Life insurance for diabetics is not only possible—it is often affordable when the application is positioned correctly. The biggest mistake most diabetic applicants make is assuming that “a quote is a quote,” applying with the first company they see, and then living with the outcome. In reality, carriers don’t evaluate diabetes the same way. One insurer may treat your A1C trend, medication history, and follow-up pattern as a manageable risk, while another views the exact same profile as higher risk and prices it accordingly. At Diversified Insurance Brokers, we focus on carrier fit first, so your profile is evaluated where it’s most likely to be treated fairly—not where it’s most likely to be overcharged.

It also helps to know what underwriters are really doing behind the scenes. Diabetes is rarely assessed in isolation. Carriers commonly look at build, blood pressure, cholesterol, sleep apnea, and cardiovascular history, then decide how those factors interact. If you want the broader framework for how insurers think about overlapping medical history, start with best life insurance for pre-existing conditions. That guide explains why one “primary” condition can lead to very different outcomes depending on the full health profile and the company you choose.

If you want a quick starting point to frame budget and coverage, begin with instant life insurance quotes. Then you’ll get better results when you pair pricing with a clear coverage target. Our planning guide on how much life insurance you actually need helps you avoid the two most common mistakes: buying too little coverage because you’re focused only on premium, or buying far more than necessary because you’re unsure how to estimate risk.

How diabetes affects life insurance underwriting

When an insurer underwrites diabetes, they’re trying to answer a straightforward question: “How likely is this applicant to experience a major complication during the life of the policy?” The difference between companies is how they measure that risk—and how much weight they place on specific data points. Most carriers start with your diabetes type and diagnosis date because duration can be predictive. From there, they look at control metrics, especially A1C, and—just as important—the direction of your A1C over time. A stable trend that has improved or remained consistent is often viewed more favorably than a single “good” lab that conflicts with older results.

Next is treatment intensity. Type 2 diabetes managed with lifestyle changes or metformin is often underwritten differently than diabetes requiring multiple medications or insulin therapy. That doesn’t mean insulin is a deal-breaker; it means the carrier will look more closely at consistency, follow-up care, and any signs of end-organ involvement. Some underwriters also like to see tools and routines that demonstrate durable management. For example, if you use a CGM, summaries can support your file when they align with labs and physician notes, especially when your follow-up schedule is consistent and your records are clean.

Finally, most diabetes cases are decided in the “complications and comorbidities” layer. Hypertension, high cholesterol, obesity, or sleep apnea do not automatically prevent approval, but they can change class. Complications such as neuropathy, retinopathy, kidney disease, or cardiovascular disease don’t end the conversation either—they change the strategy. In those cases, we shift to carriers that tend to be more reasonable for the specific complication involved, or we adjust term length and product structure to match what is realistically obtainable at the best value.

Type 1 vs. Type 2: what carriers usually care about most

Although every company is different, well-controlled Type 2 diabetes often receives more flexible treatment when complications are absent and follow-up care is consistent. Applicants with Type 2 who show stable weight, durable lab history, and routine physician visits may qualify for Standard and, in some cases, better than Standard depending on age and the full profile. The “sweet spot” tends to be applicants who can demonstrate long-term stability rather than a short-term improvement right before applying.

Type 1 diabetes is usually evaluated more conservatively because it is typically lifelong and insulin-dependent. That said, the market is more workable for stable Type 1 than many people expect. Applicants who show consistent care, stable A1C trends, and clean complication screening can often secure coverage with manageable table ratings, and the right carrier can make a meaningful difference in cost. If your Type 1 is stable and documented properly, the goal becomes avoiding carriers that reflexively overprice the risk and targeting the ones that evaluate stability more accurately.

Who typically qualifies for strong offers

The best offers usually show up when the file tells a coherent story: diagnosed, treated, consistent follow-ups, stable labs, and no red-flag complications. For Type 2, applicants who keep A1C in a healthy range, maintain routine primary care visits, and avoid major “risk layering” (like uncontrolled blood pressure) tend to see the best pricing. Even when A1C isn’t perfect, an improving trend paired with consistent follow-up can move a case from a heavier rating into a more reasonable one.

For Type 1, strong offers are most often tied to stable management, clean complication screening, and consistent physician narratives in records. Underwriting doesn’t need perfection; it needs predictability. If labs, prescriptions, and physician notes are consistent, you’re usually in a much better position than someone with scattered or conflicting records, even if that person’s most recent A1C looks similar.

