Lesson 5 of 6 · How much life cover you need · 5 min read · Reviewed 15 Oct 2026
Add your family’s yearly expenses for the years they would need support, your loans and big goals like education, then subtract savings and cover you already have. A family spending ₹12 lakh a year for 20 years, with ₹40 lakh of loans, ₹50 lakh of goals and ₹30 lakh saved, needs about ₹3 crore.
Term insurance pays a fixed sum to your family only if you die during the policy term, which is why it costs far less than plans that return premiums.
The cover should let your family keep living as they do, repay loans and still fund big goals. Subtract what you already have saved and any cover you already hold.
Key idea: Cover from your employer usually ends when you leave the job.
Try the calculator and the one-question quiz on this page to check your own numbers.
It is a quick check, not a plan. Working from expenses, loans and goals gives a number that fits your family.
Only while you work there. It usually ends when you change jobs or retire.
A pure term plan pays nothing if you outlive the term. That is why it costs far less than plans that return premiums.
For learning only, not investment advice. Designed and built by people who have worked at India’s leading wealth management firms.