Ladder Life Insurance Review (Updated for 2023)
Some providers are now offering instant decisions after policy applications – including Ladder. This means you won’t have to deal with speaking with a life insurance agent or endure as much waiting time when applying.
While Ladder's policies offer convenience, they lack a few of the basic benefits that most term life insurance plans offer. This editorial provides some additional information about Ladder and their life insurance products to help you determine if they are the best option for you.
Quick Article Guide
Here’s what we'll cover in this post:
What Kind of Insurance is Ladder Life?
Ladder exclusively offers term life insurance. With their online portal, qualified individuals can purchase up to $3,000,0000 of coverage without completing a medical exam. These policies are ideal for securing short-term debts like a mortgage, or providing a replacement source of income to your family, but they do not offer permanent coverage.Ladder's term life insurance policies are offered in 5-year increments for 10 to 30 years, depending on the applicant's age. To qualify for coverage, you must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident that has lived in the U.S. for at least 2 years. Eligibility is based on a variety of factors including your overall health and lifestyle.
How Long has Ladder Life Been in Business?
Ladder is a relatively new life insurance platform that began offering coverage in 2017. They offer instant issue life insurance to qualified applicants between the ages 20 and 60. Ladder’s life insurance policies are issued through Allianz Life Insurance Company of New York or Fidelity Security.
Traditionally, when you apply for life insurance, it takes 4 to 8 weeks to hear back after you submit your application. With instant issue life insurance, the application process is done completely online, takes less than 20 minutes to complete, and you’ll receive an almost instant decision on whether or not your application was accepted.
Instead of requiring a medical exam to assess your overall health like traditional life insurance policies, instant issue life insurance companies like Ladder electronically review your Medical Information Bureau records, attending physician’s statements, prescription history, driving and criminal records to evaluate your insurability and overall risk to the company. If you’re approved, coverage starts immediately.
How Much Coverage Can I Qualify For?
With Ladder, qualified individuals aged 18 to 60 are eligible for up to $3,000,000 of instant issue life insurance without a medical exam. If you are applying for more than $3,000,000 of coverage, an exam is required for approval. *You must be a legal U.S. resident or permanent resident that has resided in the U.S. for at least 2 years.
The company currently offers 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 year level term policies, depending on the applicant's age. Your current age plus the term length cannot exceed 70-years-old. To help you understand further, see the chart taken from Ladder’s website below.
| Age | Maximum Term Length |
| 40-years-old | 30-year term |
| 45-years-old | 25-year term |
| 50-years-old | 20-year term |
| 55-years-old | 15-year term |
| 60-years-old | 10-year term |
Why We Don't Recommend Ladder Life Insurance
Since term life insurance is not supposed to last your entire lifetime, you will most likely outlive your policy. Term life insurance was designed to provide affordable coverage for a set amount of time and secure life events such as a mortgage or children’s education expenses.
That being said, insurers realize you can't predict the future, and your life insurance needs could change. This is why most top-rated life insurance companies offer a "conversion option" or guaranteed renewability with their term policies. This allows the insured to continue their coverage after their term ends, regardless of their health.
Unfortunately, Ladder DOES NOT OFFER a conversion option or guaranteed renewability with their policies. Having the abilty to continue your coverage after your term ends is an invaluable benefit that no one should be without. In addition, many people need some life insurance coverage after the age of 70, but this is not an option with Ladder.
Another important component every life insurance policy is the living benefits it offers. Living benefits are additional layers of protection that allow the insured to access their policy's death benefit while they are still living. Unlike most providers, Ladder's life insurance policies do not offer living benefits.
To learn more about living benefits, please see our insider's guide, "Life Insurance with Living Benefits."
Sample Life Insurance Rates
Below we have provided sample life insurance rates that Ladder currently offers to help you estimate the cost of your policy.
Monthly Rates for A Non-Smoking Male in Excellent Health – 10 Year Term
| Age | $100,000 | $250,000 | $500,000 | $750,000 | $1,000,000 |
| 30 | $9.36 | $11.65 | $16.91 | $21.50 | $26.10 |
| 35 | $9.44 | $11.87 | $16.91 | $21.50 | $26.10 |
| 40 | $10.12 | $14.45 | $21.50 | $27.88 | $33.23 |
| 45 | $12.31 | $21.06 | $33.66 | $45.62 | $53.07 |
| 50 | $16.37 | $29.66 | $49.17 | $68.70 | $85.32 |
| 55 | $23.02 | $44.72 | $80.43 | $115.21 | $146.29 |
| 60 | $34.95 | $69.83 | $127.97 | $189.57 | $239.90 |
Monthly Rates for A Non-Smoking Male in Excellent Health – 20 Year Term
| Age | $100,000 | $250,000 | $500,000 | $750,000 | $1,000,000 |
| 30 | $11.33 | $15.53 | $21.05 | $28.84 | $36.06 |
| 35 | $11.58 | $15.53 | $22.15 | $30.71 | $37.12 |
| 40 | $14.32 | $22.16 | $30.46 | $43.08 | $54.52 |
| 45 | $20.17 | $33.93 | $58.78 | $82.79 | $104.98 |
| 50 | $26.51 | $48.69 | $86.82 | $126.04 | $162.62 |
Monthly Rates for A Non-Smoking Female in Excellent Health – 10 Year Term
| Age | $100,000 | $250,000 | $500,000 | $750,000 | $1,000,000 |
| 30 | $9.19 | $11.12 | $15.49 | $20.16 | $22.84 |
| 35 | $9.19 | $11.20 | $16.01 | $20.02 | $23.28 |
| 40 | $10.02 | $14.29 | $20.60 | $26.54 | $31.44 |
| 45 | $11.50 | $18.02 | $29.66 | $39.60 | $48.51 |
| 50 | $14.69 | $24.39 | $41.38 | $55.64 | $70.93 |
| 55 | $19.62 | $35.22 | $60.40 | $83.97 | $106.64 |
| 60 | $26.09 | $50.24 | $86.70 | $124.31 | $159.08 |
Monthly Rates for A Non-Smoking Female in Excellent Health – 20 Year Term
| Age | $100,000 | $250,000 | $500,000 | $750,000 | $1,000,000 |
| 30 | $10.71 | $15.35 | $18.35 | $24.66 | $30.05 |
| 35 | $10.71 | $15.43 | $19.45 | $26.42 | $32.62 |
| 40 | $12.04 | $20.03 | $26.61 | $36.92 | $46.45 |
| 45 | $16.26 | $28.34 | $46.75 | $64.91 | $80.92 |
| 50 | $21.08 | $38.78 | $64.64 | $93.48 | $117.08 |
*Sample rates are accurate as of 11/30/22 and are provided for illustrative purposes only.
About JRC Insurance Group
At JRC Insurance Group, we have helped thousands of families and businesses with their life insurance needs, and we can help you too! Our agency is licensed in all 50 states and we’re independently owned and operated.
As a non-partial, no-fee brokerage, our goal is match our clients with the best life insurance options available by shopping and comparing rates from 63 highly-rated insurers. By having access to dozens of companies and their guidelines, we’re able to save our client’s time and money.
Most importantly, our services as completely free, and there is no cost to apply for coverage. Give us a call toll-free today at 855-247-9555, or you can request a free quote below to compare rates and options from dozens of insurance companies in less than a minute.
Jason Dana
Co-Founder and Managing Partner
Jason offers more than a decade of life insurance experience to JRC where he is a co-founder and managing partner. He specializes with helping clients who are considered a “high risk" for life insurance by finding the most affordable options for coverage available to them. Outside of work, Jason enjoys surfing, traveling, and spending time with friends and family.
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