SGLI vs. VGLI: the difference, explained

Two acronyms, one letter apart, and the difference decides whether your family stays covered after you take off the uniform. Here is the briefing.

SGLI is the group life insurance you carry while you serve — automatic, low-cost, up to $500,000, and it ends shortly after you separate. VGLI is how you keep that coverage as a veteran: you convert your SGLI into renewable group term insurance, up to the amount you held. Both are run by the VA. Convert within 240 days of separation and no health questions are asked.

What SGLI is

SGLI — Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance — is the life insurance that comes with service. For active-duty members and certain reservists it is automatic: you are enrolled at the maximum unless you choose a lower amount or opt out. Coverage goes up to $500,000, offered in $50,000 increments, and the premium is low because it is a group plan covering a large, eligible population at one flat rate.

The detail that catches people off guard is the end date. SGLI is tied to your service, so it ends shortly after you separate. There is a short grace period of free coverage after separation, but it is brief — and once it lapses, that protection is gone unless you have already set up what comes next. The VA confirms the current amounts and grace-period rules on its life insurance pages.

• Who it covers. Active-duty members and certain reservists, automatically.
• How much. Up to $500,000, in $50,000 increments.
• What it costs. A low, flat group rate while you serve.
• When it ends. Shortly after you separate from service.

What VGLI is

VGLI — Veterans’ Group Life Insurance — is the bridge from service coverage to veteran coverage. It lets you continue your protection after you separate by converting from SGLI. You can carry up to the amount of SGLI you held, to a maximum of $500,000, and the policy is yours to keep for life as renewable, term-style group coverage.

Two features define VGLI. First, the health window: no health questions are asked if you apply within 240 days of separation. You can apply later — up to 1 year and 120 days from separation — but health questions may apply after that first window closes. Second, the pricing: VGLI is group term coverage whose premiums increase with age in five-year bands. It holds steady within a band, then steps up as you move into the next one. For the full band-by-band chart, see our VGLI rates guide.

SGLI vs. VGLI, side by side

The same five questions answer both programs. Here they are next to each other, so you can see exactly where SGLI ends and VGLI picks up:

The 240-day window that matters most

If you remember one thing from this page, make it this. The clock starts the day you separate. Inside the first 240 days, converting SGLI to VGLI means automatic acceptance with no health questions — your medical history, service-connected conditions, anything at all, none of it can keep you out. That is the cleanest, surest path to staying covered.

You do have a longer overall window — up to 1 year and 120 days from separation — but the terms change after the first 240 days: health questions may apply once that initial window closes. So the window is real, and applying early inside it is what keeps your acceptance automatic. The VA publishes the exact dates and any updates on VA.gov.

1. 1.Day 0–240: apply and you are accepted with no health questions.
2. 2.After 240 days, up to 1 year and 120 days: you can still apply, but health questions may apply.
3. 3.After the full window: the no-health-questions VGLI option generally closes — confirm specifics on VA.gov.

How the cost changes over time

SGLI and VGLI price coverage in opposite ways, and that is the heart of the comparison. SGLI charges a low, flat group rate that does not climb with your age while you serve. VGLI charges by age: it is level within a five-year band, then increases as you move into each new band. The same $500,000 that cost very little under SGLI will cost more under VGLI in your fifties than in your thirties.

None of that makes VGLI a poor choice — it makes it an age-priced one, which is normal for group term coverage that accepts every eligible veteran. The right way to read the cost is band by band against your own timeline. Our VGLI rates guide shows the full monthly chart so you can see what each stage of life costs before you decide.

How to convert SGLI to VGLI

Converting is a deliberate step — it does not happen on its own. The essentials are short, and the VA walks through the current forms and methods on its site:

1. 1.Act inside the window. Apply within 240 days of separation for no health questions; you have until 1 year and 120 days, with health questions possible after the first window.
2. 2.Choose your amount. You can carry up to the SGLI you held, to a maximum of $500,000, in $10,000 increments — or less if that fits better.
3. 3.Apply through the VA. VGLI is administered by the VA through Prudential’s Office of Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance; current steps are on VA.gov.
4. 4.Set up your premium and beneficiary. Confirm the payment method and make sure your named beneficiary is current and correct.

Is VGLI the right call for you?

There is no single answer, because it depends on your health and your timeline. For many veterans VGLI is exactly right — especially anyone with a service-connected or other condition that makes private coverage costly or hard to qualify for. Inside the window, VGLI asks no health questions and can never be cancelled for health reasons, which is real peace of mind.

For a veteran in good health with a long horizon, an individually underwritten term policy may cost less over the years, since it can lock one premium for the whole term rather than stepping up by age band. Both can be true at once: VGLI is the certain path, and a private policy is sometimes the lower-cost one. The honest move is to look at both for your situation. If you already hold a policy and want a second set of eyes, a free policy review can confirm where you stand in one unhurried call.