If you’ve been declined before, that does not mean you’re uninsurable. Declines often happen because the application went to the wrong carrier for the profile, went in with missing information, or was submitted before improved labs were documented long enough to be credible in underwriting. This is exactly where a targeted approach matters. Our high-risk life insurance process is built to position diabetic cases for success without creating unnecessary declines.

High earners with diabetes also face a practical challenge: larger coverage needs can trigger deeper underwriting. If you’re in that category, review life insurance for high income earners for guidance on structuring larger policies intelligently so you protect real obligations without paying for coverage you don’t actually need.

How to improve your pricing before you apply

One of the simplest ways to improve outcomes is timing. Underwriting is evidence-based, and evidence is most convincing when it’s recent and consistent. If you’ve improved control over the last six to twelve months, waiting until you have updated labs and documented follow-ups can materially change the result. Insurers care less about what you intend to do and more about what the records show you already did.

Documentation matters, too. A diabetic file that includes recent labs, clear physician notes, and a stable medication history tends to move faster and price more fairly than a file where the carrier has to guess. If you use a CGM, summaries can be helpful when they support the lab story. If medication changes occurred, outcomes improve when records show why changes were made and what stability looked like afterward.

Coverage structure can also lower costs without sacrificing protection. Instead of buying one oversized policy for the longest possible term, many families do better by matching coverage to real obligations. If a mortgage is paid off in 18 years, a 30-year term may not be necessary for the full amount. If children are financially independent in 12 years, not all coverage needs to last 25 years. The planning framework on how much life insurance you need helps align coverage to your risk horizon before you commit to a premium you’ll pay for years.

Which coverage types work best for diabetic applicants

For most diabetics who want the most death benefit per dollar, term life insurance is usually the starting point. Term is designed for the years when financial obligations are highest: raising children, paying a mortgage, and replacing income. When the file supports competitive underwriting, term can deliver meaningful protection at a price that fits most budgets. If you want to compare term options against broader strategies and product structures, our group vs. individual life insurance page can help you see what tends to travel with you and what doesn’t.

Permanent life insurance can be valuable when you have lifelong planning goals like estate or legacy planning, or when you want coverage to remain in force after the term window. Permanent coverage can also matter if you want the option to convert a term policy later without providing new medical evidence, which can be especially useful if you suspect health might change over time. If you’re exploring how conversion works, this companion page is helpful: convert term to permanent life insurance.

Some diabetics are better served by simplified-issue or final expense coverage, especially when medical history is complex and the goal is more focused. If your primary objective is end-of-life costs and small lingering debts, this guide provides realistic target amounts: how much burial insurance you need. When you pair the right coverage amount with the right product type, you avoid buying a policy that looks inexpensive but doesn’t actually accomplish the goal.

If you’re dealing with diabetes-related complications, it’s important to use a strategy tailored to the specific issue instead of assuming all complications are treated the same. Our focused guide on life insurance for diabetics with complications explains how carriers often view neuropathy, kidney disease, and cardiovascular overlap—and how we adjust carrier targeting accordingly.

Real-world example: better labs led to better pricing

Consider a scenario we see frequently: a 52-year-old with Type 2 diabetes diagnosed eight years ago. A1C ran in the mid-to-high 7s, then improved with consistent follow-ups and treatment optimization. The A1C trend moved from 7.6 to 6.8 on metformin with better day-to-day management, and there were no measurable complications. Another agent had quoted a heavy table rating based on older labs and a poor carrier match. Instead of rushing the application, updated labs were gathered to confirm stability, then carriers known to price stable Type 2 more reasonably were targeted. The result was a materially better offer than the initial quote—because the underwriting story was clearer and the carrier fit was better.

The takeaway isn’t that every case will be Standard. The takeaway is that strategy, timing, and carrier fit usually decide the outcome. That’s why we encourage applicants to estimate coverage needs first using how much life insurance you need, then run early numbers through instant life insurance quotes, and then refine the approach based on what your medical story actually supports.

How we help diabetics get approved without unnecessary roadblocks

Diabetic underwriting is one of the areas where “spray and pray” submissions can backfire. Unnecessary declines can complicate future applications, especially if a decline shows up in your history and another carrier asks about it. Our approach is intentionally more precise. We begin with a pre-underwriting mindset: what your file can realistically support and which carriers are most likely to evaluate it fairly.

Once the strategy is clear, we move into a targeted submission plan where the application is paired with the right documentation and the right expectations. If you’re also trying to coordinate life insurance with other protection planning, these two pages often help people see how the pieces fit together: how much disability insurance you need and how much long-term care insurance you need.

When you’re ready to compare broader pricing ranges across companies before narrowing down the best diabetes-friendly approach, start here: compare life insurance quotes.