Compare indicative premiums from 6 top insurers — LIC, HDFC Life, ICICI Pru, Max Life, Tata AIA & SBI Life. Includes ROP option, rider costs, cover-till-age selector & HLV calculator.
| Insurer & Plan | Annual Premium | Per Instalment | Total Over Term | CSR FY23–24 | Key Feature |
|---|
All figures indicative per standard healthy profile. ⭐ = cheapest option. No GST on individual term plans w.e.f. 22 Sept 2025. CSR = Claim Settlement Ratio (IRDAI Annual Report FY 2023–24). Verify at insurer's portal before buying.
HLV estimates the present value of your future earnings minus expenses — i.e., how much money your family needs if you were not there. Enter your details below to get a recommended sum assured.
Term insurance has one job: if you die during the policy term, your family receives the sum assured. That is the entire product. No investment, no maturity payout, no survival benefit. The premium is low precisely because there is no savings component. A 30-year-old buying Rs.1 crore cover for 30 years pays roughly Rs.10,000 to Rs.13,000 per year. The same Rs.1 crore cover in an endowment plan costs Rs.3 lakh or more annually. The difference is what you pay for the savings and guaranteed return components that term insurance does not have.
The 10x income rule gives you a starting point. Someone earning Rs.12 lakh annually needs at least Rs.1.2 crore in term cover as a floor. The more precise approach is the Human Life Value method: calculate the present value of your future net income (income minus what you personally consume) over your remaining earning years, then add any outstanding loans your family would inherit. A 32-year-old earning Rs.12 lakh with Rs.30 lakh remaining on a home loan and 28 working years ahead has an HLV of approximately Rs.1.8 to Rs.2.2 crore. The HLV calculator on this page runs the full calculation. Use the 10x rule as the absolute minimum and the HLV figure as the target.
The claim settlement ratios across top insurers tell a different story than most LIC loyalists expect. Max Life settled 99.51% of claims in FY23-24. HDFC Life: 98.66%. Tata AIA: 98.53%. LIC: 98.62%. These numbers are nearly identical. The meaningful difference is premium. For the same Rs.1 crore cover, LIC typically charges 15 to 25% more than the private players listed above. On a Rs.12,000 annual premium, that 20% premium difference is Rs.2,400 per year, or Rs.72,000 over 30 years. A practical approach that many financial advisors recommend: take 50% cover from LIC for the government backing, and 50% from a private insurer for the lower premium. Total cost comes in below an all-LIC purchase, and the settlement risk is diversified.
ROP plans return every rupee of premium paid if you survive the term. Sounds appealing until you look at the premium difference. A pure term plan for a 30-year-old buying Rs.1 crore cover for 30 years costs around Rs.11,000 per year. The ROP version of the same plan costs Rs.17,000 to Rs.19,000. The extra Rs.6,000 to Rs.8,000 per year, invested in an index fund at 11% annual return for 30 years, grows to Rs.15 to 18 lakh. The ROP plan returns approximately Rs.5.1 to 5.7 lakh in premiums at maturity. Pure term plus investing the difference wins by Rs.10 lakh or more. The only reason ROP makes sense is for someone who genuinely will not invest the difference and wants a forced return mechanism on their insurance spend.
Critical Illness Rider: The one rider most worth adding. It pays a lump sum on diagnosis of listed illnesses (cancer, heart attack, stroke, kidney failure) regardless of whether you survive. The money covers treatment costs and the income gap during recovery. Medical treatment for cancer in a private hospital runs Rs.15 to 30 lakh or more. Without the CI rider, your family uses the term cover for living expenses. With the CI rider, the lump sum covers treatment while the full death cover remains intact. Add this if there is any family history of serious illness.
Accidental Death Benefit Rider: Pays an additional sum equal to the base cover if death is accidental. The cost is typically 3 to 6% of the base premium, making it one of the cheapest ways to add meaningful additional cover. Worth adding if you travel frequently or have physically active work.
Waiver of Premium Rider: Waives all future premiums if you become permanently disabled, keeping the policy fully active. Particularly valuable for 30-year policies taken at 30: the premiums due between age 55 and 60 are significant, and a disability event at 50 should not cancel the policy your family depends on.
Riders to skip: Income Benefit Riders and Return of Premium Riders added as riders rather than built-in are generally overpriced. Compare the rider cost against the alternative of increasing the base sum assured.
Individual term insurance premiums are fully GST-exempt from 22 September 2025 following the 56th GST Council decision. Before that date, 18% GST was added to term premiums, which meant a Rs.10,000 annual premium actually cost Rs.11,800. That Rs.1,800 per year extra on a 30-year policy adds up to Rs.54,000 in additional cost over the term. From September 2025, that charge is gone. Riders on individual policies (Critical Illness, Accidental Death Benefit, Waiver of Premium) are also GST-exempt. Group term insurance through employers continues to attract 18% GST. The premiums shown in this calculator are the net amounts you pay with GST at zero.
