Death in service insurance is a form of life insurance. However, there are some key differences.
Life insurance isn’t provided by your employer, it’s a personal insurance policy that an individual takes out for themselves. Because of this, life insurance gives you more control over how much your beneficiary would receive. Death in service is usually calculated based on a multiplier of your salary, and this multiplier is determined by your employer. With life insurance, you decide how much you want your family to receive.
It is possible to have both life insurance and death in service insurance at the same time which would provide a larger financial cushion for your family.