Insurance Calculators
Medicare, life & health insurance calculators. All tools are free, instant, and updated for 2026.
Life Insurance Needs Calculator
Find your ideal life insurance amount
Use calculatorHealth Insurance Cost Calculator
Estimate health insurance costs
Use calculatorMedicare Plan G vs N Calculator
Compare Medicare Supplement plans
Use calculatorAbout Insurance calculators
Insurance calculators answer two different questions: how much cover do I need, and which of these options costs less. The first is a planning question, the second is arithmetic — and the arithmetic usually turns on details buried in the policy rather than the headline premium.
The recurring trap is comparing premiums alone. A cheaper plan with higher copays, a lower cap, or an exclusion you will actually use is not cheaper, and the difference only shows up once you model realistic usage.
The ideas these tools share
- You are buying the tail, not the average
- Insurance is priced so that the expected payout is less than the premium, which means on average you lose money. That is not a flaw. You buy it for the outcomes you could not absorb, so the right question is never whether it pays off on average but whether the worst case would ruin you.
- Premium and total cost are different numbers
- A lower premium bought with a higher deductible, tighter network or thinner coverage can cost more in any year you actually claim. Compare the total you would pay under a realistic usage pattern, not the monthly figure on the quote.
- Term length should match the obligation
- Life cover exists to replace what your income was going to do. That means matching the term to the years the dependants or the mortgage actually need covering, rather than buying a round number of years because it was offered.
- Enrollment windows are hard edges
- Medigap, Medicare and employer plans all have periods during which you are accepted without medical questions. Outside them, underwriting applies and pre-existing conditions can raise the price or deny cover outright. Missing a window is one of the few insurance mistakes that cannot be corrected later.
- Identical coverage, very different prices
- Some products are standardised by regulation, so the benefits are the same across every carrier selling them and only the premium differs. Where that is true, shopping is pure saving with no trade-off.
Which one do you need?
- You are approaching 65
- Medicare Plan G vs N, which compares total annual cost at your actual visit frequency.
- You have dependents
- Life insurance needs, which works from what your income replaces rather than a multiple of salary.
- You are choosing a health plan
- Health insurance cost, which models premiums against deductible and expected usage.
Where these go wrong
Shopping on premium alone
A cheaper premium bought with a higher deductible or a narrower network can cost more in any year you claim. Compare total cost under a realistic usage pattern.
Missing a guaranteed-issue window
Inside the enrollment period you cannot be turned down or surcharged for health. Outside it, underwriting applies. This is one of the few insurance mistakes with no later remedy.
Buying a round number of years of term
Twenty years is a convention, not an analysis. Match the term to the years your dependants or your mortgage actually need covering.
Paying more for standardised cover
Where benefits are set by regulation, every carrier sells the identical product. Any premium difference is pure saving, and the spread between carriers can be large.
Common questions
How much life insurance do I actually need?
Enough to replace the income your dependents rely on for as long as they rely on it, plus any debt that would otherwise fall to them. Rules of thumb like "ten times salary" are a starting point that ignores how many years of support are actually needed and what other assets exist.
Why does the cheapest plan often cost more?
Because the premium is only part of the cost. A lower premium usually buys a higher deductible, higher copays, or a narrower network. The comparison that matters is total expected annual cost at your realistic usage, which is what these tools compute.
When can I change my Medicare supplement?
You have a six-month open enrolment window starting when you are 65 and enrolled in Part B, during which any insurer must sell you any plan at their standard rate. Outside it, most states allow medical underwriting — so the choice made in that window is often effectively permanent.
How much life cover do I actually need?
Start from what your income was going to pay for and over how long: remaining mortgage, years until dependants are independent, education, and any debt that would pass to someone else. Multiples of salary are a shortcut that ignores whether the obligations are five years away or twenty-five.
Is a high deductible plan a mistake?
Not inherently. It shifts cost from certain to contingent, which suits someone with the savings to absorb the deductible and few expected claims. It suits someone with chronic costs or no cash buffer poorly, because the saving on premium is smaller than the exposure.
Why do identical plans cost different amounts?
Where benefits are standardised by regulation, they genuinely are identical across carriers and the difference is purely price, marketing and rating method. Where they are not standardised, differences in network, formulary and exclusions can be substantial and are worth reading before comparing.