Funeral cover amount and premium break-even calculator
This calculator shows how much of a funeral’s cost is left to fund once you count what you have set aside, and where that amount sits against Momentum Life’s Funeral Insurance benefit range of $3,000 to $30,000. It then shows how long level premiums take to add up to a benefit, because total premiums can end up larger than the sum paid.
What a funeral cover amount is
A funeral cover amount is the lump sum a person arranges so the people who organise their funeral are not left to find the money. The sound way to size it is to start from what a funeral costs, take off what is already set aside, and look only at the difference. The Funeral Directors Association of New Zealand (FDANZ) puts an unattended cremation at $4,700 on average, a full funeral with a cremation and 50 guests at $11,700, and the same funeral with a burial at $14,300 (FDANZ, 2026 New Zealand Funeral Industry Trends Report). Momentum Life’s Funeral Insurance pays a fixed benefit of $3,000 to $30,000 to people aged 40 to 75, with level premiums until the 89th birthday. In the first 24 months it pays only for accidental death, and for any other death in that time the premiums are refunded. Total premiums can end up larger than the benefit, and the benefit may not meet the whole cost of a funeral.
Work out the amount left to fund
Choose the kind of funeral you are planning for. Everything else is optional and defaults to nothing: no savings, no cost rise. Nothing is worked out until you choose a funeral, and no price for any insurer is calculated anywhere on this page. If you want an itemised figure first, use the funeral cost calculator and type its total in as your own figure.
Step 1, the funeral
The three set figures are FDANZ’s 2026 averages. Your own figure can come from a funeral director’s quote.
A headstone, travel for family, a wake or anything else the figure above does not include.
Step 2, what is already set aside
Money you would leave for this purpose and not spend on anything else.
The value of the plan, from the funeral director or trust that holds it.
For example the funeral advance some life policies release on notification of death. Check the policy wording for the amount.
Step 3, if the money may be needed years from now
Leave blank to price the funeral at today's cost.
Your own assumption. This tool does not forecast prices, so it starts at none.
Choose a funeral above to see the amount left to fund. Until then nothing is estimated, because this tool never produces a figure from a field you have not filled.
When level premiums add up to the benefit
Momentum Life’s Funeral Insurance charges a level premium each year until the 89th birthday, then none, and the cover continues for life. So the money paid in grows every year while the benefit stays the same. The table shows the age at which what has been paid in reaches the benefit, for each starting age and for a yearly premium of 2% to 15% of the benefit. Where the premiums stop at 89 before they reach the benefit, the cell shows how much of the benefit had been paid in by then.
The size of the benefit does not change the answer, only the premium compared with the benefit does. A premium of 5% of a $10,000 benefit and 5% of a $20,000 benefit take the same number of years to add up. These are shares for working out your own case, not prices: no insurer’s premium is shown here. To use your own figure, divide your yearly premium by your benefit, or use the funeral insurance break-even calculator
| Age at start | 2% a year | 3% a year | 4% a year | 5% a year | 6% a year | 8% a year | 10% a year | 15% a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 40 | Not by 89 (98% paid in) | Age 73.3 | Age 65 | Age 60 | Age 56.7 | Age 52.5 | Age 50 | Age 46.7 |
| 45 | Not by 89 (88% paid in) | Age 78.3 | Age 70 | Age 65 | Age 61.7 | Age 57.5 | Age 55 | Age 51.7 |
| 50 | Not by 89 (78% paid in) | Age 83.3 | Age 75 | Age 70 | Age 66.7 | Age 62.5 | Age 60 | Age 56.7 |
| 55 | Not by 89 (68% paid in) | Age 88.3 | Age 80 | Age 75 | Age 71.7 | Age 67.5 | Age 65 | Age 61.7 |
| 60 | Not by 89 (58% paid in) | Not by 89 (87% paid in) | Age 85 | Age 80 | Age 76.7 | Age 72.5 | Age 70 | Age 66.7 |
| 65 | Not by 89 (48% paid in) | Not by 89 (72% paid in) | Not by 89 (96% paid in) | Age 85 | Age 81.7 | Age 77.5 | Age 75 | Age 71.7 |
| 70 | Not by 89 (38% paid in) | Not by 89 (57% paid in) | Not by 89 (76% paid in) | Not by 89 (95% paid in) | Age 86.7 | Age 82.5 | Age 80 | Age 76.7 |
| 75 | Not by 89 (28% paid in) | Not by 89 (42% paid in) | Not by 89 (56% paid in) | Not by 89 (70% paid in) | Not by 89 (84% paid in) | Age 87.5 | Age 85 | Age 81.7 |
Method: years to reach the benefit are 100 divided by the yearly share, added to the starting age. Premiums are paid from the starting age to 89, so the most that can be paid in is the yearly share multiplied by 89 minus the starting age. Premium changes, which Momentum can make for everyone on a plan with 30 days’ notice, are not modelled.
