Life Insurance Table Ratings Explained

Last reviewed October 2026 by Dev Gaymes, Texas-licensed life insurance agent, NPN 16654074 · Editorial policy

Before you apply anywhere: An informal inquiry gets underwriters to review your file and return a tentative rate class with no application, no MIB record and no decline on your record. How the process works.

A table rating is how a carrier prices an applicant who is insurable but does not qualify for Standard. Each table usually adds about 25% of the Standard premium, so Table 2 runs about 50% above Standard and Table 4 about double. The policy is the same policy: it pays the full death benefit from day one. Only the price changes, and the same file can land on a different table at a different carrier.

One carrier’s full ladder

These are one carrier’s September 2026 Texas rates for a 45-year-old man buying $500,000 of 20-year term, from the best class to Table 6:

Rate class	Monthly premium	Compared with Standard
Preferred Plus	$45.05	Below Standard
Preferred	$53.55	Below Standard
Standard Plus	$73.10	Below Standard
Standard	$85.85	Base
Table 2	$129.00	About 50% more
Table 4	$171.14	About double
Table 6	$213.28	About 2.5 times

Sample rates from one carrier’s rate ladder, Texas, September 2026, male, non-tobacco. Illustrative only, not a quote. The ladder was not quoted beyond Table 6.

Each two tables added about $42 to the monthly premium on this ladder. Over the full 20-year term, Table 4 instead of Standard comes to about $20,470 more in premiums, and Table 6 about $30,580 more. Table 6 costs about four times the Preferred rate for the same person. That is why the class you land in matters more than which company the policy comes from.

Numbers and letters mean the same thing

Some carriers number their tables and some letter them. By the common convention they line up, with each step adding about 25% of Standard:

Numbered table	Lettered table	Typical premium above Standard
Table 1	A	+25%
Table 2	B	+50%
Table 3	C	+75%
Table 4	D	+100%
Table 6	F	+150%
Table 8	H	+200%
Table 10	J	+250%
Table 16	P	+400%

General convention, not a carrier guideline. Most carriers stop somewhere between Table 8 and Table 16, and past their top table the answer is a decline. Read the offer for the actual percentage or premium.

What commonly gets rated, and where it lands

Many conditions people expect to be rated never reach a table at all. These ranges come from our condition guides and our own files, for the condition on its own:

Condition	Common result	More detail
Controlled high blood pressure	Often Preferred, sometimes Preferred Plus; no table	Blood pressure
Well-controlled type 2 diabetes	Frequently Standard	Diabetes
Sleep apnea treated with CPAP	Frequently Standard or better	Sleep apnea
A single TIA, early years	Often around Table 2	TIA and stroke
Stroke with a good recovery	Often Table 3 to Table 4	TIA and stroke
High BMI	Depends on each carrier’s build chart; one of our files was Table 6 at one carrier and Table 4 at another	High BMI
COPD with other conditions	Table 4 to Table 8 on most of the files we see	COPD

General ranges, for one condition in an otherwise clean file. Age, smoking and a second condition all move the result, and underwriters generally add the ratings for separate conditions together.

What we have seen on rated files

Two single-TIA clients, two tables. The applicant four years past the event was approved at Table 2; the applicant two years out was approved at Table 3. Time since the event explained most of the gap.
Same file, different carriers. A client with a high BMI would have been declined by most carriers, was offered Table 6 by one, and was approved at Table 4 by the carrier we chose.
Rated elsewhere, placed better. Four people came to us in 2026 who had only been offered a graded policy somewhere else: three had been declined and one had been rated Table 6. All four got full coverage from day one at a different carrier, and the Table 6 applicant ended up paying a lower premium.
COPD rarely arrives alone. Most COPD files we see carry other conditions too, and together they land in the Table 4 to Table 8 range. On those files, price ends more cases than declines do.

Never stop or skip prescribed medication to improve a rating. It would raise your medical risk, and an underwriter reads a stopped or skipped prescription far more harshly than one taken as prescribed. Any change to your treatment is a decision for your doctor, not your insurance application.

Flat extras: the other kind of rating

Some risks are priced with a flat extra instead of a table: a fixed dollar amount per $1,000 of coverage, added on top of the class premium, sometimes for a set number of years. Flat extras are common for hazardous activities such as private flying, and for some histories that carry a defined period of higher risk. A temporary flat extra drops off on its own when the period ends. How impaired risk cases are placed.

How to get a better table

Let more than one carrier see the file. Guidelines differ more between carriers than most people expect. The spread between carriers on the same file is often wider than one table.
Start with an informal inquiry. Underwriters can give a tentative class before you apply, without an application on your record. Check your MIB file first if you have applied before.
Send the right records. Recent readings, test results and specialist notes that show the condition is stable often decide a table either way. What to gather.
Time the application. After an event such as a TIA or a cardiac procedure, ratings tend to improve with each stable year. Applying too early can cost a table or more.
Ask for a review later. If your health improves after the policy is issued, many carriers will review the rating on request. Keep the rated policy in force until any change or replacement is approved.

Sources and limitations

Rates: one carrier’s rate-class ladder, Texas, September 2026, male, age 45, non-tobacco, $500,000 of 20-year term. Illustrative, not quotes. That ladder was not quoted beyond Table 6.
Cases: DG Life Group placements in 2026, described without names or carriers. They show what happened on those files, not the odds for anyone else.
Limitations: the 25%-per-table step, the letter-to-number mapping and the condition ranges reflect general industry practice and our own files, not any single carrier’s published guidelines. Every carrier sets its own scale and its own underwriting rules, and changes them. Rates in Texas are filed with the Texas Department of Insurance.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a table rating in life insurance?

A table rating is the price a carrier charges when an applicant does not qualify for Standard but is still insurable. Each table is a step above Standard, usually about 25% of the Standard premium per table. A rated policy still pays the full death benefit from the first day.

How much does a table rating add to the premium?

About 25% of the Standard premium for each table on most ladders. In one carrier’s September 2026 Texas rates for a 45-year-old man buying $500,000 of 20-year term, Standard was $85.85 a month, Table 2 was $129.00, Table 4 was $171.14 and Table 6 was $213.28. These are illustrative figures, not quotes.

Is Table D the same as Table 4?

Usually, yes. By the common convention, lettered tables run A through P and match numbered tables 1 through 16, so Table D is Table 4, about double the Standard premium. Carriers set their own scales, so read the offer for the percentage or the premium itself.

Can a table rating be removed later?

Often. Many carriers will review a rating on request once the condition has improved and stayed stable for a period, such as steady blood pressure or lower weight. You can also apply elsewhere. Keep the rated policy in force until any replacement is approved and in effect.

Is a table-rated policy the same as a graded policy?

No. A table-rated policy costs more but pays the full death benefit from day one. A graded death benefit is a feature of some final expense policies, where a death from natural causes in the first two or three years typically returns the premiums plus interest instead of the full benefit.

Should I accept a table rating?

If the coverage need is real and the offer is the best one available across carriers, a table rating is usually better than going without. Before you accept, make sure more than one carrier has seen the file. Underwriting guidelines differ, and one carrier’s Table 4 can be another’s Table 2.

Life Insurance Table Ratings: What Table 2, 4 and 6 Cost