U.S. life insurance application activity ended the first half of 2026 up +15.4% Year-to-Date (YTD), achieving the highest YTD growth rate and highest total application activity at mid-year on record. When taking a historical lookback, 2026 mid-year YTD activity was up +18.0% compared to 2024 and up +18.5% compared to 2023. Activity in June also achieved record-breaking Year-over-Year (YOY) growth, up 20.9% and representing the highest growth rate for any June on record. Further, activity during Q2-2026 compared to Q2-2025 achieved the highest growth rate for any Q2 on record at +16.6%. Additionally, in a pattern consistent with historical seasonal trends, Q2-2026 was down compared to Q1-2026 by -8.7%.

⁠The first half of 2026 saw a consistent pattern where monthly YOY growth percentages increased as age increased. This trend was also reflected in 2026 quarterly comparisons and YTD results. Ages 30+ saw consistent YOY growth across all 6 months, in the double digits for ages 50+, while ages 0-39 saw declines in January and May, and growth in all other months. For the month of June 2026, all age bands saw YOY growth, in the double digits for ages 40+. On a quarterly basis, when comparing Q2-2026 to Q2-2025, all age bands also saw growth, in the double-digits for ages 40+ with ages 0-29 up +2.0%, ages 30-39 up +7.7%, ages 40-49 up +15.5%, ages 50-59 up +23.8%, ages 60-69 up +27.7%, and ages 71+ up +45.5%. On a YTD basis, activity through mid-year 2026 saw growth for ages 30+, in the double digits for ages 40+, and was flat for ages 0-29.

Based on data reported to MIB by our members, June 2026 saw YOY growth for all face amounts, in the double digits for amounts from $1 up to but not including $250K and $1M and over. When comparing Q2-2026 activity to Q2-2025, all face amounts also saw growth, in the double digits for amounts from $1 up to but not including $250K and from $500K up to but not including $5M. Additionally, when comparing YTD activity for the first half of 2026 to 2025, all face amounts saw growth, in the double digits for amounts from $1 up to but not including $2.5M and in the triple digits for amounts and from $2.5M up to but not including $5M.

When including age bands comparing Q2-2026 to Q2-2025, ages 0-29 saw declines for amounts from $1 up to but not including $100K, flat activity for amounts from $250K up to but not including $500K, and growth for other face amounts, in the double digits for amounts $1M and over. Ages 30-39 saw growth for amounts $100K and over, in the double digits for amounts from $1M up to but not including $5M, and declines for amount from $1 up to but not including $100K. Ages 40-49 saw growth for all face amounts, in the double digits for amounts from $100K up to but not including $250K, and for amounts from $500K up to but not including $5M. Ages 50-59 saw double-digit growth for amounts from $1 up to but not including $2.5M, triple-digit growth for amounts from $2.5M up to but not including $5M, and flat activity for amounts $5M and over. Ages 60-69 saw double-digit growth for amounts from $1 up to but not including $5M, and double-digit declines for amounts $5M and over. Ages 70+ saw growth for amounts from $1M up to but not including $2.5M, in the double digits for amounts from $1 up to but not including $100K and for amounts from $250K up to but not including $1M, and in the triple-digits for amounts from $100K up to but not including $250K, and declines for amounts $2.5M and over, in the double digits for amounts $5M and over.

When examining product types as reported to MIB by our members and comparing Q2-2026 to Q2-2025, all product types saw growth, in the double digits for Term Life and Whole Life. Term Life was up +28.2%, Universal Life up +8.1%, and Whole Life up +22.8%. When including age bands when comparing Q2-2026 to Q2-2025, Term Life saw double-digit growth for ages 0-69 and triple-digit growth for ages 70+. Universal Life growth for ages 40+, in the double digits for ages 50-69, and declines for ages 0-39. Whole Life saw growth for ages 30+, in the double digits for ages 40+, and flat activity for ages 0-29. When looking at mid-year 2026 YTD, all products ended the half at double-digit growth.

For the mid-year report, we are including an analysis of application activity by gender (based on activity where gender was reported to MIB). Females accounted for 45.8% of total application activity while males accounted for 48.5% YTD through June of 2026 (note this does not add up to 100% since gender is not always reported to MIB). If this pattern continues through year-end, it will be the third year in a row where application activity for males represents a greater percentage of total volume than that for females. This is a shift from 2019 – 2022 when activity for females held a larger percent of total volume than that for males (in 2023 it was an even 50/50 split). It is also interesting to note that, consistent with last year, the first half of 2026 saw more application activity for females than for males ages 60+, whereas there is more activity for males than females for ages 0-59.

Following a pattern seen in the mid-year analysis for the past three years, application activity for males experienced higher YTD growth than that for females through June 2026, with male activity increasing by 19.1% and female activity increasing by 15.4%. Ages 0-29 showed flat activity for females and growth for males, while all other age bands exhibited growth for both males and females. YTD growth in activity for males outpaced that for females for ages 0-69, with growth for application activity for females outpacing males for ages 70+. The largest gender-based disparity in YTD growth at mid-year was seen for ages 70+, where growth was 8.2% higher for applications for females vs males, followed by ages 30-39 where growth was 7.2% higher for males vs females.

When examining YTD activity by face amount and gender, amounts $5M and over saw flat activity for females, while all other face amount and gender combinations saw growth, in the double-digits for amounts from $1 up to but not including $2.5M and triple-digits for amounts from $2.5M up to but not including $5M for both genders.

When comparing the percent change YTD by gender, amounts over $1M up to but not including $5M saw higher growth for females than for males, amounts from $1 up to but not including $100K and from $500K up to but not including $1M saw a consistent growth rate across genders, and all other face amounts saw higher YTD growth for males than females.

When adding product type to our gender analysis, both genders saw double-digit growth across all product types. Within that, YTD growth for applications for males outpaced that for females for both Term Life and Universal Life, while growth in applications for females outpaced that for males for Whole Life.

Coming Soon - As part of our mid-year report, we will publish a supplemental video with additional insights into the first half of 2026, followed by a webinar that expands the analysis using MIB Aptivity® data and analytics to provide a more granular view of the market trends taking shape. Watch your email for more information and follow us on LinkedIn for updates in your feed.

Note: All analysis is based on data as reported to MIB by our members.

Methodology Change for 2026:

MIB has revised our methodology to fine tune our age and face amount bands to better meet industry needs, while also incorporating more precise filtering to isolate new business application activity and define applicant country. Please see the main MIB Life Index page on our website for details on our methodology change. All historical data in this report has been restated based on our new methodology, however, historical reports archived on our website reflect the methodology in place at the time of publication.

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