Term plan vs Life Plan

• Best whole life insurance plan for Cheapest Premiums – FWD Life Protection
• Best whole life insurance plan for Flexible Premium Term coverage – NTUC Income Star Secure Pro
• Best whole life insurance plan for Longest Multiplier coverage – China Taiping i-Secure Legacy II
• Best whole life insurance plan for Flexible Multiplier coverage – Singlife Whole Life Choice
  

This list of the 4 Best Whole Life plans for life-long coverage and wealth accumulation is updated as of 02/01/2025

Why choose a whole life insurance policy?

Whole life insurance usually requires a long-term financial commitment with premiums payable over a 5 to 25 years period. However, whole life insurance policies can provide lifelong insurance coverage and financial assurance for you and your family.

Some whole life insurance providers have even more flexible premium terms which allow you to pay premiums until age 64, thereby paying cheaper premiums monthly.

As replacing or early terminating will result in financial losses, ensure that you have comprehensive coverage in your whole life insurance policy. This reduces the chances that you have to pay a higher premium when you are older to cover gaps in your insurance coverage shortfalls.

Your whole life insurance plan should have sufficient coverage for:

• Death
• Terminal Illness (TI)
• Total Permanent Disability (TPD)
• Critical Illness (CI)
• Early Critical Illness (ECI)
  

Ensure your exisiting policies has adequate coverage by doing a yearly insurance portfolio review. It is important to review your insurance policies on a regular basis to close up gaps or terminate unneccesary plans for cost savings.

Coverage multipliers can be attached to a whole life insurance plan to further boost your claims payout up to age 70, 75 or 86, when a severe illness can heavily impact your income and finances. Some whole life insurance plans continue to give you boosted coverage even after reaching the age of multiplier expiry

Depending on your personal lifestyle, the sum assured amount for the above can be individually adjusted to meet your coverage needs.

Exisiting medical conditions may impact the application of your whole life insurance, therefore, it is important to get yourself adequately covered within your budget while you are still healthy. Read more about how your exisiting medical conditions can impact your insurance application.

Related article: How much life insurance coverage you do need? (Updated)

Is term life insurance better than whole life insurance as the premiums are lower?

Term life policies require insurance premiums to be paid for every policy year, with significantly higher premiums payable upon expiry or end of your coverage term. As the premium collected goes towards compensating the risk of the insurer for providing coverage, a term life plan does not generate any cash value.

Term life plans are, however excellent for additional coverage where the shortfall is expected for a temporary basis or when acquiring additional financial commitment. Some life events where term life plans provide excellent value include:

• Birth of a child
• Marriage
• Purchase of a property
  

On the other hand, whole life insurance plans have a limited payment term (up to 25 years). For a higher premium, the whole life insurance plan has guaranteed and projected surrender values that increase on a yearly basis.

Depending on specific whole life insurance plan features, the surrender value can be withdrawn as a single lump sum upon termination or converted into an annuity for a yearly income payout.

The total insurance premium paid for a whole life insurance plan may be lower, compared to a term life for a long period of coverage. In addition, the whole life insurance plan can accumulate attractive cash value for a future lump sum withdrawal.

Related article: Term life vs Whole life (Financial cost and benefits analysis)