Nationwide sweeps the titles in Investopedia’s list of best life insurance companies, earning the top spot thanks to its great variety of products and features, rock-solid financial footing, and high customer sa♋tisfaction ratings. We also named Nationwide best in two other categories, but other insurers may still fit your needs better.
Life insurance✃ is an important product that protects your loved ones financially after you die. But it’s complex, which is why Investopedia researched 70 criteria for 45 life insurance companies, including price, policy types and features, customer satisfaction, and much more before naming the best life insurers.
10 Best Life Insurance Companies for June 2025
- Best Overall, Best Children’s Life Insurance, Best for People Over 50: 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Nationwide
- Best Term Life Insurance: 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Banner by Legal & General
- Also Great for Children’s Life Insurance: 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Protective Life
- Cheapest Term Premiums: SBLI
- Best for Universal Life: 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Pacific Life
- Best Whole Life Insurance: 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Lafayette Life
- Also Great for Whole Life Insurance: 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: MassMutual
- Best No-Medical-Exam Insurance: 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Penn Mutual
- Also Great for No-Medical Exam Life Insurance: Symetra
- Best for Financial Strength, Best for Customer Satisfaction: 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Thrivent
with our partner Covr Financial from multiple providers before 🌺buying.
Best Overall, Best Children’s Life Insurance, Best for People Over 50 : Nationwide
:fill(white):max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/Nationwide-ef67197be784422aa434bc3bb3b23031.jpg)
Nationwide
- Financial Strength Rating: A+
- Complaints: Much better than expected for company size
Best Overall
With a broad range of product types and features, very satisfied customers, no coverage limits for many policy types, and a stellar grade from 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:credit rating agency AM Best, Nationwide is at the top of our list of the best life insurance companies. Its three 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:living benefit riders—which comeꦗ at no extra cost— also helped boost its overall score.
Best Life Insurance for Children
Nationwide is a great choice for anyone looking to 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:insure a child. Reason #1: You can buy as large of a whole life policy as you like for a child. Reason #2: The child can take over the policy when they’re an adult. Reason #3: If you buy a child term rider on your own policy, the rider can cover them until they’re 22 and be made into a 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:permanent life insurance policy for the child without a health exam.
Best Life Insurance for People Over 50
Many of the features that make Nationwide our favorite pick overall also propelled it to the top of our list of the best life insurance for people over 50. But it also scored well for this age group because you can buy up to $1.5 million in coverage without a 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:medical exam and get an instant decision. And there’s no minimum age requirement for a final expense policy wo🎉rth up to $50,000.
Outstanding selection of product types
Superior financial strength rating (A+)
3 living benefits included in many policies
Stand-out child life insurance features
Very few customer complaints to state regulators
Doesn’t pay 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:dividends on whole life policies
Won’t sell term life to applicants over 70
No live chat for customer service
No way to start a claim online
Nationwide rises above competitors on a multitude of fronts. It has one of the widest product selections Investopedia saw among the 45 companies we surveyed. Ditto that for riders—only Ameritas and Brighthouse Financial offer as many. Nationwide’s riders include three free living benefits that let you 澳洲🌃幸运5开奖号码历史查询:use your death benefit while you’re alive if you develop a chroꦅnic, critical or terminal illnes🐼s.
Customers generally like the company, lodging few complaints with state regulators and pushing it to No. 4 out of 22 companies in the 2024 J.D. Power U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study.
Th༺ere are only a few things we found to not like. It doesn’t pay dividends on its whole life policies, so if you want that, you’d be better off looking for a mutual company such as Lafayette or MassMutual. And you can’t buy a term life insurance policy from Nationwide if you’re over 70.
Founded in 1925, Nationwid🥀e is based in Columbus,🧸 Ohio.
