Life Insurance Commission & Override Calculator
How do I calculate commission, advance, and override?
First-year commission is annual premium times your commission rate. Your advance is that commission times the advance rate, paid up front. Override income is your downline’s annual production times your override rate. Enter your numbers below and this calculator returns all three plus your total first-year income.
Educational estimate only, not financial or contract advice. Actual figures depend on your carrier contracts and agency agreement, and advances are subject to chargeback if a policy lapses. Kadence does not provide financial advice.
How the math works
First-year commission
Multiply the policy’s annual premium by your first-year commission rate. Life insurance typically pays a high first-year rate on the first year of premium, with lower renewal rates in later years. This calculator focuses on the first-year figure, the number that drives most agent income.
Advance and earned balance
The advance is your first-year commission times the advance rate, paid before the carrier has collected all the premium. The remainder is earned as the client pays. If a policy lapses inside the advance period, the unearned portion is charged back, so treat the advance as a loan against future earnings.
Override income
Override is your override rate times your downline’s total annual production. It is how agency builders earn from the agents they recruit, train, and support, on top of personal sales. Leave downline production blank if you write personal business only, and the override line reads zero.
Where Kadence fits
More policies written means more first-year commission and, for agency builders, more downline production to override. Kadence captures every lead and answers or books the calls your producers miss in seconds, so the top of the funnel that feeds these numbers stops leaking.
Related terms and guides
Frequently asked questions
How is first-year life insurance commission calculated?
First-year commission equals the policy's annual premium multiplied by your first-year commission rate. If a policy has a 1,200 dollar annual premium and your rate is 90 percent, your first-year commission is 1,080 dollars. This calculator does that math and layers on advances and override for a full picture.
What is a commission advance?
An advance pays you a portion of your expected first-year commission up front, before the carrier collects all the premium. If your first-year commission is 1,080 dollars and the advance rate is 75 percent, you receive 810 dollars up front. The rest is earned as premium is paid, subject to chargeback if the policy lapses.
How does override income work?
Override is a percentage you earn on the production of agents in your downline, on top of your personal commissions. If your downline writes 500,000 dollars in annual premium and your override rate is 5 percent, your override income is 25,000 dollars. It is how agency builders earn from the team they recruit and support.
Are these commission figures exact?
No. This is an educational estimate. Actual commission, advance, and override depend on your carrier contracts, product, and agency agreement, and advances are subject to chargeback if a policy lapses. Kadence does not provide financial or contract advice. Confirm rates with your carrier and upline.