Facebook vs Google vs YouTube leads for life insurance: what agents are seeing in 2026

Self-generated leads moved from a niche to a normal strategy, and the three big platforms produce very different leads. From agents running their own ads this year.

Facebook and Instagram. Volume and low cost per lead. The prospect wasn't looking for insurance; they saw an ad. Contact rate depends on speed, close rate is lower than search, and the lead form's consent language is yours to get right. Best for final expense and mortgage protection at scale.

Google search. The prospect typed 'life insurance quote' and clicked. Highest intent, highest cost per lead, best close rate on contact. Fewer leads, and the agent who runs it needs to answer the phone the moment the form submits. Best for term and for agents who can't dial all day.

YouTube. Slower to build and different in kind. An agent explaining a product on camera, with the form under the video, gets fewer leads that already trust the agent. Close rates from these are the best of the three, and it takes months before the videos produce anything.

The common thread. Your own consent form, consented to you and only you, which is the whole reason self-generation got attractive after one-to-one consent. And speed to lead, measured in minutes, on all three.

Post your platform, cost per lead and cost per placed policy this quarter. Screenshots of ad-manager dashboards are welcome; client details are not.