5 Best Life Insurance Companies in May 2025

NerdWallet’s editorial team evaluates dozens of life insurance companies to find the best ones. We look closely at customer complaints data, consumer experience and financial strength. We also assess the types of policies on offer and the ways you can buy coverage. The five best life insurance companies on our list earned a perfect five-star score.

Best life insurance company overall: MassMutual

Overview: Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co., or MassMutual, is one of the largest life insurers in the country. Founded in 1851, it offers a wide range of products, from term life to variable universal life insurance — a type of permanent policy with flexible premiums and investment opportunities. MassMutual is a mutual life insurance company, which means it’s owned in part by its policyholders and pays out dividends to qualifying members. Its 2025 dividend payout is set to be the highest yet at over $2.5 billion

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Policies offered: Term, whole, universal and variable universal.

» Read the full review: MassMutual life insurance

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Best life insurance company for health conditions: Guardian

Overview: Guardian was founded in 1860 and has paid life insurance dividends to its eligible policyholders since 1868. The company is set to pay out $1.6 billion in dividends in 2025, the largest sum in the company’s history

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. The insurer stands out for its lenient underwriting standards and is known for making life insurance accessible for people living with certain health conditions, like HIV.

The insurer drew significantly fewer complaints to state regulators than expected for a company its size. Aside from life insurance, Guardian also sells a range of products including dental, vision and cancer insurance.

Policies offered: Term, whole, universal and variable universal.

» Read the full review: Guardian life insurance

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Best life insurance company for customer experience: Northwestern Mutual

Overview: Founded in 1857, Northwestern Mutual is one of the largest life insurance companies and the biggest seller of individual policies in the United States, according to the latest data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. Universal life policyholders have flexible payment and coverage options, while term life customers have the opportunity to convert their policy to permanent coverage without taking a medical exam.

The company is set to pay $8.2 billion in dividends to qualifying policyholders in 2025

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. Northwestern Mutual received significantly fewer complaints to state regulators than expected for a company of its size, making it a trustworthy choice for shoppers.

Policies offered: Term, whole, universal and variable universal.

» Read the full review: Northwestern Mutual life insurance

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Best company for permanent life insurance: Pacific Life

Overview: Pacific Life has been in business for more than 150 years, and has drawn significantly fewer complaints than expected for a company of its size over the past three years. It has a stellar lineup of permanent life insurance policies, including a competitive indexed universal life insurance policy. These policies typically grow investments based on stock market indexes like the S&P 500. They also have a guaranteed floor, which means your life insurance cash value won’t fall below a certain value if the stock market dives.

Policies offered: Term, universal, variable universal and indexed universal.

» Read the full review: Pacific Life insurance

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Best for social responsibility: Thrivent

Overview: Founded in 1902, Thrivent is a not-for-profit fraternal benefit society serving Christian consumers — you’ll need to attest your faith to become a member and apply for life insurance or other financial products. The company offers a range of term and permanent life insurance, including joint policies to cover spouses or business partners. Thrivent also emphasizes social responsibility; resources are available to support members' volunteer activities and charitable donations. As a mutual company, Thrivent has consistently paid out dividends to members, and it’s set to pay out $564 million in 2025 — the highest sum yet

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Policies offered: Term, whole, universal, variable universal.

Best term life insurance companies in 2025

Term life insurance provides temporary coverage for a set number of years, usually one to 30. It’s the cheapest and most popular type of coverage, and insurers can stand out in the market for offering competitive prices, riders and more. These term life insurance companies all scored at least 4.5 stars, and most offer a range of term lengths:

• Guardian: 1, 10, 15, 20 or 30 years.

• MassMutual: 1, 10, 15, 20, 25 or 30 years.

• Northwestern Mutual: 1, 10 or 20 years.

• Thrivent: 10, 15, 20 or 30 years.

• Pacific Life: 10, 15, 20, 25 or 30 years.

• New York Life: 1, 10, 15 or 20 years.

• Penn Mutual: 10, 15, 20 or 30 years.

• AARP: Until age 80.

Best whole life insurance companies in 2025

Whole life insurance typically lasts your entire life. As a type of permanent life insurance, it also builds cash value over time. We’ve compared whole life companies based on factors like coverage flexibility and the potential to earn dividends. These companies scored at least 4.5 stars:

• Guardian.

• MassMutual.

• Northwestern Mutual.

• Thrivent.

• New York Life.

• Penn Mutual.

• AARP.

Best no-medical-exam life insurance companies in 2025

With no-medical-exam life insurance, the application process is streamlined. Depending on the policy you choose, you might have to answer some questions about your health and lifestyle, though some policies skip both the exam and questionnaire. These companies scored 4 stars or more:

• AARP.

• Country Financial.

• Nationwide.

How to choose the best life insurance for you

Shopping for coverage? Follow these steps to find the right life insurance for your needs.

1. Decide on a type of life insurance

Term life insurance is sufficient for most people. It lasts a set number of years — like 10, 20 and 30 — and is designed to cover you for the years when you have the most financial obligations. The premiums stay the same, so you'll know exactly how much the policy will cost over time.

If you need lifelong coverage, permanent life insurance is another option. There are a few policies that fall under this umbrella, including whole life insurance, universal life insurance and variable life insurance. These policies typically don't expire as long you keep up your premiums, and they build cash value at either a fixed or variable rate. Once you've accumulated enough cash value, you can begin to withdraw or borrow against those funds.

» MORE: Cash value life insurance

2. Calculate how much coverage you need

The next step is determining how much life insurance you need. Check out our comprehensive guide to learn different ways to crunch the numbers.

A simple way to calculate your life insurance needs is to think about everything you pay for now and everything you expect to pay for in the future. This list could include everyday expenses like child care, utility bills and groceries, as well as long-term costs like college tuition and mortgage payments. Once you have a number, subtract the value of any assets you own. The final dollar figure is the gap a life insurance policy can help to fill.

3. Get prices from a handful of companies

The cost of coverage varies among companies, so aim to compare life insurance quotes from multiple insurers.

Although many companies sell similar policies, some focus on certain products — such as whole life — or on particular customers, such as seniors who need life insurance. You can narrow down your options by focusing on the companies that specialize in the type of insurance you’re looking for.

More about top-rated life insurance companies

Looking for a specific type of life insurance policy? Check out NerdWallet’s top picks across these categories:

• Best burial life insurance companies.

• Best mutual life insurance companies.

• Best universal life insurance companies.

• Best life insurance for seniors.

• Best instant life insurance companies.

• Best return-of-premium life insurance.

• Best life insurance for children.

• Best accidental death and dismemberment insurance.

• Cheapest life insurance companies.

How we rank the top life insurers

When NerdWallet evaluates life insurance companies, our editorial team considers both the customer and the insurer. These are some of the factors we take into account and why:

Policies offered. There are many types of life insurance on the market, and they fall into three key categories: term life insurance, permanent life insurance and no-exam life insurance. The right policy for you depends on your needs and budget, but the best life insurance companies offer a broad range of coverage types to cater to most people.

Financial strength. We use AM Best ratings to confirm an insurer’s long-term financial stability and ability to pay claims. For life insurance, NerdWallet typically recommends considering insurers with ratings of A- or higher. The top life insurance companies have an exceptional financial strength rating of A+ or A++.

Complaints. These ratings are based on complaints to state regulators relative to a company’s size, according to three years’ worth of data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Our top-rated life insurance companies have fewer than the expected number of complaints, so you can expect a smoother customer experience.

Buy online. We consider it a bonus when an insurer allows you to apply for and buy a policy completely online.