Cover yourself for as long as anyone depends on your income. The specific answer depends on three things: when your youngest child becomes financially independent, when your major loans are repaid, and when you expect to have built enough retirement savings that your family would be financially secure without your income. For a 32-year-old with a 5-year-old child, a 20-year home loan, and a retirement target at 60, cover until age 62 or 65 is appropriate. Covering beyond 70 significantly increases the annual premium for a period of life where your financial dependents are unlikely to exist and your savings should be sufficient. Pick the term that covers the longest of these three timelines and add 2 to 3 years as a buffer.
Term insurance has one job: if you die during the policy term, your family receives the sum assured tax-free. No investment component, no maturity payout, no survival benefit. The annual premium is low because the insurer only prices mortality risk. A 30-year-old gets Rs.1 crore cover for 30 years at roughly Rs.10,000 to Rs.13,000 annually. The same Rs.1 crore in an endowment plan costs Rs.3 lakh or more per year.
The 10x rule gives you a floor: 10 to 15 times your annual income as the minimum cover. A more precise number comes from the HLV method on this calculator: present value of your future net income (income minus personal consumption) over your earning years, plus outstanding loans, minus existing life cover. For a 32-year-old earning Rs.12 lakh with Rs.30 lakh left on a home loan, that typically works out to Rs.1.8 to Rs.2.2 crore.
No GST from 22 September 2025. Individual term insurance premiums are fully exempt following the 56th GST Council decision. Before that, 18% GST added Rs.1,800 to a Rs.10,000 annual premium. Over a 30-year policy that was Rs.54,000 in additional cost. That is now zero. Riders on individual policies are also GST-exempt. Group term through employers continues to attract 18% GST.
ROP returns all premiums paid if you survive the term. The cost is 50 to 75% higher than a pure term plan. For a 30-year-old buying Rs.1 crore cover for 30 years: pure term costs roughly Rs.11,000 per year, ROP costs Rs.17,000 to Rs.19,000. The extra Rs.7,000 per year invested at 11% over 30 years grows to Rs.16 lakh. The ROP plan returns about Rs.5.1 to 5.7 lakh at maturity. Pure term plus investing the difference wins by Rs.10 lakh or more.
The claim settlement ratios are nearly identical across top insurers: Max Life 99.51%, LIC 98.62%, HDFC Life 98.66%, Tata AIA 98.53% for FY23-24. The meaningful difference is premium. LIC typically charges 15 to 25% more than private plans for the same cover. On a Rs.12,000 annual premium, that 20% difference is Rs.2,400 per year, or Rs.72,000 over 30 years. A practical strategy: 50% cover from LIC for government backing, 50% from a private insurer. Total cost comes in below all-LIC and settlement risk is diversified.
Critical Illness Rider is the one worth prioritising. It pays a lump sum on diagnosis of listed illnesses regardless of whether you survive. Medical treatment for cancer in a private hospital runs Rs.15 to 30 lakh. Without the CI rider, your family uses the death cover for treatment. With it, treatment is funded separately and the full sum assured remains for the family's future. Accidental Death Benefit costs 3 to 6% of the base premium and is worth adding. Waiver of Premium matters for long 30-year policies. Skip bundled Income Benefit or ROP riders which are usually overpriced.
The earlier, the cheaper and the healthier you are, the better the terms. A 25-year-old pays 40 to 50% less annually than a 35-year-old for identical cover and tenure. Premiums step up sharply after 40 and again after 45. A medical condition that develops between 30 and 40, even a manageable one like controlled diabetes, raises premiums or triggers exclusions. The single best time to buy was when you started earning. The next best time is now.
Smokers pay 50 to 70% more than non-smokers for the same cover. The proposal form asks directly about tobacco use. Answering dishonestly is the most common reason insurers reject claims, because post-claim medical investigations frequently reveal the concealment. If you have not used any tobacco products for 3 or more consecutive years, most insurers reclassify you as a non-smoker after medical tests, which brings premiums down to non-smoker rates going forward.
Cover yourself for as long as someone depends on your income. Three timelines determine the right term: when your youngest child becomes financially independent, when your major loans are fully repaid, and when your retirement corpus will be large enough to sustain your family without your income. Pick the latest of those three dates, add 2 to 3 years as buffer, and that is your cover-till age. For most 30-somethings this works out to age 60 to 65.
HLV calculates the present value of your future net income, which is your income minus what you personally consume, over your remaining earning years, discounted at a real return rate. It then adds outstanding liabilities. The result is the amount of capital your family would need invested today to replace your economic contribution indefinitely. It produces a more defensible cover amount than the 10x rule because it accounts for your actual income trajectory, spending patterns, existing assets, and discount rate. The HLV calculator on this page runs each step with your specific numbers.
