If you don’t already have life insurance, now might be the best time to get coverage in place. Life insurance can help ease the financial burden your loved ones could face if you pass away. We compared several factors, like types of coverage available, ease of application process, policy features and customer satisfaction, to bring you these best life insurance companies in New Jersey.
Best life insurance companies
| Company | Best for | Type of life insurance available | Coverage amounts | Age ranges |
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MassMutual | Whole life insurance |
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Pure term life insurance | Term life | $100,000-$8 million | 20 to 60 | |
Guardian | Healthy people with HIV |
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New York Life | High coverage amounts |
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State Farm | Term life insurance |
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Northwestern Mutual | Universal life insurance |
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Nationwide | Long term care needs |
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MassMutual: Best for whole life insurance
Pros
- Several riders to customize your policy
- High dividend payouts
- Six whole life policy options
Cons
- Can only get rates and apply through a financial advisor
- Most will require a medical exam
- No claims available online
MassMutual offers term, whole life and several universal life insurance options. But we chose it as our pick for best whole life insurance because it offers six policy options:
- Whole Life Legacy 100: pay to age 100
- Whole Life Legacy 65: pay to age 65
- Whole Life Legacy 20 pay: pay for 20 years
- Whole Life Legacy 10 pay: pay for 10 years
- Whole Life Legacy High Early Cash Value: pay to age 85 but earns more cash value faster
- Whole Life Survivorship: insures two people on one policy
MassMutual has multiple riders available to customize your policy, like waiver of premium, accelerated death benefit, life insurance supplement, transfer of insureds and guaranteed insurability.
If you buy whole life insurance through MassMutual, chances are you’ll receive a dividend, which is a portion of the company’s profits. They’ve paid an annual dividend on whole life insurance annually since 1869. The 2023 dividend is their highest distribution, estimating $1.9 billion at an average 6% interest rate per eligible policyholder.
Ladder: Best for term life insurance
Pros
- Up to 83 million in term life available
- Completely digital application process
- Adjust Coverage anytime
Cons
- Only term life insurance available
- Limited ages
- No riders
Ladder offers a unique selling proposition for its term life insurance policy: adjust coverage whenever life circ*mstances warrant a change. Ladder offers a completely online application process and coverage up to $3 million without a medical exam (only health questions are asked as part of the online application) and most applicants are instantly approved. For coverage above $3 million, a medical exam is required but can be completed in the comfort of one's home or place of work, whichever is preferred.People between the ages of 20 and 60 can apply for up to 30 years of term coverage through Ladder, as long as your age plus the term years doesn’t exceed 70. For example, someone who is 60 can only apply for up to 10 years in term life coverage.
Ladder offers what is known as pure life insurance — term life with only a death benefit, no riders or any other benefits that other companies may provide.
Guardian Life: Best for healthy people with HIV
Pros
- Choose between term and whole life
- Up to $2 million in coverage available
- Online policy management
Cons
- Must purchase through an agent
- Minimal policy details available online
Guardian life insurance offers term, whole life and universal life insurance policies. But if you have HIV, getting approved for any policy is hard, even if you’re healthy. Guardian offers term and whole life insurance to healthy adults who are living with HIV, provided you can meet the following conditions:
- You’re between the ages of 20 and 60
- You don’t have any AIDS-related illnesses
- You’re under a doctor’s care who specializes in HIV treatment
- You’ve had at least two years of favorable test results on anti-retrovirals
Although Guardian offers many life insurance options without a medical exam, HIV-positive applicants should expect to complete a health questionnaire and medical exam. Coverage ranges from $100,000 to $2 million for term life and $25,000 and $2 million for whole life insurance. If you choose whole life insurance, the policy will build cash value and is eligible for annual dividend payments.
New York Life: Best for high coverage amounts
Pros
- Wide range of policies available
- High coverage amounts available
- One of the largest life insurance companies
Cons
- No quotes online
New York Life is one of the largest life insurance companies and has been around for over 100 years. They offer a wide range of term, whole, variable and universal life insurance policies and multiple riders to tailor your policy to your specific needs.