Available Policy Types
- Term life
- Whole life
- Children’s whole life
- Universal life
- Indexed universal life
- Variable universal life
- No-medical-exam life (term)
- Final expense
Available Riders
- Term conversion
- Child term
- Guaranteed insurability rider
- Waiver of premium
- Accidental death benefit
- Terminal illness
- Long-term care
- Chronic illness
- Critical illness
Best Term Life Insurance : Banner by Legal & General
:fill(white):max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/Legal_General-99c81dbfffae4c7f8e5862bb5f1c1a91.jpg)
Banner Life
- Financial Strength Rating: A+
- Complaints: Much better than expected for company size
Low premiums and terms lasting up to 40 years helped propel Banner to the top of our list of best 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:term life insurance providers. Many competitors don’t offer term life insurance that covers you for that long. The minimum death benefit is $100,000, and there is no maximum, so these policies are good for people with a wide range of coverage needs. You can renew a Banner term policy every year and 澳洲📖幸运5开奖号码历史查询:convert it to a perm🦩anent life insurance plan with no additional health exam. And ♐ap෴plying is easy, with an online quote and application process.
Competitive premiums for term life insurance
Lengthy 40-year terms available
No-medical-exam policies have no coverage caps
Fewer permanent policy options than competitors
Not many riders available
No live chat
Many people choose term life insurance because the premiums are more affordable than permanent life insurance. That’s especially true of policies you get from Banner by Legal & General. Its premiums are some of the most competitive we found when gathering quotes for 45 life insurance providers. It’s also the only c𒐪ompany besides Protective Life that offers 40-year term policies, which means they could last your entire working life. Most companies limit you to 30 years at most for term coverage.
Like Nationwide, Banner has a low incidence of consumer complaints and an impressive financial stability rating from 🤪🥂AM Best.
But Banner’s selection of 💟other products is disappointing. Universal life is the only other type of life insurance it sells, though that won’t matter much if you’re set on buying term insurance. The other factor to consider is that you won’t find many ๊riders with which to customize your coverage.
Banner is based in Fꦍrederick, Mary💜land, and owned by Legal & General, which has been in business since 1836.
Available Policy Types
- Term life
- Universal life
- No-medical-exam life
Available Riders
- Term conversion
- Child term
- Waiver of premium
- Terminal illness
Also Great for Children’s Life Insurance : Protective Life
:fill(white):max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/Protective_Logo-c4eec069bba045908b26d4fbb52beee9.jpg)
Protective Life
- Financial Strength Rating: A+
- Complaints: Better than expected for company size
Protective’s chi🌠ld term rider is the best 🤡we found, so it’s possible to add superb protection for your children through your own life insurance policy.
Child term rider offers long-lasting, 🍸transferable, and convertible coverage
Whole life po𝐆licies start at just $1,00𒊎0 in coverage
40-year term life policies available
No children’s whole life policies are available
All applications require a medical exam
Whole life policies don’t pay dividends
Investopedia found Protective’s child term rider distinctive because it covers your children until they turn 25, and it’s transferable and convertible to a perm🌸anent policy such as whole life or universal life when they become adults.
How♕ever, child coverage is limited to this rider. Protective Life does not sell a standalone child’s whole life policy.
Beyond child coverage, Protective has a fine selection of po📖licies and riders for adults. These include term policies for as long a🍷s 40 years and whole life policies with death benefits ranging from $1,000 to as high as you can qualify for. There is no maximum coverage limit.
Protective Life has♐ been around since 1907 and has its headquarters in Birmingham, Alabama.
Available Policy Types
- Term life
- Whole life
- Universal life
- Index universal life
- Variable universal life
Available Riders
- Term conversion
- Child term
- Guaranteed insurability rider
- Waiver of premium
- Accidental death benefit
- Terminal illness
- Chronic illness
Cheapest Term Premiums : SBLI
:fill(white):max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/SBLILifeInsurance-183f582165f54aff803749178074fdda.jpg)
SBLI Life Insurance
- Financial Strength Rating: A
- Complaints: Much better than expected for company size
SBLI not only has some of the lowest pr👍emiums for term life ins♑urance, but it also has a strong record of customer satisfaction. On top of that, it lets you convert your term policy to permanent insurance without a medical exam, and that option is included for no extra cost.
Budget-friendly term insurance premiums
Helpful online features and tools
Few customer complaints
Doesn’t of😼fer universal or variable universal life insurance
Whole life dividend rate is low
For term life i🥃nsurance at an affordable price, it’s hard to beat SBLI. It provided some of the lowest premiums Investope🦩dia found when gathering quotes from 45 companies. You can get an individualized quote for yourself, apply for a term policy, and chat with a live representative all through the website. Customers seem happy with SBLI, lodging relatively few complaints with state regulators compared to the company’s size.
