U.S. life insurance application activity saw Year-over-Year (YOY) growth at +9.7% in October 2026, achieving the second highest total volume of activity for any month on record (March 2026 being the highest). On a Year-to-Date basis (YTD), activity through October 2026 showed double-digit growth, up +14.9% compared to October 2025. When taking a historical lookback comparing October YTD 2026 to the same month in prior years, activity was up +21.6% vs 2024 and up +22.5% compared to 2023. On a Month-over-Month (MOM) basis, October 2026 saw growth by +5.1% compared to September.

October 2026 saw YOY growth for ages 40+, in the double digits for ages 50+, flat activity for ages 30-39, and declines for ages 0-29. Activity for ages 0-29 was down -2.6%, ages 30-39 flat at +0.2%, ages 40-49 up +5.9%, ages 50-59 up +14.2%, ages 60-69 up +22.6%, and ages 70+ up +39.8%. On a Year-to-Date (YTD) basis, activity through October 2026 saw growth for ages 30+, in double digits for ages 40+, with flat activity for ages 0-29. October YTD activity for ages 0-29 was flat at +0.1%, ages 31-39 up +4.9%, ages 40-49 up +12.9%, ages 50-59 up +21.4%, ages 60-69 up +29.3%, and ages 70+ up +47.3%.

Based on information reported to MIB by our members, October 2026 saw YOY growth for amounts from $100K up to but not including $250K, double-digits growth for amounts from $1 up to but not including $100K, and for amounts from $1M up to but not including $5M, flat activity for amounts $5M and over, and declines for amounts from $250K up to but not including $1M. When comparing YTD activity through October 2026, all face amounts saw growth, in the double digits for amounts from $1 up to but not including $250K and from $1M up to but not including $5M.

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

Based on information reported to MIB by our members, October 2026 saw YOY double-digit growth for Term Life and Whole Life, and flat activity for Universal Life. Term Life was up +13.7% YOY, Whole Life was up +17.5%, and Universal Life was flat at -0.3%. Term Life saw YOY growth across all age bands, in the double digits for ages 40+. Whole Life saw YOY growth for ages 40+, in the double digits for ages 50+, and declines for ages 0-39. Universal Life saw YOY growth for ages 50+, in the double digits for ages 60-69, flat activity for ages 40-49, and declines for ages 0-39, in the double digits for ages 30-39. Additionally, when comparing YTD activity through October 2026, all product types saw double digit growth.

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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