How the calculator works
- It takes the funeral cost: an FDANZ average, or the figure you type. Costs on top are added.
- If you gave a number of years and a yearly rise, it grows the cost by that rise. With either left blank the cost is not changed.
- It subtracts savings, a prepaid plan and other cover. The result cannot go below zero.
- It compares what is left with the Funeral Insurance range of $3,000 to $30,000 and says whether the amount is below, inside or above it. It does not pick a benefit for you.
What the first 24 months mean for the amount
Momentum’s Funeral Insurance accepts New Zealanders aged 40 to 75 without health questions, and in return the early years are restricted. In the first 24 months the benefit is paid only if death is the direct result of an accident and happens within 90 days of it; accidental death pays three times the benefit. For any other death in that time, no benefit is paid and all premiums for that person are refunded. After 24 months the policy pays for death from any cause. Increasing the benefit later starts a new 24-month window for the increase (Momentum Life Funeral Insurance Policy Wording, issue date 17 August 2023).
The practical point for sizing the amount: a policy does not replace savings for the first two years. If you may need the money sooner, the amount you have set aside matters more than the benefit. Momentum Life’s financial strength rating from A.M. Best is B (Fair), and its own financial strength page explains it. Read our Momentum Life Funeral Cover page
Other ways to cover the amount
Funeral insurance is one option. Setting money aside costs nothing in premiums, a prepaid funeral plan commits the money to one provider, and some life policies release part of the sum insured on notification of death. The Work and Income Funeral Grant pays up to $2,697.43 toward funeral costs, subject to income and asset tests, and it may not be payable where other help such as prepaid funeral cover is available (Work and Income: Funeral Grant). Our guides to paying for a funeral and the comparison with a prepaid funeral
Frequently asked questions
How much funeral cover should I look at?
Start from what a funeral costs, take off what you have set aside, and look at the difference. FDANZ’s 2026 averages are $4,700 for an unattended cremation, $11,700 for a full funeral with a cremation and $14,300 with a burial, for 50 guests. This page does the subtraction but does not choose a benefit for you.
What are the lowest and highest funeral insurance benefits?
With Momentum Life the benefit runs from $3,000 to $30,000, and the total across all Momentum funeral policies on one person cannot exceed $30,000. Accidental death pays three times the benefit.
Do the premiums ever stop?
Yes. The premium is fixed each year until the 89th birthday, then payments end and the cover continues for life. Premiums can be changed for everyone on the same plan if tax law or claims experience changes, with at least 30 days’ written notice.
Can I pay more in premiums than the benefit pays?
Yes, and Momentum’s wording says so: the total premiums paid could exceed the benefit. The table above shows when, for each starting age and premium share. Funeral insurance is a risk product and not a savings plan.
What happens if the person dies in the first 24 months?
Only accidental death pays in that time, at three times the benefit, if death follows the accident within 90 days. For any other death no benefit is paid and the premiums for that person are refunded.
Can a grown-up child take out cover on a parent?
Momentum Life’s wording counts a parent as a relative of the policy owner, so an adult child can own a policy on a parent aged 40 to 75 who is a New Zealander. The owner must be a person, not a company or trust.
References
- FDANZ: 2026 New Zealand Funeral Industry Trends Report (PDF) (retrieved 9 September 2026)
- Momentum Life: Funeral Insurance Policy Wording (PDF, issue date 17 August 2023) (retrieved 17 October 2026)
- Momentum Life: Financial Strength (retrieved 17 October 2026)
- Work and Income: Funeral Grant (retrieved 20 October 2026)
This page is general information, not personalised financial advice. QuoteHub is a Momentum Life partner, and Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver may receive a commission if you buy; our how we are paid page explains it. Financial advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). QuoteHub is a trading name. Figures reviewed 20 Oct 2026.
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