These qualities make SBLI g🔯reat for cheap term insurance, but it’s not the best for permanent life insurance. SBLI doesn’t offer universal or variable universal life insurance and the dividend rate for its whole life insurance is low. Investopedia found the company’s rider selection on the skimpy side too.
SBLI’s headquarters is in Woburn, Massachusetts and it was🧔 founded in 1907.
Available Policy Types
- Term life
- Whole life
- Children’s whole life
- No-medical exam life (term and whole life)
- Final expense
Available Riders
- Term conversion
- Child term
- Guaranteed insurability rider
- Waiver of premium
- Accidental death benefit
- Terminal illness
Best for Universal Life : Pacific Life
:fill(white):max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/Pacific_Life-b0c8ff4673204466b6a2e7245975f41a.jpg)
Pacific Life
- Financial Strength Rating: A+
- Complaints: Much better than expected for company size
Pacific Life excels at universal life (UL) insurance, offering numerous policies across all the main types of UL (traditional universal, indexed universal, and variable universal). Death benefits can run as small as $25,000 and have virtually no top limit. You’ll find a lot of riders to choose ﷽from, including a child term rider available for UL policies.
Offers every main t🦂ype of universal life insurance
Death benefits have no maximum limits
Customer complaints are few rela⛄tiv🔥e to company size
No online quotes or applications
Doesn’t offer whole life insurance
Pacific Life is one🐬 of the few companies that sells universal life, indexed universal (IUL), and variable universal life insurance (VUL). Nationwide, Prudential, and John Hancock do as well, but they don’t offer as many different policy options for each type. In some markets, Pacific Life features two UL, four IUL, and five VUL p🌠roducts.
But these products are complex and Pacific Life doesn’t let you apply online. You’ll have to talk with an agent by phone or in person. And the company does 💖not sell whole life insurance.
Based in Newport Beach, California, Pacific Life was founded🦄 in 1868.
Available Policy Types
- Term life
- Universal life
- Index universal life
- Variable universal life
- No-medical exam life
Available Riders
- Term conversion
- Child term
- Waiver of premium
- Disability income
- Terminal illness
- Long-term care
- Chronic illness
Best Whole Life Insurance : Lafayette Life
:fill(white):max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/Lafayette_insurance-0439947e96294c259ba160ca612e29ae.jpg)
Lafayette Life Insurance
- Financial Strength Rating: A+
- Complaints: Much better than expected for company size
Lafayette Life outscored rivals in the whole life department thanks to its broad range of whole life policies and riders (many included at no cost), and its high coverage limits. You can buy as large of a policy as you want (provided you can qualify base𓃲d on your ꩵincome).
Offers seven whole life insurance policies
No caps on whole life coverage
Pays whole life dividends
Policies come with 3 free living benefit riders
Other top competitors pay better dividend rates
Doesn’t 🐲offer universal or variable life insurance
With seven different whole life policies, Lafayette Life offers options to suit a variety of needs. There’s no limit on how large the death benefit can be, and we like that Lafayette has 🐼a lot of free riders, including those that let you use your coverage while you’re alive if you get a serious illness.
On the downside, Lafayette’s dividend rate is lower than that of competitors such as MassMutual and Guardian Life. You’ll also need to call the ♈company or meet an agent in person to apply; there’s no online application.
Founded in 1905, Lafayette Life is headquartered in C♊incinnati, Ohio.
Available Policy Types
- Term life
- Whole life
- Children’s whole life
- No-medical-exam life (whole life)
- Final expense
Available Riders
- Term conversion
- Child term
- Guaranteed insurability rider
- Waiver of premium
- Accidental death benefit
- Terminal illness
- Chronic illness
- Critical illness
Also Great for Whole Life Insurance : MassMutual
:fill(white):max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/MassMutual-5542d799adfc45ebb6a7ab9b116e9c7c.jpg)
MassMutual
- Financial Strength Rating: A++
- Complaints: Much better than expected for company size
MassMutual pays the highest whole life dividend rate to policyholders of the companies Investopedia researched. That means 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:cash value grows faꦉster than with whole life policies at competing insurers.
