Your 20s is a period when life usually feels wide open. You are just starting your career, responsibilities are manageable, and your financial decisions often involve savings and investment, travel plans, or the next big milestone. Life insurance, rarely makes it to the top of this list. It feels distant, or something to “think about later.”
But buying term insurance in your 20s may be one of the smartest financial decisions you ever make.
The Advantage of Age and Health
Term insurance pricing is heavily influenced by two factors, your age and health. When you’re in your 20s, both work in your favour. You are statistically considered healthy, less likely to have lifestyle-related issues, and considered low-risk by insurers. This means that your premiums are significantly lower for the same amount of coverage.
A policy purchased at 25 can cost almost half of what it would cost when you are 35. And it is important to note that this lower premium gets locked in for the entire policy term. That means you continue paying the same “20s pricing” even when you’re in your 40s or 50s.
In simple terms, you pay early, but you pay less throughout your policy term.
Waiting Has a Cost Few People Calculate
Most people delay term insurance thinking they’ll buy it once they get married, have children, or take on big loans. While the intention makes sense, the financial outcome often doesn’t.
With every passing year, your premiums increase due to increasing health risks like high blood pressure, diabetes etc. Even minor conditions can lead to increase in premiums or exclusions.
What feels like a sensible delay today can quietly turn into a long-term cost that runs into lakhs over the life of the policy.
Easier Medical Tests When You Are Younger
An often-overlooked advantage of buying a term insurance plan in your 20s is the simplicity of the underwriting process. Due to the likelihood of lesser health complications, younger applicants usually do not require extensive medical tests, repeated screenings or additional documentations. This helps in getting the policy issued faster.
As age increases, insurers tend to check health and medical history more closely. In addition, lifestyle factors such as smoking will invite higher premiums or special clauses. Thus, purchasing a term plan at 35 may become more time consuming and can come with higher charges. Buying at a young age reduces this friction.
Protection Before Prosperity
There is a growing tendency among young earners to prioritise investments such as mutual funds, stocks, crypto, real estate, while ignoring protection. But financial experts often stress a simple hierarchy: protection comes before wealth creation.
Having a term insurance policy ensures that if something unexpected happens, your family’s financial goals like home loans, daily expenses, and long-term security continues. Without adequate protection, even the best investment portfolio may not be enough.
Buying term insurance early ensures that your family is financially protected before responsibilities start.
Independence Doesn’t Mean No Dependents
A common myth is that term insurance is only for people with dependents. In reality, financial dependence isn’t limited to family members. Education loans, personal loans, healthcare, or even the expectation that parents may rely on you later are all forms of financial responsibility.
Additionally, life changes quickly. Buying term insurance plan early allows you to prepare for important life-stage events like marriage, children, buying a house etc. without financial pressure or rushed decisions.
Long-Term Protection at a Lower Premium
When you buy term insurance policies early, you can choose longer tenure options, and additional riders like critical illness cover, accidental cover, disability cover etc. are far more affordable.
More importantly, when you buy early, you don’t have to revisit coverage decisions under pressure. You aren’t forced to compromise on sum assured or policy tenure because of high premiums. The flexibility that comes with early planning is a benefit that’s hard to quantify, but deeply valuable.
A Financial Habit That Signals Maturity
Buying term insurance in your 20s isn’t about pessimism or fear. It’s about financial maturity. It reflects an understanding that planning ahead reduces future stress and cost.
Just as starting to invest early benefits from compounding, starting protection early benefits from cost efficiency.
Conclusion
Being in your 20s offer a rare financial advantage. You have low risk, high affordability, and long-term planning. Term insurance leverages all three. While purchasing a term plan may not seem like an immediate need, buying early ensures that when life becomes unpredictable, your family’s financial goals remain intact.
In hindsight, many people wish they had started sooner. When you are in your 20s, the opportunity isn’t gone, it’s right now. And it may just turn out to be the cheapest financial decision you ever make.
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