Life insurance quotes are for a 30-year $250,000 term policy for a non-smoking 40-year-old female in excellent health.
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Final Verdict
When choosing a life insurance company, it’d be hard to go wrong with any of the companies on this list. But if you’re not sure which type of policy you want, start with Nationwide. It makes the process easy with online quotes and applications, a wide range of policy types, and up to $5 million in no-med-exam coverage to eligible applicants.
Most companies on this list received at least an A+ (Superior) rating from AM Best for financial strength. But if only the absolute best will do, MassMutual, Guardian, USAA, and New York Life all have A++ (Superior) AM Best ratings. And most are solid choices for dividend-paying policies as well.
If you want the most affordable term life insurance, Protective, Banner, and Haven are top picks. And for a policy packed with no-cost living benefits, consider Mutual of Omaha, Nationwide, or USAA (if you’re in the military).
How Much Does Life Insurance Cost?
Term life insurance can cost as little as $13 per month, on average, for a $250,000 30-year policy for a healthy 25-year-old. Or, the same policy could cost around $400 for a 65-year-old smoker. The monthly cost of whole-life insurance for the same amount of coverage is over $100 per month for a healthy 25-year-old and almost $1,000 for a 65-year-old smoker.
| Average Life Insurance Cost ($250,000 30-year term policy) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | 25 years old (average) | 40 years old (average) | 55 years old (average) |
| Nationwide | $20.89 | $28.88 | $99.97 (Female only) |
| MassMutual | $18.15 | $29.58 | $122.46 |
| Haven Life | $18.15 | $25.51 | NA |
| Protective | $16.06 | $25.66 | $107.12 |
| Banner | $16.07 | $25.71 | $107.91 |
| Mutual of Omaha | $19.68 | $31.39 | $137.39 |
| Guardian | $19.53 | $31.65 | $110.49 |
| USAA | $20.82 | $30.09 | NA |
| Lincoln Financial | $17.25 | $26.36 | $114.05 |
| Penn Mutual | $16.78 | $26.48 | $110.38 |
| Transamerica | $16.99 | $35.70 | $128.68 |
| New York Life | -- | -- | -- |
*Life insurance quotes above are examples only and were collected for 30-year $250,000 term life insurance policies for non-smoking males and females ages 25, 40, and 55 in excellent health.
Does Life Insurance Cover Covid-19?
Yes, life insurance covers death from Covid-19 if the policy is active when the insured person passes away. The life insurance industry had two record-breaking years in 2020 and 2021 for life insurance payouts (data is not yet available for 2022); with over $100 billion paid out to beneficiaries in 2021, according to the American Council of Life Insurers.
Term vs. Whole Life Insurance
Life insurance can be divided into two main types: term and permanent. Term life insurance policies only provide coverage for a certain period of time, such as 30 years. Permanent policies are sold as either universal or whole life insurance; they’re designed to offer coverage for the duration of your natural life.
Term Life Insurance
| Best-Term Life Insurance Companies | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best-Term Life Insurance Companies | Investopedia's Rating | Best For | AM Best Rating | Compare Quotes |
| Protective | 4.8 | Best Overall | A+ | Compare Quotes on Policygenius |
| Banner | 4.5 | Lowest Cost | A+ | Compare Quotes on Policygenius |
| Mutual of Omaha | 4.1 | Best Living Benefits | A+ | Compare Quotes on Policygenius |
| Haven Life | 4.0 | Best for Same-Day Coverage | A++ | Compare Quotes on Haven Life |
| MassMutual | 4.0 | Best for Financial Stability | A++ | Compare Quotes on Policygenius |
Whole Life Insurance
| Best Whole Life Insurance Companies | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best Whole Life Insurance Companies | Investopedia's Rating | Best For | AM Best Rating | Compare Quotes |
| Nationwide | 4.7 | Best Overall | A+ | Compare Quotes on Policygenius |
| New York Life | 4.6 | Best Riders | A++ | Compare Quotes on Policygenius |
| Guardian | 4.4 | Highest Issue Age | A++ | Compare Quotes on Policygenius |
| MassMutual | 4.3 | Best for Financial Stability | A++ | Compare Quotes on Policygenius |
| Penn Mutual | 4.3 | Best for Dividends | A+ | Get a Quote |
| State Farm | 4.2 | Best Customer Satisfaction | A++ | Compare Quotes on Policygenius |
| Northwestern Mutual | 4.1 | Fewest Complaints | A++ | Compare Quotes on Policygenius |
Other Types of Life Insurance
Though all life insurance can be considered either term or permanent, there are other types of permanent life insurance available.
