Which traditional whole life policy typically has the highest first-year annual premium?

The policy with the highest first-year annual premium is the 10-pay life. This type of whole life insurance allows the policyholder to pay premiums for only ten years, after which the policy is considered paid-up and will remain in force for the lifetime of the insured without further premium payments.

Since the premiums must cover the cost of the policy over a shorter payment term compared to other options like 20-pay life or 30-pay life, the annual premium for the 10-pay life policy will be significantly higher in the first year. The higher premium reflects the accelerated accumulation of cash value and the shorter duration of premium payments.

In contrast, the ordinary whole life policy typically has premiums spread over the life of the policyholder, resulting in lower annual payments each year. This extended payment period reduces the financial burden in the initial years, leading to lower first-year premiums. Similarly, the 20-pay and 30-pay life policies function on a similar principle but with longer payment durations, leading to lower first-year premiums than the 10-pay life policy.