Whole life policies have paid generous dividends
People up t෴o 90 years old can apply 𓆉for whole life
Complaints ♊about the company are e𒅌xtremely rare, given its size
You can’t 🔯get a quote or apply for a policy online
No same-day decisions
All policy applications require a medical exam
MassMutual scored slightly lower than Lafayette for our best whole life insurance list, but it was a close call. MassMutual beats Lafayette on a couple of fronts. Its dividend rate is the highest of all insurers on this list at 6.10%, and it offers whole life policies to peo🃏ple up to age 90. Only Thrivent and Guardian Life have age limits that are that high.
On the downside, 🎃you♏ have to talk to an agent and take a medical exam to buy a MassMutual policy, and there are no same-day decisions.
MassMutual has called Spr🎐ingfield, Mas♍sachusetts, home since its founding in 1851.
Available Policy Types
- Term life
- Whole life
- Children’s whole life
- Universal life
- Variable universal life
Available Riders
- Term conversion
- Spouse rider
- Guaranteed insurability rider
- Waiver of premium
- Disability income
- Terminal illness
- Chronic illness
Best No-Medical-Exam Insurance : Penn Mutual
:fill(white):max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/Penn_Mutual-70902c2bb7a04b4087d9cc4970c53f87.jpg)
Penn Mutual
- Financial Strength Rating: A+
- Complaints: Much better than expected for company size
If you want a substantial life insurance policy and don’t want to take a medical exam when you apply, Penn Mutual is the best provider. Its no-medical-exam policies can run up to $10 mill🌳ion—the highest amount we found in our research.
Large policies available without a medical exam
High dividend rate for whole life policies
Great customer complaint record
Doesn’t offer final expense insurance
No online application or quotes
No live chat for customer service
Penn Mutual’s cap on no-medical-exam coverage is double that of the next-highest limit we saw ($5 million from Nationwide or Sy𒁏metra) and many orders of magnitude higher than competitors whose caps run as low as $25,000.
Whole life policyholders enjoy dividends, and at 5.75%, Penn Mutual’s dividend interest rate is among the highest of the companies Investopedia researched. Dividends are never guaranteed, but the company has paid them for 175 straight years, with a record $200 million of dividends paid in 2024.
Customers made few complaints to state regulators about Penn Mutual, according to the National Association of Insurance Cওommissioners (NAIC) Compla🔥int Index.
Our main issue with Penn Mutual is that if you’re looking for a small no-exam 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:final expense policy, you’ll have to look elsewhere. Penn Mutual doesn’t offer these types of policies. It also lacks online quotes and application features that many🐟 competitors have.
Available Policy Types
- Term life
- Whole life
- Children's whole life
- Universal life
- Indexed universal life
- Variable universal life
- No-medical-exam life
Available Riders
- Spouse rider
- Guaranteed insurability rider
- Accidental death benefit
- Terminal illness rider
- Chronic illness rider
- Children's term rider
- Waiver of premium rider
Also Great for No-Medical Exam Life Insurance : Symetra
:fill(white):max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/Symetra-f8f441deb57640f7937257c32278117d.jpg)
Symetra
- Financial Strength Rating: A
- Complaints: Much better than expected for company size
Symetra has the second-highest coverage limit ($5 million) Investopedia dug up for life insurance policies you can apply for without taking a medicꦡal exam—and you could get approved in a matter of minutes.
No🍨🐬-medical-exam policies come with high coverage limits
Rapid approval process
Low rate of customer co🉐mplaints relative to the company’s size
Limited policy types
Small selection of riders
Symetra is another great choice for no-medical-exam in🐓surance, along with Penn Mutual. Its coverage limit is half as big as Penn Mutual’s but at $5 million, that’s still ample for many people. You must still qualify based on age, income, and medical records. But you can apply online, and Symetra can make coverage decisions in minutes.
Beyond no-exam term life insurance, Symetra’s product lineup is patchy. The company doesn’t sell whole life, final expense, or uni🍌versal life insurance, though it does offer three indexed universal life policies and one variable universal 🤡policy. It has a few riders, but not nearly as many as a powerhouse like Nationwide.
Symetrꦬa was founded in 1957 and is based in Bellevue, Wash.
