Life Insurance Application Activity Hits Record Growth in 2025, MIB Reports
Life insurance application activity closed the year up 22% in December, the MIB Life Index reported, helping 2025 set a record for growth.
Application activity grew 6.8% in one year, 6.7% compared to 2023, and 9.8% compared to 2022, the MIB 2025 Annual Report found. It represented the highest total volume of annual application activity seen in the last 10 years.
Activity followed a steady upward trend throughout the year, MIB reported. The first quarter saw growth of nearly 1%, while the second quarter saw 3% growth. Activity kicked into high gear in the second half of 2025, with 9% growth in the third quarter and more than 15% in the final quarter.
All four quarters of 2025 either matched or outperformed activity in the corresponding quarter for each of the previous four years.
All age bands saw annual year-over-year growth in 2025, with growth rates increasing as age increases, and achieving double-digit growth for ages 61 and above, MIB found. Ages 71 and above led in application growth throughout the year, in the double-digits for all months except for February.
The relative volume of application activity by age group remained flat year over year across all age bands, MIB said. In 2025, the percent of total applications by age band is as follows:
Ages 0-30, down 1.1% over 2024, totaling 22.4%; ages 31-50, down 1% totaling 41.8%; ages 51-60 down 0.1%, totaling 16.3%; ages 61-70 up 0.9%, totaling 12.9%; and ages 71+ up 1.3%, totaling 6.6%.
More than 65% of total applications in 2025 were for amounts up to and including $250,000, MIB reported. With year-over-year growth of 6.7%, this face amount band had “a significant impact on the overall record-breaking results in 2025,” MIB said in a news release.