Life insurance

What’s the Cost of No-Exam Life Insurance?

By Jessica Sillers Jun 22, 2023
A glass piggy bank is held up in mid-air by the hands of a young child. It contains multiple one-dollar bills and is sealed shut with a cork.

In this article

When applying for life insurance, being asked to take a health exam can give people pause: Do you really want to be poked and prodded? No-exam life insurance is a way to gain coverage to help protect your family without needing to step on a scale or get your blood drawn. 

But that leads many people to wonder: Does it cost more to get a policy without a health exam?

In some cases, you may be able to get a term life insurance policy at the same price as if you’d taken a medical exam. In other cases, if your age and health isn’t optimal enough to qualify for a term life policy with accelerated underwriting, you might need to opt for a simplified issue or guaranteed issue life insurance policy if you’re intent on skipping that exam. Consider the pros and cons of going for a no-exam option.

Prices can vary greatly based on several factors such as:

  • What kind of policy are you applying for? For the most part, simplified issue and guaranteed issue policies will be more expensive than policies that are medically underwritten.

  • How much coverage are you applying for? The higher your face amount (that's another word for your coverage amount), the more expensive your policy.

  • How long is your term length? The longer the term length, the pricier the policy.

  • What are your age, gender, health and other personal details? Because life insurance policies are priced according to your levels of risk, your individual situation will determine whether you're offered coverage and for how much.

Below are sample rates for a 30-year-old, non-smoking male in Texas in excellent health (in other words, the best risk class) according to Fabric's term life insurance quotes as of May 2023.

Of course, this is only an example and your real rates are likely to vary. Additionally, this hypothetical man in Texas may be able to skip the health exam because he meets the various parameters of our algorithms, but not every applicant through Fabric will be able to skip the exam.

Fabric exists to help young families master their money. Our articles abide by strict editorial standards.

Information provided is general and educational in nature, is not financial advice, and all products or services discussed may not be offered by Fabric by Gerber Life  (“the Company”). The information is not intended to be, and should not be construed as, legal or tax advice. The Company does not provide legal or tax advice. Consult an attorney or tax advisor regarding your specific legal or tax situation. Laws of a specific state or laws relevant to a particular situation may affect the applicability, accuracy, or completeness of this information. Federal and state laws and regulations are complex and are subject to change. The Company makes no warranties with regard to the information or results obtained by its use. The Company disclaims any liability arising out of your use of, or reliance on, the information. The views and opinions of third-party content providers are solely those of the author and not Fabric by Gerber Life.


Author bio headshot, Jessica Sillers
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Jessica Sillers

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