New York Life may be your best option if you need more than $5 million in life insurance coverage. If you meet income guidelines, you could qualify for $10 million or more in life insurance from New York Life. And if you opt for a whole life policy, they also offer policy dividends since they’re a mutual insurance company.
You have to speak with a New York Life insurance representative to get a quote and apply for coverage. Expect to complete a health questionnaire as part of the application and process and undergo a medical exam to get approved, especially for higher coverage amounts.
State Farm: Best for term life insurance
Pros
- Ranked #1 for life insurance satisfaction by J.D. Power
- Can get instant approval for $50,000 in term life insurance
- Several policy and rider options available
Cons
- Can only quote or buy through an agent
- Most will have to take a medical exam
State Farm earns the top spot in J.D. Power’s 2022 Life Insurance Study for customer satisfaction. This mutual insurance company offers term, whole and universal life insurance options. Three term life insurance options are available to meet most of your temporary life insurance needs.
The Instant Answer Term is a 10-year term that provides $50,000 in coverage. The application only takes a few minutes, and there is no medical exam. If you need more coverage, consider State Farm’s Select Term or Return of Premium Term.
Select Term is available for 10, 20 or 30 years and can be renewed until age 95. The Return of Premium Term may be the best option if you expect to outlive a 20- or 30-year term policy. This policy is also renewable to age 95, but the premium will be higher than the Select Term since the insurance company will make a payout regardless if you live or die.
Northwestern Mutual: Best for universal life insurance
Pros
- High coverage amounts available
- Multiple universal life policies to choose from
- Can make policy changes online
Cons
- Limited information available online
- Must complete a medical exam
Like the other life insurance companies on our list, Northwestern Mutual offers term, whole life and universal life insurance policies. High net worth earners can access Northwestern Mutual’s wealth management platform for financial growth strategies, which can include a universal life insurance policy.
Northwestern Mutual offers limited online information, so you must work with one of the advisors. There are several universal life insurance policies to choose from, including their basic universal life policy, the variable life policy, the executive variable for employers and the survivorship variable life insurance policy for couples.
Coverage maximums depend on your income and other factors, and Northwestern Mutual requires a medical exam for approval. Only a few riders are available, but if you’re looking for exceptional service, consider Northwestern Mutual for life insurance.
Nationwide: Best for long-term care needs
Pros
- No-exam policies available
- Wide range of riders to customize your coverage
- Add LTC with linked benefits or as a rider
Cons
- Only term quotes available online
- Medical exam usually required
Nationwide is another life insurance company offering term, whole and universal life policies. But if you’re interested in buying long-term care coverage, you may want to speak with a Nationwide Insurance agent.
Nationwide’s CareMatters policy is a hybrid life insurance long-term care policy. It provides a guaranteed death benefit for your beneficiary and long-term care benefits if you need them. You can also get a long-term care policy for couples, where you share the LTC benefits, and the beneficiary receives the death benefit after the second person dies.
There’s also a long-term care rider, which you can add to a universal life insurance policy. A portion of the death benefit can be used for LTC needs. But if you don’t need LTC, your beneficiary receives the entire death benefit when you pass away. And once your LTC claim has been approved, you can use the benefits however you want, whether you’re paying your family to provide care or need skilled assistance.
Methodology
We compared several factors across all companies and brokerages to compile this list of the best life insurance companies in New Jersey, which includes:
- Policy types
- Coverage options
- Underwriting criteria
- Application process
- Customer satisfaction
- Financial strength
- Features and benefits
How to choose the best life insurance company for you
Choosing the best life insurance company for you depends on multiple factors, like your coverage needs and the type of life insurance that’s best to meet your needs. Consider these factors to help you narrow down the best life insurance company.
Since life insurance is usually a long-term commitment, even when you buy term, you should also consider each company’s:
- Application process: While some applications can be completed in minutes, others require more information and can take longer. You might also have to speak with an agent to go over your application and health history or complete a medical exam, which can lengthen the application process.
- Customer satisfaction: A company’s National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) score shows how often customers complain about the company compared to the industry standard. The lower the NAIC complaint index, the more likely you are to have a positive experience with the carrier.
