Currently, there are several options for term life insurance policies. Some of these options include 5 year, 10 year, 15 year, 20 year, 25 year and 30 year terms. The right term length for you will depend on your personal financial situation at the time that you purchase your policy. The goal of a term policy is to provide money to pay debts and expenses so the people who are financially dependent on you have less of a burden should you ever pass away.

When trying to figure out the term length, you will often here different ways to calculate the length.

Here are two tips you can follow when determining length.

• The longer the term the better.
• The longer the term the more money you will spend, but also your range of coverage increases dramatically.
• If available, get a term policy you can convert into a permanent life policy.
• Get coverage for a minimum of 10 years.
  
  

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How Long Do I Need Term Life Insurance?

These 3 factors play a role in how long you need coverage.

Years Left on Your Mortgage
A mortgage is a huge debt and the people who depend on you financially need to have protection until the mortgage balance is paid off.

Your Age
Your loved ones need your income until you retire. Subtract your current page from your estimated retirement age.

Youngest Child's Age
The cost to raise a child on average is $221,000 not including college. Assume that you need funds to cover for your child until the page of 24. So subtract your youngest child's age from 24.

The Math 

Take the largest number of years from the three questions above and round up that is a good idea of how long of a term life insurance policy you should get.

Example Scenario

I am 40 years old and my youngest child is 10 years old. There are 15 years left on my mortgage.

Mortgage
I have 15 years left on a 30-year mortgage.

Years Till Retirement
With a retirement age of 65 and a current age of 40, that leaves 25 years I am expected to provide income.

Youngest Child's Age
Subtract my child's age of 10 from 24. That leaves 14 years until my child is 24.

Example Result

Out of all three factors. The time of 25 years between my current age and my retirement is the longest stretch and the recommended term length for a life insurance policy.  

Conclusion

Remember that everyone's situation is different and cost always plays a factor in determining what you can afford each month. The good thing about term policies.