Disability Insurance Calculator

About this calculator

Disability insurance replaces a portion of your income if you become unable to work due to illness or injury, typically covering somewhere between 50% and 70% of pre-disability gross income, since insurers cap coverage below 100% to preserve an incentive to return to work. The coverage gap is the difference between the monthly benefit you'd need to hit your target income-replacement percentage and any disability coverage you already have, whether through an employer group plan, an individual policy, or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI).

Financial planners and insurance agents use an income-replacement calculation like this to right-size a disability policy, since underinsuring leaves a household exposed to a major income shock — studies cited by industry groups like the Council for Disability Awareness have long noted that a disabling illness or injury is a leading cause of mortgage default and bankruptcy, precisely because people underestimate the odds of a multi-year work interruption relative to more commonly insured risks like death.

This calculator takes your current income, your target income-replacement percentage, and any existing coverage, and returns the monthly benefit you'd need along with the gap versus what you already have, so you can shop for the right amount of additional coverage.