- Financial strength: Life insurance companies have to pay large sums in full when an insured dies. The company’s financial strength shows how likely it is to default or be unable to pay its debts. The higher the company’s financial strength rating, the more likely they will still be financially able to pay your beneficiary the policy death benefit in the future.
Price and riders are other factors to consider. Riders allow you to customize your policy with add-ons, like more coverage if you die an accidental death or the ability to access some of the death benefit if you’re diagnosed with a terminal illness. Comparing several quotes for the same policy type and coverage amount can help you find the company with the best price for you.
What are the different types of life insurance?
There are several different types of life insurance that you can choose from. Here are some of the most common types.
Term life insurance
The most popular and common type of life insurance is term life insurance. It’s usually the cheaper option and satisfies most financial needs, such as income replacement and paying off debts. Term life insurance is only in effect for a certain amount of time, usually between 10 and 30 years.
There are several types of term life insurance:
- Decreasing term: The policy coverage decreases as the policy matures, but the premium usually stays the same.
- Level term: The coverage amount and premium stay the same for the life of the policy.
- Return of premium: The premium is more expensive than level term because the insurance company returns all or a portion of the premium if you outlive the policy.
- Yearly renewable term: This policy does not have a term limit, but renews each year. The premium will increase as you age, since the rate depends on your current age at the time of renewal.
Whole life insurance
The most basic type of permanent life insurance is whole life insurance. It offers a guaranteed death benefit and premium that is locked in for life. It also builds cash value, which is a savings account you can access while still alive. The cash value will grow over time at a guaranteed interest rate.
Universal life insurance
Universal life insurance offers death benefit and premium flexibility that whole life insurance doesn’t. You can increase or lower your death benefit or premium as life needs change without having to get a new policy.
If you want to speed up your cash value growth, you can invest in an indexed universal or variable universal life insurance policy. These policies invest the cash value in the stock market rather than provide a guaranteed interest rate.
Final expense life insurance
Final expense is a form of whole life insurance sometimes called burial insurance or funeral insurance. It’s designed to pay for end-of-life expenses such as a burial or cremation. The coverage amounts are lower than whole life insurance and may have more lenient underwriting guidelines, making it easier to qualify, which can make it more expensive.
Simplified issue life insurance
You can buy term or whole life simplified issue life insurance. When you buy life insurance the traditional way, you answer health questions as part of the application and complete a health screening interview. You also take a medical exam, which can include height and weight measurements, blood draw and urine sample.
Simplified issue life insurance offers a simplified application process without the medical exam. But since your complete medical history isn’t used to determine risk, insurers usually charge more for simplified issue coverage.
Guaranteed issue life insurance
The most expensive form of life insurance is guaranteed issue life insurance. There is no medical exam to complete or health questions to answer. As long as you meet the age requirements and can complete the application, you’re guaranteed to be approved. This policy is best for seniors and people with serious health problems that can’t get approved with traditional or simplified issue underwriting. They are usually only available as whole life insurance and have a smaller death benefit than other types of permanent life insurance.
What is the cost of a life insurance policy?
The cost of a life insurance policy can vary considerably, as rates are determined by several factors.
Age
The younger you are, the lower your mortality risk and the cheaper your life insurance rates can be. Life insurers use a person’s mortality risk, or likelihood of dying while the policy is active, to determine insurance rates.
Coverage
The more life insurance coverage you need, the more you’ll pay. The life insurance cost will also increase if you include riders, which increases the chances the insurance company will have to pay on your policy.
Examples of life insurance riders:
- Accelerated death benefit (ADB): Allows you to accelerate, or have access to, part of the death benefit while still alive when you have a qualifying illness or terminal illness diagnosis.
- Child or spouse term: Provides a life insurance death benefit for your spouse or minor children.
- Waiver of premium for disability: Waives your premium in the event you cannot work because of disability, in order to keep your policy from lapsing until you are no longer disabled.
- Guaranteed insurability: Provides the option to buy more life insurance at your current age without proving insurability, which means no health questions or medical exam. Time frames in which you can buy more coverage are determined by the company and are usually at a certain age or when you experience a life event like getting married or having a child.
