<prompt> Human: Thanks everyone! I was missing the difference between term and whole life insurance, and confirmed that whole life is crap.---I got one quote for a savings-type life insurance where the brochure says the the surrender value of the policy after 30 years is projected to be 284 of the premiums paid subject to market fluctuations, and the death benefit is projected to be about a quarter more than that. There is no medical component to it, such as protection against critical illness.But wouldnt I potentially earn much more than that if I just invest in ETFs? If I want to use the money, I can just sell the stocks. If I die, my family can just inherit it. I waste the premiums paid if I lose my job and stop paying them, whereas with stocks I can stop buying new stocks and still keep the existing ones.I guess Im just missing some point and Id be grateful if you help me understand it.This is Hong Kong and theres no capital gains tax and no inheritance tax  <response>: You got a salesman there who wants you to confuse insurance with investing, which you should never do. A whole life insurance policy is essentially a forced savings plan with a very low, non-competitive rate of return. If you need insurance, buy simple term life. If you want to invest, there are untold numbers of better ways. 