Prudential’s main term life plan in Singapore is PRUActive Term, a flexible non-participating policy covering death, terminal illness and total permanent disability (TPD) with policy terms from 10 to 82 years. It costs more than most competitors — around $685/year for a 30-year-old male non-smoker with $500,000 cover over 40 years — but adds features like incremental coverage and a critical illness rider most rivals don’t match feature-for-feature.

Not financial advice. All figures are for educational reference only. Data verified as at 20 July 2026 against official Prudential Singapore product pages and comparefirst.sg.

What Is PRUActive Term?

PRUActive Term is Prudential Singapore’s flagship term life plan, sold through financial advisers. It’s non-participating, which means there’s no bonus or cash value — you pay a premium purely for protection.

You get three core benefits: a death benefit, an accelerated terminal illness (TI) benefit, and a total and permanent disability (TPD) benefit. All three are “accelerated,” meaning a TI or TPD payout is subtracted from your death benefit rather than paid on top of it.

Source: Prudential Singapore official PRUActive Term product page and comparefirst.sg Product Summary, information correct as at 30 January 2026.

One thing that sets PRUActive Term apart: the Incremental Sum Assured benefit. If you opt in when you buy the policy, your death benefit automatically rises by 1–10% a year (your choice) with no new medical check. This runs from your 2nd policy year, stops at the policy anniversary before you turn 65, and applies for a maximum of 20 years. Your premium rises each year too, in step with the extra coverage.

You can also apply to double your death benefit later on — called the 2X Death Benefit – in increments of at least $100,000, as long as it’s been 12 months since your cover started and at least 6 years remain on your policy.

How Much Does PRUActive Term Cost?

Prudential doesn’t publish a public premium rate card for PRUActive Term — like most FA-distributed plans, your quote depends on age, gender, smoker status, health, and the term you pick. But third-party quote data gives you a solid benchmark.

For a 30-year-old male non-smoker taking $500,000 of cover over a 40-year policy and premium term, here’s how the premium changes if you shorten your premium payment term:

Source: Dollar Bureau PRUActive Term Review, published 14 April 2026. 30-year-old male, non-smoker, $500,000 sum assured.

Here’s the trade-off in one line: a shorter premium term means you finish paying sooner, but your yearly cash outflow is much higher while you’re paying. A 40-year premium term costs less per year but you’re still paying premiums well into your 60s and 70s. Pick based on your cash flow today, not just the total cost on paper.

PRUActive Term vs Other Insurers

Term plans mostly cover the same three things — death, TI, TPD — so price is often the deciding factor. Here’s how PRUActive Term stacks up against six other Singapore insurers for the same profile: 30-year-old male, non-smoker, $500,000 cover, 40-year term.

*AIA figure is based on a 35-year policy and premium term, not 40 years like the rest. Source: Dollar Bureau PRUActive Term Review, published 14 April 2026. Indicative only — get your own quote before deciding.

PRUActive Term lands second-most-expensive of the seven plans here, about 37% pricier than China Taiping’s i-Protect for the exact same cover. If pure affordability is your only goal, it’s hard to justify PRUActive Term on price alone.

So why would anyone pick it? Flexibility. PRUActive Term’s 10-to-82-year policy term range is wider than most competitors, the Incremental Sum Assured benefit lets your cover grow without new underwriting, and you can add several different critical illness riders under one roof. You’re paying a premium (pun intended) for options, not just protection.

One thing PRUActive Term doesn’t offer: a conversion privilege to switch into a permanent whole life plan later without new medical underwriting. If you think you might want to convert down the road, Manulife’s ManuProtect Term (II) is worth comparing — it’s one of the plans in this market that does offer conversion.

Critical Illness Riders You Can Add

PRUActive Term doesn’t cover critical illness (CI) on its own — you need to add a rider. Prudential offers a few, and they stack differently, so it’s worth knowing what each one actually does.

Crisis Care III (PRUActive Term) is the core CI rider. It covers up to 36 critical illness conditions, plus up to $250,000 for selected diabetic complications. Its premium is not guaranteed — Prudential can reprice it if claims experience changes, which is standard across the industry for CI riders but worth knowing upfront.

