

Response75+ yrs65-74 yrs55-64 yrs45-54 yrs35-44 yrs25-34 yrs18-24 yrs
Life insurance13.79%16.57%32.56%37.31%38.07%43.12%27.84%
Source: Finder survey by Pure Profile of 1110 Australians, December 2023

Based on where I'm at in life, what type of cover do I need?

Everybody is different and cover requirements will change based on the events you encounter at different life stages. But still, it's worth a look at a more detailed overview of key times many decide to take out cover based on their life stage.

Life Insurance Graph

Different types of life insurance

Here are the main types of life and income protection cover you can get:

Shield with tick life insurance icon

Life cover.

Term life insurance provides a lump sum benefit to your beneficiaries in the event of death or after the diagnosis of a terminal illness. You can get this insurance as a standalone policy, or bundled with more cover options.

tpd

TPD insurance.

Total permanent disability (TPD) insurance provides a lump sum benefit if the policyholder suffers a disability as defined in their policy.

trauma

Trauma insurance.

Provides a lump sum benefit if the insured suffers a medical trauma that is specified in their policy. Most policies will cover up to 50 different conditions including strokes, cancer and heart attacks.

Tombstone icon

Funeral insurance.

Funeral insurance provides a lump sum benefit to cover funeral costs and other outstanding expenses. The maximum amount of cover that can be taken out is usually about $15,000.

income protection

Income protection insurance.

Income protection offers an ongoing benefit of up to 70% of the policyholder's regular income if they are forced to take time off work due to illness or injury. This benefit is usually paid monthly.

How much life insurance might I need?

The amount of life insurance you need depends on your personal circumstances, such as your age, and the type of cover you want. Start by coming up with an annual sum you'd need to cover your financial commitments. Some experts say the amount of cover you'd want is at least 10 times your annual salary. But it's really up to you to decide how much your family would be comfortable with based on your situation.

You could also check to see if you already hold some life cover, such as via employment benefits. See how much that would pay out to your dependents and then calculate how much extra they might need.

Compare life insurance quotes from more direct brands

1 - 7 of 12
Name Finder Score Maximum Cover Funeral Benefit Optional TPD Cover Optional Trauma Cover
Medibank Life Insurance image
Finder Award
Best Rated Brand
Finder score
Maximum Cover
$2.5 million
Funeral Benefit
$15,000
Optional TPD Cover
$1.5 million
(maximum cover)
Optional Trauma Cover
Get QuoteView details
Our verdict: Medibank offers a higher payout limit ($2.5 million) than 15 other providers. It also won Most Loved, Best Value and Legendary Service categories in the Finder 2024 customer

⭐ Current offer: Save 10% on your first year of Medibank Life Insurance when you apply by 10 December 2024. T&Cs apply.
ahm Life Insurance image
Finder score
Maximum Cover
$1.5 million
Funeral Benefit
$15,000
Optional TPD Cover
$1 million
(maximum cover)
Optional Trauma Cover
Get QuoteView details
Our verdict: ahm offers a simple application process. Be approved online or over the phone. No medical or blood tests needed to apply.

⭐ Current offer:Get 10% off your first year of ahm life insurance when you apply by 10 Dec 2024. T&Cs apply.
AAMI Life Insurance image
Finder score
Maximum Cover
$1.5 million
Funeral Benefit
$10,000
Optional TPD Cover
Optional Trauma Cover
Get QuoteView details
Our verdict: There’s flexibility with AAMI as you can add another adult to your cover, with a competitive limit of $1.5 million. Easy application process with no medical exams.

⭐ Current offer: Take out an AAMI Life Insurance policy and get a $100 eGift card after 4 months of cover. Offer ends 03/03/2025. T&Cs apply.
Suncorp Life Insurance image
Finder score
Maximum Cover
$1.5 million
Funeral Benefit
$10,000
Optional TPD Cover
Optional Trauma Cover
Get QuoteView details
Our verdict: Competitive maximum cover limit of $1.5 million. Suncorp lets you change your cover amount by up to $100,000 after a big life event, such as having a baby.

⭐ Current offer: Take out a Suncorp Life Insurance policy and get a $100 eGift card after 4 months of cover. Offer ends 03/03/2025. T&Cs apply.
Real Family Life Cover image
Finder score
Maximum Cover
$1 million
Funeral Benefit
$10,000
Optional TPD Cover
$1 million
(maximum cover)
Optional Trauma Cover
Get QuoteView details
Our verdict: The application is simple; it can be done with 1 phone call and there are no medical exams. But households with larger debts may need more than a $1 million payout.

⭐ Current offer: Get back 10% of the premiums you’ve paid after 1 year.
Zurich Ezicover Life Insurance image
Finder score
Maximum Cover
$1.5 million
Funeral Benefit
$15,000
Optional TPD Cover
Optional Trauma Cover
Get QuoteView details
Our verdict: Good if you want a cheap policy from a well-regarded insurer – its 98% claims acceptance rate is higher than any other provider on Finder. Zurich keeps things simple: unlike others, it doesn’t go in for optional add-ons such as TPD or trauma cover.

⭐ Current offer: Policy discounts include 10% off for your partner if you sign up for a joint policy. You can also get 5% off income protection if you buy it alongside your life cover.
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Finder Score - Life Insurance

Life Insurance is a little complicated and a lot overwhelming. That's why we made the Finder Score, to make it easier to compare Life Insurance products against each other. Our experts analysed over 30 products and gave each one a score between 1 and 10.

But a higher score doesn't always mean a product is better for you. Your situation is unique, so your policy choice will be too. Don't think of Finder Score as the final word, but as a good place to start your life insurance comparison.

Read full Finder Score methodology

Why compare life insurance with Finder?

  • You pay the same price as buying directly from the life insurer.

  • We're not owned by an insurer (unlike other comparison sites).

  • We've done 100+ hours of policy research to help you understand what you're comparing.

Frequently asked questions

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Written by

Editor

James Martin was the insurance editor at Finder. He has written on a range of insurance and finance topics for over 7 years. James often shares his insurance expertise as a media spokesperson and has appeared on Prime 7 News, WIN News, Insurance News, 7NEWS and The Guardian. He holds a Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification and a Tier 1 Generic Knowledge certification, both of which meet the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio

James's expertise
James has written 205 Finder guides across topics including:
  • Car, home, life, health, travel and pet insurance
  • Managing the cost of living
  • Money-saving tips

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