How much life insurance do you actually need?
Four numbers, one honest answer. This calculator uses the DIME method (Debt, Income, Mortgage, Education) to turn your real obligations into a coverage recommendation. No email wall, and no premiums invented here.
The calculator
Slide your numbers in. Watch the answer build.
Each slider maps to one letter of DIME. Your recommendation updates as you slide and is rounded to the nearest $25,000, the way term coverage is actually sold.
Credit cards, car loans, student loans, and any other obligation that is not forgiven at death.
What your family would need each year for daily living. Typically 60–80% of your post-tax income.
Rule of thumb: until your youngest turns 18.
The balance remaining on your mortgage, so your family keeps the home outright.
What each child would need for college or university, minus anything already saved.
Optional context
Age and province never change how much coverage you need, so they don't change this number. They do change your price, which takes about 60 seconds to check.
The method
DIME: four numbers that cover what actually matters.
Guessing a round number leaves families short. DIME works backwards from your obligations instead, one letter at a time.
D is for Debt
Everything you owe outside the mortgage: credit cards, car loans, student loans, lines of credit. Debts that are not forgiven at death land on your estate, and often on your family.
I is for Income
The paycheques your family would lose, for as many years as they'd need them. Most households need 60–80% of the earner's post-tax income to keep daily life running.
M is for Mortgage
The remaining balance on your home. A payout that clears the mortgage means your family grieves in their own house, with the biggest bill of their lives already handled.
E is for Education
College or university costs for each child, minus what you've already saved. It's the promise most parents want their coverage to keep, even if they're not there to keep it.
Reading your result
What to do with your number.
Treat it as a target, not a mandate. The recommendation is the amount that would clear your debts, replace your income for the years you chose, pay off the home, and fund your kids' education all at once. If the premium for the full amount doesn't fit your budget, some coverage always beats none: even half your DIME number keeps the mortgage paid or the income flowing.
Subtract what you already have. If you carry group life insurance through work or hold savings you'd consider spendable (an emergency fund, non-registered investments), you can reduce your target by those amounts. Just remember that workplace coverage usually ends when the job does.
Add your final expenses. DIME covers the living; it doesn't include the cost of a funeral. We recommend budgeting anywhere from $8,000 to $20,000 depending on the province and the type of funeral you'd want.
Questions
About this calculator.
Why is the result rounded to the nearest $25,000?
Because that's how term life coverage is actually sold. Policies come in $25,000 increments, so a recommendation of $487,340 isn't something you can buy. Rounding gives you a number you can take straight into an application.
Does this calculator show me a price?
No, and that's deliberate. This tool answers one question: how much coverage your family would need. Your price depends on your age, health, and the amount you choose. Checking it takes about 60 seconds, needs no medical exam, and comes with a decision within 24 hours.
What if I already have some life insurance?
Subtract your existing coverage from the recommendation to find your gap. One caution: if your only coverage is a group policy through work, it typically disappears when you change jobs or retire, so many people prefer to own their core coverage personally and treat workplace coverage as a bonus.
Do my age and province change the recommendation?
No. How much coverage you need is driven by your obligations (debts, income, mortgage, kids), not by your birthday or postal code. Age and province do affect your premium, which is a separate question this page deliberately doesn't answer. Oneday coverage is available in Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia.
You know your number. Now see what it costs.
No email required, no medical exam, and a decision within 24 hours. Rates are set by your age at application, so checking today locks in today's age.
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