Use the needs-based calculator as the main tool on a consumer life page: it adds up concrete obligations and subtracts resources, which people find intuitive. Add human life value for higher earners and business owners, where the conversation is about the economic value of future earnings rather than a list of bills.
Needs-based analysis (often taught as the DIME method — debt, income, mortgage, education) produces a figure a family can audit line by line. That transparency is what makes the result persuasive and what makes the lead easy to work: you can see which line drives the number.
Human life value discounts a person's future net earnings to today's dollars. It tends to produce larger figures for younger, higher-earning prospects and is the classic framework for underwriting income-based coverage amounts. Read our field guide comparing the methods.