Whole-life premium $8,000
Term premium $500
Years held 20
ETF return 8.0%
Whole-life growth 3.0%

Two strategies for the same $1M death benefit. The whole-life policy uses your entire premium for the policy itself; cash value grows at the rate you set (typically 3% net after agent commission and surrender drag). The term-and-invest strategy buys a cheap level-term policy for the same coverage, and invests the premium difference into an index ETF compounding at the ETF return you set. The chart shows account value, not death benefit — death benefit is identical during the term window. Move the sliders to plug in your own quotes.