The Best Life Insurance Companies

Finding the best life insurance company typically involves weighing customer service, financial strength and price. There are hundreds of life insurance companies competing for your business and often selling very similar products.

To help you differentiate among large life insurance companies, we’ve calculated a NerdWallet composite score based on three measurements: complaints against the companies based on data adjusted for market share; A.M. Best financial strength ratings; and J.D. Power customer satisfaction scores.

Our calculations show that Northwestern Mutual is the best life insurance company among those we scored, and many others also are worthy of consideration.

The other element of your buying decision will be price. It’s smart to get life insurance quotes from at least a few companies.

The best life insurance companies
Rank	Life insurance company	NerdWallet composite score (300-point scale)	Complaint score	A.M. Best financial strength rating	J.D. Power customer satisfaction score
1	Northwestern Mutual	278.64	96.64	A++	820
2	Guardian Life	276.28	97.48	A++	788
3	Mutual of Omaha	274.10	100.00	A+	791
4	MassMutual	271.10	95.80	A++	753
5	New York Life	270.70	91.60	A++	791
6	State Farm Life	269.69	87.39	A++	823
7	Nationwide	266.70	91.60	A+	801
8	Principal Financial	266.02	94.12	A+	769
9	AXA Equitable	261.40	91.60	A+	748
10	Lincoln Financial	257.88	89.08	A+	738
11	John Hancock	257.28	89.08	A+	732
12	Primerica	247.13	79.83	A+	723
13	Transamerica	243.75	73.95	A+	748
14	MetLife	242.49	70.59	A+	769
15	Protective	240.41	68.91	A+	765
16	Prudential	218.40	47.90	A+	755
17	Voya	213.64	48.74	A	749
18	Allstate	175.10	0.00	A+	801
19	AIG	169.84	5.04	A	748

Methodology

We calculated a total score based on three measurements, each with equal weight within the score, and adjusted scores to a 300-point scale: 

1. Customer satisfaction scores from J.D. Power.
2. Complaint ratios from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners for 2014, which measure complaints adjusted for market share. We adjusted the complaint ratios to a 100-point scale, with the worst performer within the group getting zero and the top performer getting 100. 
3. Financial strength ratings from A.M. Best, which indicate a company’s ability to pay future claims. All of the companies shown have solid financial strength. A.M. Best defines the ratings shown above as:

• A++ and A+ = superior.
• A = excellent.

Amy Danise is an editor at NerdWallet, a personal finance website. Email: adanise@nerdwallet.com. Twitter: @AmyDanise.