Do stay-at-home parents need life insurance?
In most homes, yes. The job is unpaid. It is not worthless. If it stopped, the family would have to hire it.
Written by William Litner, FCAS. Last updated November 3, 2026. Numbers: one made-up family's typed lines, worked on this page, with no invented salary for care work.
- Yes, in most homes: the job is unpaid, not worthless, and if it stopped, the family would have to hire it.
- There is no income line to replace; debts and the mortgage still count at full size, minus savings.
- This site will not invent a salary for care work: one family's typed lines gave $316,000, before any hired-help years are added.
The work that would need hiring
No bill shrinks when that work stops. Instead, unpaid work turns into paid work, all at once.
Childcare
Full-time care for young kids is a salary-sized bill in most cities. It runs until the kids are in school.
Rides and runs
School runs, practices, and doctor visits fill real hours. Someone must drive, or be paid to.
Cooking and cleaning
Meals, laundry, and the house itself. Families hire parts of this out, or lose work hours to it.
The household list
Scheduling, forms, bills, and repairs. The invisible list still needs an owner, every week.
How the size works with no paycheck
There is no income line to replace. The other lines still count at full size.
Put your own price on the work
This site will not invent the number. Your family can build it, from prices in your own town.
List the jobs
Start with the four kinds above: childcare, rides, cooking and cleaning, the household list. Write the hours each one takes in a week.
Price each job near you
Ask what each job costs where you live. An hourly rate times the hours works. So does a price quote from a local care service.
Add it up for one year
Add the jobs into one yearly figure. That figure is the pay the home work never got. A rough figure you built beats a blank line.
Pick the years
Count the years the help would be needed. For most homes, that runs until the youngest kid needs less care. It can be shorter than the years a paycheck must last.
One family's numbers: Tom
Tom runs the home and two kids, ages 2 and 5. His spouse Alex earns $120,000. Alex has work coverage. Tom has none.
His typed lines
Debts: $6,000. Mortgage: $340,000. Savings: $30,000. With no pay typed, his counted lines give $316,000.
The answer he gets, word for word
“No pay in this run. With no pay to replace, the gap skips the biggest part of the need. Debts and the mortgage still count; final costs are not in this math.” The page says its limit out loud.
The gap has a name
Plain questions, plain answers
Common questions
Do stay-at-home parents need life insurance?
In most homes, yes. The job is unpaid, not worthless. Childcare, rides, cooking, and the household list would all need hiring. Coverage pays for that time.
How is the size set for a parent with no paycheck?
There is no income line. Debts and the mortgage still count, minus savings. One family's typed lines gave $316,000, before any hired-help years are added.
How do I put a dollar figure on work at home?
List the jobs that would need hiring. Price each one at your own town's prices. Add them into one yearly figure. In the DIME math, that figure sits on the Income line, times the years the help would be needed.
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