The best universal life insurance companies offer various policies and investment options for growing cash value. You’ll also consider the company’s strength rating, JD Power customer satisfaction ratings, and NAIC complaint index.
Investopedia’s 5 Best Universal Life Insurance Companies includes firms with low coverage minimums, a broad range of policy options, and excellent financial strength ratings. These companies also boast strong customer service and competitive pricing.
1. Mutual of Omaha
Founded in 1909 by a medical student at Omaha’s University of Nebraska and his wife, Mutual of Omaha is a Fortune 500 company offering individuals financial and insurance solutions. Its policies cover your loved ones and can be structured to meet your goals. Its offerings include whole, universal, and indexed universal life insurance policies. Its AccumUL Answers policy, for example, is a permanent, entire life insurance plan that grows (tax-deferred) throughout your lifetime.
Its other products include critical, chronic, and terminal illness riders, which allow you to access part of your death benefit if you’re diagnosed with a qualifying condition. It also offers an accelerated death benefit rider and a guaranteed refund option for certain policies.
Mutual of Omaha scored reasonably well for customer satisfaction in JD Power’s Individual Life Insurance Study and has a history of caring for its policyholders. It offers competitive prices and allows you to bundle its life insurance with auto and home insurance, which could save you money. It also provides a mobile app and local agents.
2. Pacific Life
Universal life insurance is an excellent option for people looking to diversify their assets, grow, and invest their money. When you make a premium payment, the insurer subtracts the cost of the policy and any administrative fees, and then funnels the remaining funds toward your cash value account.
Pacific Life is a 2025 Bankrate award winner for individual life insurance, offering several guaranteed, indexed, and variable universal policies. Its indexed universal life insurance (IUL) portfolios include the Discovery Xcelerator IUL II and the Indexed Accumulator 6. These policies offer market-indexed interest crediting that allows you to gain from rising markets without the risk of significant loss.
The company also offers survivorship IUL, which pays out on the death of the second spouse. Its permanent life products feature riders and no-lapse guarantees, and the company’s Go program offers perks like discounts on fitness gear and groceries. In addition, the company provides group universal life insurance through its State Farm agents. This type of insurance is typically offered to employees as part of a benefits package.
3. Guardian
Guardian offers a variety of universal life insurance policies, including guaranteed and indexed universal life insurance. These types of permanent life insurance combine the flexibility and potential income tax-free cash growth of whole life policies with flexible premiums and death benefits.
When you make a premium payment, insurance and other charges are deducted. The remaining amount is deposited into the policy’s account, and a minimum interest rate is earned.
These funds are added to your death benefit when you die. The death benefit is multiplied by the cash value balance to give your beneficiaries a higher payout. However, your cash value may decline if you don’t pay premiums or take out loans from the account.
The best universal life insurance companies offer flexible premiums and death benefits that you can adjust as your financial circumstances change. To find the right policy for you, compare quotes from multiple providers. Investopedia recommends comparing policy features, customer satisfaction, and economic strength ratings before deciding. Alternatively, you can get a personalized assessment of your current life insurance needs from a licensed advisor.
4. MassMutual
Founded in 1851, MassMutual remains one of the most well-known names in life insurance. It has a long history of investing in the markets and consumers. The company strongly focuses on customer service. Its products include whole, variable, and indexed universal life policies.
Its universal life insurance policies offer flexible premiums and death benefits that you can change as your financial needs evolve. The company also offers an accelerated death benefit rider that gives you access to part of your policy’s death benefit if diagnosed with a terminal illness.
MassMutual has no minimum coverage requirement and a no-lapse guarantee that keeps your policy active as long as you pay your premium. Its indexed universal life (IUL) policies allow you to direct some of your premium into an index-linked subaccount that may earn or lose interest based on market performance. This makes IUL policies more volatile than other types of UL insurance. The company also offers a free health and wellness program called Vitality GO that rewards healthy choices with discounts on groceries and fitness gear.
5. Nationwide
With the indexed universal life insurance market growing quickly, choosing the right company is essential. Nationwide has low coverage minimums and offers a wide range of riders. It also has excellent financial strength ratings, a strong NAIC complaint index, and no lapse guarantees. Nationwide also provides various policy types, including guaranteed universal life, indexed universal life, and variable universal life.
With a diverse revenue model, strategic ventures, and a customer-centric approach, Nationwide is well-positioned to remain an industry leader for years. Its diversified business model ensures stability and growth while remaining focused on the company’s mission of protecting its customers.
Lifelong coverage with a flexible cash-value component is one of the main reasons people choose universal life insurance. It’s an excellent option for those who want to diversify their investment portfolio, cover unexpected expenses, and provide peace of mind. To explore universal life insurance options, compare quotes from multiple providers before deciding. Talk to a fee-only life insurance consultant to help you make the best choice for your unique needs and financial situation.
