Doesn’t my job already cover this?

The short answer

The typical basic coverage offered at work is a flat $20,000 or one year’s salary (LIMRA, 2025), and it usually ends when the job does. Count it as a start, not the plan.

Probably a little. Almost certainly not enough, and almost certainly not for as long as you think.

Don't know a word? Press any purple word to see what it means. They're all listed at the bottom of the page.

What work cover gives you

Two things worth knowing before you count it as the plan.

47%of people who have life insurance have coverage through workLIMRA, 2026

49%of households with only work cover say their families would struggle financially within six months if a wage earner diedLIMRA, 2025

How much: often a flat amount or one year’s salaryLIMRA’s 2025 research puts the typical amount at a flat $20,000 or one times salary. The question in step 1 was never “what is one year of my income”. It was who is left holding the bills, and for how long.

Whose it is: it belongs to the job, not to youLeave, get laid off, retire, and it generally goes out the door with you. Some plans let you convert or continue it. That usually costs more than the employer’s rate, and the window to decide is often about a month.

The easiest mistake to avoid in this whole guide is treating the coverage at work as the plan.

Four things to find out this week

Your HR team can answer all four in one email.

The actual amountIn dollars, not in multiples of salary.
Whether it drops at a certain ageSome step down at certain ages. Ask.
Whether you can take it with youWhat that costs, and how many days you would have to decide.
Whether you topped it up yourselfThe extra you bought through work usually behaves differently from the part the employer pays for.

One email to your HR team

Nobody has to call you to find that out, and nothing in that email is a sales conversation.

Remember this

Find out the dollar amount of your work cover, and what happens to it when you leave.

Words on this page

Conversion: Turning term or work coverage into a policy of your own without a new medical exam, as long as you do it inside the window the policy allows.

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