Available Policy Types
- Term life
- Index universal life
- Variable universal life
- No-medical exam life (term)
Available Riders
- Term conversion
- Child term
- Waiver of premium
- Accidental death benefit
- Terminal illness
Best for Financial Strength, Best for Customer Satisfaction : Thrivent
:fill(white):max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/Thrivent-d7dade2eede44dc896722b629376fac8.jpg)
Thrivent
- Financial Strength Rating: A++
- Complaints: Much better than expected for company size
Best for Financial Strength
Thrivent’s A++ grade from credit rating agency AM Best is the highest possible, indicating what Best calls a “superior ability to meet ongoing insurance obligations.” Note that Thrivent is a member-owned organization for Christians. To sign up, you’ll need to sign a statement saying♒ that you or your spouse is Christian. If you’re applying for a minor, you’ll need to assert that they’re being raisedಞ in the Christian faith.
Best for Customer Satisfaction
Thrivent’s record for customer complaints to state regulators is nearly pristine. St🐬ate regulators received far fewer complaints than expected for a company of its size over a three-year period, giving Thrivent the best record of all the life insurers Investopedia researched. (MassMutual came in a close second.)
Highest available financial strength rating
Best complaint score of any insure🦩r Investopedia reviewed
Offers a wide variety of policy types
Only available to applic🦂ants🐟 who declare themselves Christians
No online applications
Rider selection is lacking
Founded in 1902 and based in Minneapolis, Thrivent has the highest financial strength rating there is: A++. That means you can rest assured that the company will be able to pay its claims many years down the road. Thrivent’s wide range of life insurance products includes term, whole life, and universal. And if you’re like many of Thrivent’s other customers, you’ll find little to complain about once you get a policy.
However, applying is less straightforward than with other competitors. There’s no online🃏 application, so you’ll have to pick up the phone and meet or speak with an agent to apply. And you’♊ll need to be a Christian to buy a policy—or at least attest that you are.
We’re also not impre♚ssed with Thrivent’s limited set of riders, especially the lack of a child term rider.
Available Policy Types
- Term life
- Whole life
- Children’s whole life
- Universal life
- Variable universal life
- No-medical-exam life (term)
Available Riders
- Term conversion
- Guaranteed insurability rider
- Waiver of premium
- Terminal illness
Why Trust Us
Investopedia product reviews are the result of rigorous, unbiased research and analysis by staff researchers and editors. We created this list of the best life insurance companies after collecting data points related to dozens of criteria from 45 companies. The criteria helped us evaluate each company’s costs, coverage o🧔ptions, financial stability, and other features and come up with objective assessments to help you choose the best provider for you.
Investopedia has been a trustworthy source of financial informa൩tion since 1999 and has been reviewing life insurance companꦚies since 2020.
How Does Life Insurance Work?
A 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:life insurance policy is a contract between a policyholder and an insurer. The policyholder agrees to pay o♉ngoing premiums and in exchange t💯he insurer pays out a guaranteed death benefit if the policyholder dies.
With life insurance, policyholders designate who they want to receive the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:death benefit, known as the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:beneficiaries. The death benefit is typi🍬cally received tax-free.
The premiums—or the cost you pay for a life insurance policy—are influenced by many factors such as the type of insurance you purchase, your gende🙈r, age, health status, and medical history. Someone who is 30 years old with no pre-existing conditions will qualify for lower premiums compared to someone who’s in their 60s, smokes, and has diabetes.
Life Insurance Benefits
There are a variety of reasons why you might 𒊎take out a life insurance policy. For example, some policyholders might want to leave behind a financial legacy while othe🦹rs may want to provide their family with an income replacement while they’re gone.
Additionally, some life insurance policies offer 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:living benefit riders, which can pay out while you’re still alive. For instance, some living benefit riders enable people to access all or a part of their death benefit if they’re diagnosed with a chronic or terminal illness. Some of these riders are included automatically while others cost extra, dep♌ending on the insurer and type of benefit.
Finally, some life insurance policies build 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:cash value which you can access and spend while alive. ♍These policies combine a savings account with 𓃲life insurance protection.
Life Insurance Underwriting
You are not guaranteed to buy most types of life insurance. When someone applies for a policy, the insurer will complete a process known as 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:underwriting to assess the risk of an applicant. They’ll then use the information to determ🍰ine whether someone is eligible for a policy, the cost of premiums, and the amount of coverage🌼.
