How we calculated your results

Our calculators are designed to help you better understand insurance concepts using educational examples and general planning assumptions. They are not intended to provide insurance quotes, underwriting decisions, financial, tax, or legal advice.

Insurance products vary by carrier, policy, state, underwriting guidelines, and individual circumstances. The results shown should be used as a starting point for learning and discussion with a licensed insurance professional.

Disability Income Protection Calculator

Why does this calculator use a 60% benchmark?

Disability insurance is generally designed to replace a portion of earned income rather than all of it. Individual disability insurance policies commonly replace approximately 50%–70% of earned income or higher, although actual available coverage depends on factors such as:

  • Earned income

  • Occupation

  • Existing disability coverage

  • Employer-provided benefits

  • Carrier underwriting guidelines

  • State availability

  • Policy design and optional riders

For educational consistency, this calculator uses 60% of gross monthly income as a comparison benchmark. This benchmark is intended to help illustrate how your current disability income protection compares with a commonly referenced replacement level. It is not a quote or guarantee of available coverage.

How is the Disability Insurance protection level calculated?

The Projected Income Protection Through Age 65 compares your projected disability income benefits to the educational benchmark used throughout the calculator.

The calculation considers:

  • Your current age

  • Gross monthly income

  • Current monthly disability benefit

  • Benefit waiting period (elimination period)

  • Benefit duration

The Protection Level is calculated as:

Projected Current Disability Benefits Through Age 65
÷
Projected 60% Income Benchmark Through Age 65
× 100

The calculator estimates:

  • Your projected disability income benefits based on the monthly benefit entered, the selected waiting period, and the selected benefit duration.

  • The educational benchmark by multiplying 60% of your gross monthly income by the number of months remaining until age 65.

The resulting percentage illustrates how closely your current disability income protection aligns with the educational benchmark used in the calculator.

How is Emergency Savings used?

Emergency savings are input only to illustrate how long your available cash reserves may help cover living expenses during a disability.

The calculator assumes emergency savings:

  • Do not include retirement accounts or investments you would not reasonably access during a disability.

  • May be used during the benefit waiting period before disability income benefits begin.

  • May continue helping cover any remaining monthly expenses after disability benefits begin.

Emergency savings do not affect your Protection Level, because the Protection Level measures disability income protection—not total financial assets.

How Long Could Your Emergency Savings Last?

The savings illustration compares two scenarios:

Without Disability Income Benefits

Illustrates approximately how long your emergency savings may last if monthly living expenses are paid entirely from savings.

With Your Current Disability Income Benefits

Illustrates approximately how long your emergency savings may last when your current disability income benefits reduce the amount that must be withdrawn from savings each month.

These examples are intended to demonstrate how disability income insurance may help preserve emergency savings. They do not predict the length of a disability or guarantee benefit eligibility or claim approval.

Life Insurance Needs Calculators

Why doesn't the calculator recommend one amount for everyone?

Life insurance needs are highly personal.

The amount of coverage appropriate for one family may be very different from another based on factors such as:

  • Income

  • Debts

  • Mortgage balance

  • Children or dependents

  • Education funding goals

  • Existing life insurance

  • Savings and investments

  • Final expenses

  • Estate planning objectives

For this reason, our calculator estimates a potential need based on the information you enter for your situation rather than recommending a one-size-fits-all amount.

How is my estimated life insurance need calculated?

The calculator estimates your potential insurance need by considering:

  • Income replacement

  • Mortgage payoff

  • Outstanding debts

  • Education funding

  • Final expenses

  • Existing savings and investments

  • Existing life insurance coverage

The difference between your estimated need and your current life insurance is displayed as your estimated coverage gap.

This estimate is intended for educational planning purposes and should not be interpreted as a recommendation to purchase any specific amount of life insurance.

Why does the calculator show a coverage gap?

The estimated coverage gap simply illustrates the difference between:

Estimated Financial Need minus Existing Resources

The gap helps identify areas that may warrant further review but does not imply that additional insurance is necessary or available.

VGLI premium timeline calculator

VGLI premiums generally step up as you enter higher age brackets. Our VGLI premium timeline calculator shows the monthly premium at each future bracket using the same coverage amount entered. The VGLI premium timeline calculator is for educational illustration designed to help users understand how VGLI premiums may change by age bracket. It is not a bill, quote, recommendation, guarantee of coverage, guarantee of cost, or replacement for official VA/OSGLI information. Calculations are based on VGLI monthly premium rates effective July 1, 2025, applied to a level face amount across future age brackets. Actual future premiums depend on the VA/OSGLI rate schedules in effect at that time, which are reviewed periodically and may change. Confirm current information directly with the VA: https://www.va.gov/life-insurance/options-eligibility/vgli/

Our Educational Philosophy

The Coverage Catalysts website was created to help consumers make more informed insurance decisions through education.

Our calculators are designed to:

  • Explain insurance concepts in plain language.

  • Illustrate how common insurance strategies may work.

  • Help identify questions you may wish to discuss with a licensed insurance professional.

  • Encourage informed decision-making, not pressure you into purchasing insurance.

We believe that an informed consumer is better equipped to choose the coverage that best fits their own goals and circumstances.