Early Stage Crisis Cover pays out for early and intermediate-stage conditions before they become “major” illnesses, with a special benefit for angioplasty and specified diabetic complications.

Early Stage Crisis Waiver and Crisis Waiver III don’t pay you cash — they waive your future premiums instead. Get diagnosed with an early-stage condition, and your premiums for covered benefits are waived for 5 years (up to twice, for different conditions). Diagnosed with an intermediate-stage condition, and it’s a 10-year waiver. Crisis Waiver III waives premiums entirely if you’re diagnosed with any of 35 listed critical illnesses.

If you already want dedicated, deep critical illness coverage rather than a term-life add-on, it’s worth reading our full Prudential Critical Illness Insurance review, which breaks down PRUActive Protect — a standalone CI plan built for that job.

PRUVital Cover: For Pre-Existing Conditions

Got Type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, or a high BMI? A standard term plan might decline you or load your premium. PRUVital Cover exists for exactly this situation.

Source: Prudential Singapore official PRUVital Cover product page, information correct as at 7 February 2025.

The trade-off is coverage depth: PRUVital Cover’s optional CI rider covers only 5 conditions, versus up to 36 on PRUActive Term’s Crisis Care III rider. It’s built to get you some protection when standard underwriting would shut you out entirely — not to match a healthy applicant’s coverage breadth.

DIRECT – PRUProtect Term 5: The Budget DIY Option

If you’re comfortable skipping financial advice and want the lowest-friction way to buy from Prudential, DIRECT – PRUProtect Term 5 is a Direct Purchase Insurance (DPI) plan. You buy it yourself, no agent involved, and Prudential’s customer service team (not a financial representative) handles it afterwards.

Source: Prudential Singapore official DIRECT – PRUProtect Term 5 product page, information correct as at 14 March 2025.

The catch: DPI plans skip financial advice by design, so it’s on you to work out how much cover you actually need and whether this product fits. Prudential’s website points buyers to the MoneySense DPI guide before purchase — worth a read if you’ve never bought insurance without an adviser before. If your protection need exceeds $400,000, you’ll need PRUActive Term or another insurer’s FA-distributed plan instead, since DIRECT – PRUProtect Term 5 caps out there.

Pros and Cons of PRUActive Term

Who Should (and Shouldn’t) Buy It

PRUActive Term makes sense if you already bank with Prudential, want the flexibility to adjust your policy and premium terms independently, or plan to layer on multiple CI riders under one insurer for simpler claims and servicing. It also suits anyone who wants an existing Prudential relationship for future products like ILPs or endowment plans.

It’s probably not for you if price is your main concern — China Taiping, Singlife and AIA all beat it on cost for comparable cover in our comparison table above. It’s also not ideal if you want the option to convert to a whole life plan later without medical re-underwriting, since PRUActive Term doesn’t offer that privilege.

If you’re not sure how much cover you actually need before comparing prices, run the numbers with our Insurance Gap Calculator first — it’s free and takes about two minutes.

How to Buy Prudential Term Life Insurance

You’ve got two routes with Prudential, and they suit different people:

Route 1: Through a Prudential Financial Representative (PRUActive Term or PRUVital Cover). A financial rep does a full needs analysis, recommends coverage and riders, and handles underwriting with you. This costs more in commission built into your premium, but you get personalised advice — useful if you’re unsure how much cover you need or want to combine term life with other Prudential products.

Route 2: Direct Purchase Insurance (DIRECT – PRUProtect Term 5). You apply online or via Prudential’s customer service line, without an adviser. You’ll need to have already worked out your own coverage needs and be comfortable reading the Fact Sheet, Policy Illustration, Product Summary and Product Brochure yourself before committing.

Either way, compare at least 2–3 quotes before signing anything — our Term Life Insurance Singapore Comparison guide has a fuller side-by-side across more insurers, and our Affordable Term Life Insurance guide covers 7 concrete ways to cut your premium regardless of which insurer you pick.