During 𓆉the underwriting process, an insurer will require that you complete an application and undergo a medical exam where blood and urine samples are taken. They may also evaluate data like your prescription history, driving records⭕, credit history, and more.
However, there are some 🎶types of life insurance policies that don’t require applicants to undergo the full underwriting process, but these policies may𓆉 offer lower coverage amounts and charge higher premiums.
Types of Life Insurance Policies
There are broadly two types of life insurance: 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:term life and 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:permanent life. Term life insurance offers temporary coverage (and is typically ♕much more affordable because of this) while permanent life provides lifetime coverage so long as you keep paying the premiums.
Term Life Insurance
Term life insurance is a type of life insurance that offers policyholders coverage for a fixed period of time—typically, between 10 and 30 years. If a policyholder dies while they’re covered, their beneficiaries will receive the death benefit. But if an individual outlives their policy, allowing the policy to expire without 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:renewing it, their benefici🐽aries won’t receive the 🐟death benefit.
These policies usually have fixed premiums during the term, and tend to be much more affordable than permanent life insurance policies. That’s because most term life insurance policyholders 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:outlive their coverage, so insurance companies take on 🅺less risk when insuring these policies. You and your beneficiaries are also much less likely to receive a payout from term life insurance.
If you want more flexibility with your term life insurance policy, you may consider opting for a 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:convertible term🅺 life insurance policy. These policies give people the option of converting their term life policies into permanen🎃t whole life policies without undergoing an additional medical exam.
Whole Life Insurance
澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Whole life insurance is a type of permanent life insurance that offers lifelong coverage. This means that as long as a policyholder keeps up with their premiums, their beneficiaries are guaranteed to receive a death benefit when the꧑y pass away. Whole life insurance is typically much🐻 more expensive than term life.
Like other permanent life insurance policies, whole life insurance offers a savings feature known as cash value, which policyholders can borrow from, withdraw, and use to pay premiꦕums. With whole lജife insurance policies, premiums are typically level, which means they’re fixed during your lifetime while you have the policy.
Here’s how permanent life insurance works: When a policyholder pays a premium, a portion of it goes towards the ‘cost-of-insurance’, which includes administrative costs and the cost of the death benefit. Another portion of the premium is al𝓰located towards cash value. 🌠
Typically, whole life insurance policies offer a fixed rate on cash value, so the rate doesn’t fluctuate with changes in the economy or the market. Some insurers will even pay dividends on cash value. 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Dividends ꦚare profits from the insurer that are returned back to policyholders, but they may not be guarant🧸eed.
Universal Life Insurance
澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Universal life insurance is another type of permanent life insurance. It offers more flexibility than whole life insurance. Universal life insurance policyholders can typicജally adjust their death benefit and🦂 premiums.
With universal life insurance, policyholders can make lower or higher premium payments within a certain range. If a policyholder chooses to pay less than the minimum premium, their cash value will🍬 be used to cover the rest of the cost. Yet if a policyholder regularly makes only the minimum𝓡 premium amount, they could be at risk of their coverage lapsing if they don’t have enough cash value built up to cover their premiums.
Additionally, universal life insurance offers a variable rate on cash value, so the return may vary with changes in mar💛ket conditions. However, there is still a𓃲 minimum rate on cash value.
If you decide to terminate your universal life insurance policy, your remaining cash value will be returned back to you. There may be fees, known as 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:surrender charges, and outstanding loans subtracted from that amount. The total amount you get back, sans surrender charges, is referred to as the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:cash surrender value.
Note that surrender charges typically decline the longer you’ve had the policy and may not be charged after you’ve had the policy for at least 10 to 15 years.
No-Medical-Exam Life Insurance
Like the name implies, 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:no-medical-exam life insurance applicants are not required to complete a medical exam to qualify for a policy. This type of insurance allows applicants to simplify the application process, but these policies generally charge higher premiums and may offer lower coverage amounts because insurers may not have a complete picture of health. There ♛are three categories of no-medical exam life insurance: acceleraౠted underwriting, simplified issue, and guaranteed issue.