- Cost of living: Increases your death benefit coverage to stay in line with the Consumer Price Index to avoid inflation devaluing your coverage amount. This coverage increase will also increase your premium.
Gender
Males usually pay more for life insurance than females because they have a shorter life expectancy, making it more likely the insurance company will pay the death benefit sooner. The higher the risk you pose to the life insurer, the higher your premiums will be.
Health
One of the biggest factors in your life insurance rate is your health. Insurance companies will look at your current and past health to determine your life expectancy and risk class. Each company looks at health factors differently, so it may be beneficial to get quotes from multiple companies to find the one that will give you the best rate.
If you have serious health issues, you may want to consider a simplified issue life insurance policy, which doesn’t require a medical exam. Another option is a guaranteed issue policy, which doesn’t ask any health questions or require a medical exam. Both these options can be more expensive, however, since they do not factor your health into the cost.
Job
When you apply for life insurance, you have to list your occupation. The riskier your job, the more you could pay for life insurance. If you work a desk job as an accountant or admin, your risk of death is much lower than if you work on an oil rig, or are a firefighter or police officer, for example.
Lifestyle
Similar to your occupation, life insurers want to know if you participate in risky lifestyle activities or hobbies. If you take part in high-risk activities, like skydiving, base jumping or traveling to war zones, you have a higher mortality risk than people who don’t.
Life insurance type
Buying term life insurance is cheaper than permanent life insurance because it only lasts for a set amount of time. When you buy a permanent life insurance policy, it lasts your entire life, so the insurance company will end up paying the death benefit — as long as the policy is paid up at the time of your death. There are multiple types of permanent life insurance, including whole life, universal life and variable life, which have different features and rates.
When should you get life insurance?
If someone else depends on your income or will be responsible for your debts after you die, you should get life insurance. Your beneficiary can use the life insurance death benefit to replace your income or pay off your debts after your death. Life insurance allows you to provide for your loved ones after you’re gone, so they will not experience financial hardship.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
What Is Life Insurance?
Life insurance is a contractual agreement between a policyholder and an insurance company. The policyholder agrees to pay a premium and the insurance company agrees to pay a death benefit if the insured dies while the policy is active. The policyholder and insured are often the same person, but can be different. For instance, a husband may buy a life insurance policy on this wife, making him the policyholder and the wife the insured.
How does life insurance work?
When you buy life insurance, the insurance company agrees to pay the beneficiary of your choice a certain amount of money, called a death benefit. If you die while the policy is active, the beneficiary receives the death benefit. You can name one or more people as the primary beneficiary and designate how much each person gets from the death benefit. You can also name a contingent beneficiary. They will receive the death benefit if your primary beneficiary is not alive or able to be found after your death.
Term Life vs. Whole Life Insurance
Term life insurance provides temporary coverage over a set number of years, usually 10 to 30 years. This type of life insurance is ideal for temporary needs, like paying off a mortgage, replacing income or paying for childcare expenses or college tuition. Whole life insurance is a policy that provides lifetime coverage and builds cash value, or savings, within the policy. Since it provides permanent coverage, whole life insurance is more expensive than term life insurance. Whole life insurance is best for lifelong needs, like final expenses or taking care of a long-term dependent.
What age is best to get life insurance?
There is no best age to get life insurance, though it’s easiest to get approved at the cheapest rate when you are young and healthy. If you get term life insurance, you lock in the same low rate for the entire term. While permanent life insurance, like whole life or universal life, you can lock in lifetime low rates when you buy coverage when you’re young. You never know when your health could change, making it harder to find affordable life insurance or even qualify for coverage. If you need life insurance, getting it sooner than later can not only save you money, but also ensure you can qualify for the coverage you need.
Ladder Insurance Services, LLC (CA license # OK22568; AR license # 3000140372) offers term life insurance products issued by multiple insurers. For details go toladderlife.com. All insurance product terms are set and governed by the individual insurance policy. Each insurer has financial responsibility for its own products. Coverage amounts vary by state.
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