Consistency
The same hours every day. Most agents stuck at $5K aren’t bad at sales — they’re inconsistent.
Careers · Income math
How to make $10,000 a month selling life insurance
Ten thousand a month — about $120,000 a year — is the number most people have in mind when they get into this business. Here’s the math, the weekly rhythm, and what separates the agents who get there.
The short answer
At an illustration commission rate of 100%, $10,000 a month means about $10,000 of issued annual premium every month — roughly 10 final expense policies at $1,000 a year each. Because not every application issues, that’s about 12 applications a month, or three a week. With a benchmark of about 150 dials per application, it works out to roughly 90 dials a day: a full-time job, done consistently.
$10,000Issued annual premium needed a month (100% illustration rate)
≈10Policies that need to issue each month
3Applications a week — the full-time standard
≈90Dials a day across 20 working days
The math, line by line
| Step | Number | How we got it |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly goal | $10,000 | About $120,000 a year |
| Issued annual premium needed | $10,000 | $10,000 ÷ a 100% illustration rate |
| Policies that need to issue | ≈10 | $10,000 ÷ $1,000 average annual premium |
| Applications to submit | ≈12 | Plan on about 85% issuing — three a week |
| Dials in the month | ≈1,760 | ~150 dials per application with fresh leads |
| Dials per working day | ≈90 | Across 20 working days |
Cash flow: with a 75% advance, roughly $7,500 of a $10,000 month arrives when policies issue; the remaining 25% follows as clients pay. Chargebacks on early lapses come out of future commissions — which is why the agents who sustain $10K obsess over persistency.
The “three apps a week” standard
On our team, the full-time benchmark is three applications a week and about 100 dials a day. Hit that for a month and the $10K math takes care of itself. Miss it, and no amount of motivation fixes the numbers.
- Dial in two power blocks by the lead’s time zone — 10 to 1 and 4 to 7 their time — for at least 3–5 hours a day
- Call fresh leads within minutes; most leads are aged, and those reward persistence over speed
- Work a lead about 18 times before calling it dead
- Book every callback to a time on the spot — and triple-dial it
- Review one recorded call a day, with your mentor or on your own
A $10K day, block by block
| Block | What you’re doing |
|---|---|
| Morning | Follow-ups, pending applications, underwriting questions, 20–30 minutes of product training |
| Late morning | Power block one: new leads and callbacks |
| Afternoon | Admin, carrier status checks, one recorded-call review |
| Early evening | Power block two: prime time — people are home |
| End of day | Submit applications, log notes, load tomorrow’s callbacks |
What gets agents from $5K to $10K
Close rate
Recorded-call reviews fix the few spots where you lose people: the reason for the call, the health questions, and the close.
Household sales
Ask about the spouse or partner. Two policies from one conversation nearly doubles your premium per hour.
Placement
Knowing which carrier takes COPD, diabetes, or a heart history turns declines into issued policies.
Persistency
Set payment dates around when a client’s Social Security or paycheck lands, and deliver the policy with a follow-up call. Policies that stay on the books keep their commission.
The honest part
Change the assumptions
Income math calculator
Drag any slider. Everything recalculates.
Issued annual premium you need each month
Policies that need to issue a month
Applications to submit a month
Dials per working day
Arrives up front if carriers advance 75%The rest follows as clients keep paying
Illustration only — not a promise, not a typical result, and not our contract schedule. Commission-only income depends on your activity, skill, persistency, and contracts. Chargebacks on early lapses reduce what you keep.
Beyond $10K
The jump to $20K is less about more dials and more about better math per dial: a higher average premium, a better close rate, and a higher contract level. See what $20,000 a month takes.
Straight answers
Common questions
How many policies do you need to sell to make $10,000 a month?
About 10 issued policies a month at an average of $1,000 of annual premium and a 100% illustration rate. Plan on submitting about 12 applications, because not every one issues.
Can you make six figures selling life insurance?
Yes. $10,000 a month is about $120,000 a year, and BLS reports the top 10% of insurance sales agents earned more than $138,140 in May 2025. It takes full-time, consistent production — it’s not a typical first-year result.
How many hours a week does $10K a month take?
Plan on a full-time schedule. The benchmark math is roughly 90 to 100 dials a day, plus follow-ups, applications, and training.
Do I need to buy my own leads to make $10K a month?
Not at United Eagles — we provide leads so your time goes into conversations. At agencies where you buy leads, subtract that cost from the math before you compare offers.
How long does it take to reach $10,000 a month?
For consistent full-time agents with good coaching, often several months. Some get there sooner, many later, and some never do — it depends on activity, skill, and persistency.
Keep reading
How to make $20,000 a monthTop-producer math: bigger average premium, better close rate, higher contract level.How to make $5,000 a monthThe first real milestone: about five issued policies and 45 dials a day.How much life insurance agents makeThe government’s number, why it misleads for commission agents, and a calculator for any income.How commissions, advances & chargebacks workAnnual premium, advances, chargebacks, renewals, and persistency — with worked examples. The full careers guideEvery page, in reading order
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