Accelerated underwriting: With accelerated underwriting, insurers may still require a health questionnaire, but they also evaluate data like an individual’s prescription history, criminal records, and more. Some insurers may charge higher premiums for these policies, but some may not. Accelerated underwriting has tougher standards than other no-medical exam policies. In exchange, you can usually apply for much larger amounts of coverage, up to $1 million or more depending on the insurer.
Simplified issue: Simplified issue life insurance also typically requires a medical questionnaire. Approval for these policies is fast, but companies may limit coverage to up to $100,000 maximum. These policies may be best for those with medical conditions, as you may be denied co🦩verage or charged higher premiums on a traditional policy.
Guaranteed issue: Lastly, with 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:guaranteed issue life insurance, applicants don’t have to complete a medical exam or a questionnaire. You are guaranteed to qualify, even with serious health issues. For this reason, guaranteed issue life insurance policies generally offer very limited coverage, ranging from a few thousands dollars to up to $50,000.
These policies also have a graded death benefit, which means there’s a waiting period of two to three years. If a policyholder dies during the waiting period, their beneficiaries won’t receive the death benefit, but they will get back any premiums plus interest. After the waiting period is over, beneficiaries receive the full death benefit. Guaranteed issue life insurance is a type of whole life insurance policy, which means it can include cash value.
How We Chose the Best Life Insurance Companies
Investopedia’s list of the best life insurance companies is based on com♛prehensive research of 45 companies.
To even be considered for this list, insurance companies had to first meet𓆉 Investopedia’s standards for online transparency, fina🔥ncial strength, and customer complaint ratings. hxmklzzmallshg.commissioned a consumer survey about life insurance, and consulted market share intelligence and other information about insurance company relevance and popularity to come up with a list of 45 companies to research further.
We gathered 3,150 data points related to 70 criteria between May 20 and July 3, 2024. The data came from company webpages, media representatives, rating agencies (AM Best, NAIC, and J.D. Power), and customer ser🍸vice calls.
Then, staff editors and research analysts created a quantitative model that scores each company based on six major categorie𓂃s. We weighted the categories as follows:
- Policy Features and Riders: 35%
- Policy Types: 22%
- Application and Online Service Features: 15%
- Cost: 12%
- Customer Satisfaction: 10%
- Financial Stability: 6%
For more information, read our full 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:methodology explanation.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/11BestTermWholeandNo-ExamLifeInsuranceCompanies-final-1659b4ecc9c3410494a71833647d98d4.png)
Investopedia / Mira Norian
Related Articles
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/BestChildrensLifeInsuranceCompanies-v1-6f02811dfdcb4f7a8ebe56ad202a62b4.png)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/BestWholeLifeInsuranceCompanies-final-492bf534ded442de830628287dd50409.png)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/BestLifeInsuranceCompaniesforYoungAdults-v1-d93ffe0ce2884c7a84150cd485367a02.png)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/BestLifeInsuranceforSmokers-v1-7664eb008016420db003ebb518025ab3.png)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/BestBurialInsuranceCompanies-d48fd5f883cc4d75ba7be6dd91f25d67.png)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/BestTermLifeInsuranceCompanies-final-b2106835adde47b1ac9cf2942968ad13.png)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/BestUniversalLifeInsuranceCompanies-final-fb6a9bd142594fbebcc9eb7b41115da5.png)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/12_How_Life_Insurance_Can_Enhance_Retirement-485eddcfedb5424fa3912041e74a868b.jpg)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/GettyImages-709133215-59e66d75af5d3a00106c66f6.jpg)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/BestLifeInsuranceforParents-v1-55c60ce5cc71487db261f42eba37c231.png)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/GettyImages-2168093768-c3c1c13b45b246f085710cbfd74e301e.jpg)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/Life-Insurance-a8aee8e3024145a8b454ea19df030418.png)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/WholeLifeInsurance-273c776c0b234dbbb2bbfef4f71954de.jpg)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/BestLifeInsuranceforCancerPatients-v1-9c8ecad237cf41c6a62a281a3c0b1252.png)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/MostAffordableLifeInsuranceCompanies-v11-07c82438291c425a95c812c772195eb6.png)
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/BestNo-Medical-ExamLifeInsurance-final-f37fe665e6724c098b33125068cfa550.png)