- Universal life (UL) insurance
- Indexed universal life insurance (IUL)
- A variable universal life (VUL)
- Guaranteed issue, final expense, and burial insurance
| Best Burial Insurance Companies | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best Burial Insurance Companies | Investopedia's Rating | Best For | AM Best Rating | Compare Quotes |
| Mutual of Omaha | 4.8 | Best Overall | A+ | Compare Quotes on Policygenius |
| SBLI | 4.7 | Best Instant Issue | A- | Get a Quote |
| TruStage | 4.6 | Best for Guaranteed Issue | A | Get a Quote |
| State Farm | 4.4 | Best for Financial Stability | A++ | Get a Quote |
How Does Life Insurance Work?
Life insurance is a contract between a policyholder and an insurance company. In exchange for premium payments, an insurance company will pay a death benefit to your beneficiaries if you pass away while the policy is in force. The money is received tax-free, and beneficiaries can use it for whatever purpose they choose.
How To Choose the Best Life Insurance Company
To choose the best life insurance company, consider financial strength, customer complaints, customer satisfaction, available policy types, available and included riders, and ease of application. Then, collect quotes among your top picks. Doing this homework will ensure you choose a company that offers a policy that suits your needs and will be there when your family needs it.
Consider these factors when choosing your life insurance company:
Financial Strength
Check AM Best ratings for financial stability. A++ and A+ ratings are considered “superior,” while A and A- are considered “excellent.” Other agencies also rate insurance companies, including Moody's, Fitch, Standard & Poor's, and Demotech.
Customer Complaints
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) uses customer complaints to create the NAIC complaint index, which indicates whether a company received more or fewer complaints than expected, based on its market share. An index lower than 1 indicates the company received fewer complaints than expected, while a number over 1 means it got more than expected. The higher the index, the more customers complain, and vice versa.
Customer Satisfaction
Not all companies are ranked for customer satisfaction but check sources like J.D. Power’s 2022 U.S. Individual Life Insurance and Individual Annuities studies to see if the companies you’re considering are. At a glance, you can see how a company ranks compared to others when it comes to customer satisfaction.
Available Policy Types
If you know which type of insurance you need, make sure each company you’re considering offers it. But note that a whole life policy with one company can be very different from a whole life policy with another. Though policies between companies might have the same name, each company tries to make its product stand out. Make sure their efforts suit your needs.
Available and Included Riders
This is a major way that same-named policies can differ. For example, a universal life policy with one company might include a generous accelerated death benefit rider at no cost, while a UL policy with another company may not. Or a term policy with one company may allow you to convert it to permanent coverage, while a term policy with another company may not. Research riders to know what you’re paying for.
Ease of Application
Sometimes the biggest barrier to getting a life insurance policy is the application process. And often, it’s better to get some coverage in place—especially if you have dependents—than it is to find the absolute best coverage you can. If you’re too busy for an exam, look for companies that don’t require one.
If you’re healthy, you want to choose companies that offer an accelerated underwriting process, which means they’ll ask thorough health questions on the application. Otherwise, you could end up paying more than you need to.
Methodology
In order to compile our list of the best life insurance companies, we developed a comprehensive life insurance methodology. We started off by researching what consumers want from life insurance companies, and for that, we looked to third-party consumer studies, including J.D. Power’s 2022 Individual Life Insurance and Annuities studies and the 2022 Insurance Barometer Study, by Life Happens and LIMRA. With those findings in mind, we considered more than 55 features on 91 life insurance companies, including ratings for financial strength by AM Best, customer satisfaction, and individual customer complaints reported to insurance state commissioners and recorded by the NAIC (National Association of Insurance Commissioners). We also considered years in business, cost, online tools, no-medical exam options, policy types and features, and available riders.
Our review process gave preference to companies with superior financial stability, few customer complaints, and a robust suite of products and resources. In particular, we valued online quoting and application tools, transparent pricing, and no-exam policy options. Companies received rating boosts if customer service was accessible via features like live chat. We ranked each company according to the following categories and weights. policy types and features (21%), financial stability (17%), application process (16%), customer satisfaction (15%), customer service (14%), riders and living benefits (9%), and cost (8%)
- Policy types and features: 21%
- Financial stability: 17%
- Application process: 16%
- Customer satisfaction ratings: 15%
- Customer service: 14%
- Riders and living benefits: 9%
- Cost: 8%
Costs were evaluated by collecting term life insurance quotes for 25-, 40-, and 55-year-old male and female non-smokers in excellent health for 30-year $250,000 term life policies.
We compared individual offerings between companies by delving deeper into product specifics, including maximum coverage amounts, maximum issue ages, included riders (in particular, the number and type of living benefits available at no upfront cost), and product-specific application processes. We used this research to determine the best companies for different products, consumer groups, and use cases.
Of the companies we considered, those with the greatest financial stability, fewest complaints, lowest cost, most generous benefits, the easiest application process, most generous no-medical-exam options, and widest available features scored the highest across categories.
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