Life Insurance for Singles: Do You Need It?

Because so many of the purposes for having a will, trust, life insurance, etc., are to protect and convey assets to one’s spouse and children, many single persons – unmarrieds and never-marrieds – might place a relatively low priority on estate planning and related issues.

That would be a mistake, as end-of-life planning is important for every adult, regardless of marital status or family composition.

For a single person, having a well-conceived estate plan checks many important boxes, including:

• managing their finances, assets, and healthcare if they become incapacitated;
  
• naming heirs and beneficiaries to receive their assets;
• ensuring the orderly transfer of assets;
• avoiding guardianship, conservatorship, and probate; and
• of growing importance for many people, married or single: caring for pets.
  

(See our planning options and rates at “An Estate Plan Tailored to Your Needs.”)

Life Insurance. On a related topic, a recent Wall Street Journal article provides useful guidance regarding another planning issue: life insurance.

In “Does a Single Person Need Life Insurance?” (March 23, 2026 – subscription required), the writer notes that, depending on their situation, people who have no dependents may have many of the same insurance needs as people who have families. If you are single, and any of the following factors apply to you, consulting with a life insurance professional would be a prudent step.

• Paying for your long-term care is a priority. A hybrid life insurance policy, the Journal article suggests, offers the “dual benefit of a life insurance payout or access to funds for expensive long-term care costs.”
• You want to cover the cost of your burial or cremation.
• You own a business, and a life insurance policy would help preserve the business’s value if a key employee were to die.
• You are one of multiple owners of a business or real property, and life insurance would fund a buy-sell agreement triggered by the death of a co-owner. (See our article, “Multiple Owners? A Buy-Sell Agreement Is a Must.”)
• You have debts or other financial obligations that, upon your death, would require liquidating assets that you intend to go to friends, relatives, charities, or causes.
• You don’t anticipate having such debts, but you want to provide, at your death, cash for friends or relatives, or you want to endow a charity or cause.
• The value of your estate exceeds $15 million, making it subject to estate taxation.
  

Life insurance policies come in three main forms:

• Term life insurance, which offers coverage for a specific period of time (e.g., 10, 20 or 30 years). The amount of insurance and the length of your coverage should align with your financial commitments (e.g., your mortgage).
• Permanent life insurance, which typically continues for as long as you live, has a defined death benefit, and can be treated as an investment that grows in value.
• Hybrid life insurance, mentioned above, that can pay for some combination of long-term care expenses and a death benefit.
  

Non-Insurance Alternatives. As we suggested earlier, your situation might not warrant the purchase of life insurance. The Journal article describes non-insurance alternatives, such as:

• retirement accounts, such as IRAs and 401(k)s;
• other investment accounts, such as index funds or ETFs (exchange-traded funds);
• high-yield savings accounts;
• a health savings account (HSA); and/or
• annuities.
  

We Can Help – Indirectly. To be clear, we are estate planning attorneys, and when it comes to investment and insurance planning, we endeavor to stay in our lane.

However, we work closely with many excellent financial professionals throughout Arizona; feel free to contact us for a referral.