A 5 year term renews every 5 years. This type of term insurance is almost gone; insurance companies don't offer it anymore because it is too expensive for the consumer. Imagine, your premium almost doubles every 5 years -- stay away from a 5 year term. A 10 year term renews every 10 years and makes more sense than a 5 year term, but still isn't not cheap if you need it for more then 10 years because it will triple every 10 years, especially if you are 50 years or older. A 20 year term renews every 20 years, when you need the insurance for more than 10 years and if you are insuring a mortgage. A term 100 is guaranteed for life, the premium will never go up, if you are 45 and older or if you want to keep the insurance for life.