The best whole life insurance companies of 2026

Whole life insurance has a few benefits when compared to popular term life insurance policies.

Whole life insurance is guaranteed to pay out as long as you pay your premiums, while term life insurance lapses if you outlive the timeframe you chose when you bought the policy.

Additionally, whole policies grow tax-deferred, building cash value you can use while you're alive. These policies can also grow through dividend earnings.

While these features do make it relatively expensive — a $500,000 whole life insurance policy for a healthy 30-year-old male averages $472 a month in 2025 and about $408 a month for a comparable female, according to Policygenius — a whole life policy ensures you'll leave a financial legacy for your loved ones.

Here are our picks for the best whole life insurance companies. (See our methodology for more on how we made our selections.)

Who's this for? In addition to a traditional whole life policy with premiums paid until age 100, State Farm has a limited pay policy, which you pay in full in 10, 15 or 20 years. A single premium whole life that is paid in one lump sum but still has a cash value component is also available. These options could help you pay your life insurance in full before your budget becomes more limited in retirement.

Policies: Term, whole life, universal, final expense

Standout benefits: Most State Farm term life policies can be converted to whole life policies, often without another medical exam. Additionally, State Farm was ranked second for customer satisfaction in J.D. Power's 2025 individual life insurance survey.

Who's this for? Not all life insurers offer survivorship policies. MassMutual does and the policies are often a good fit for couples wanking to make an estate plan that can pass wealth to future generations. With this kind of policy, both partners are on the policy, which pays out after the second person dies. Additionally, premiums can be cheaper than two individual policies.

Policies: Term, whole, universal, variable universal

Standout benefits: Whole life policyholders are eligible for dividends, which MassMutual has paid out annually since 1869. In 2026, the company is expected to distribute $2.9 billion.

Who's this for? While dividends are not guaranteed, Northwestern Mutual has been reliably offering dividends every year for 155 years. The brand announced in October 2025 that eligible whole life insurance policyholders will receive dividends totaling $7.9 billion. Policyholders can use that money to increase their plan's value, pay premiums or take as cash.

Policies: Term, whole, universal, variable universal, annuities, disability insurance

Standout benefit: Northwestern Mutual's whole life policies can be customized with riders, including long-term-care benefits, a waiver of premium and an additional purchase benefit that allows you to buy more coverage at certain ages or life milestones regardless of your health status.

Who's this for: Available to policyholders between 66 and 85, Ethos' whole life plan is a great option for covering the cost of a funeral, legal bills and other end-of-life expenses. Additionally, the $30,000 coverage limit is more generous than many other final expense policies.

Policies: Term and whole life underwritten by Ameritas, TruStage, Mutual of Omaha, CMFG and Legal & General America.

Standout benefits: Ethos offers no-medical-exam life insurance.

Who's this for? While many insurers charge for an accelerated death benefit rider, it comes standard with Guardian's whole life policies. If you're diagnosed with a chronic or terminal illness, you can tap your policy benefits to pay for your care or other needs.

Policies: Term, whole, universal, joint life insurance, disability insurance

Standout benefits: While many insurers cap whole life policies at age 75 or 80, Guardian approves seniors up to age 90.

Whole life insurance is a type of permanent life insurance that's guaranteed to pay out, with fixed premiums and death benefits. You pay the same premium for your entire life, and your family receives a death benefit after you're gone.

These policies also have cash value, which earns interest and can eventually be used to pay your premiums, borrow against or take out in cash. The cash value is only available while you're alive, however, and your beneficiaries will just receive the stated death benefit.

Whole life policies also often qualify for dividends, or funds returned by an insurer that equal a portion of excess premiums collected that year. Dividends can also be taken as cash, put toward your premiums or used to buy more coverage.

The cost of whole life insurance varies depending on your age, gender, health status and other factors, as well as the death benefit and payment terms you choose.

A $500,000 whole life insurance policy for a healthy 50-year-old male averages $583 a month in 2026 and about $496 a month for a comparable female, according to life insurance agency Choice Mutual.

Rates are higher for older policyholders: a 50-year-old woman would pay about $768 per month for a $500,000 policy and a 50-year-old man would pay $895 a month.

Because the terms are shorter, limited-pay policies — like those paid up in 10 or 20 years or before age 65, for example — are about two to three times more expensive, according to Choice Mutual.

A final expense policy is a cheaper option: For a policy with a $20,000 death benefit, a 65-year-old man would pay about $104 per month and a 65-year-old woman would pay about $78 per month.

Because whole life insurance is more complicated than term life, you usually have to work with an agent to complete enrollment. However, you should do some research on your own prior to meeting with a professional. When reviewing providers, there are several things to consider:

1. Availability

Not all insurers are licensed nationwide or offer the same products in every state where they operate. Before getting too deep into investigating a candidate, make sure it offers the coverage you want.

2. Coverage limits

When you're shopping for whole life insurance, consider how much life insurance you need. This is especially true if you're looking at a final expense policy, which may have a benefit that's too low to meet your requirements.

3. Riders

Also known as endorsements, riders enable you to customize your coverage. Common ones include:

• Accelerated death benefit rider: You can access benefits early if you're diagnosed with a chronic or terminal illness.
• Accidental death and dismemberment: Pays a set amount beyond your death benefit if you are killed or gravely injured in an accident.
• Guaranteed insurability: Enables you to buy coverage at certain milestones — after you get married, buy a house or have a child, for example— without a medical exam.
• Children's term rider: This rider acts like a level-term policy for a dependent child. It's typically cheaper than a standalone plan and can enable them to buy a permanent life policy when they reach adulthood.

4. Dividends

Many whole life insurance policies are eligible for dividends, which can boost your coverage or subsidize your premiums. Some companies are more consistent with paying dividends than others.

5. Customer service

You'll need to work with an agent to buy whole life insurance and a policy is essentially a lifelong relationship. So selecting an insurer with good customer service is critical. You can see how companies rank on J.D. Power's annual individual life insurance survey, review the volume of complaints filed with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and look at their grades with the Better Business Bureau.

You should also consider whether a provider has a robust website and mobile app that allows you to make policy changes, a customer service line has weekend hours and if there are agents in your area.

6. Financial strength

A.M. Best rates insurance companies on their financial strength: A grade of A, A+ or A++ is a good indicator that the company will remain solvent and pay out the benefits on your policy when the time comes.

At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every life insurance review is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of life insurance products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics.

CNBC Select collected data points on the top 30 U.S. life insurance companies that issue whole life policies, considering their availability, coverage limits, average rates, the number and types of riders, the application process, whether there were no-medical-exam policies, customer service and whether the company issued dividends.

We incorporated ratings from J.D. Power’s life insurance customer satisfaction survey, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners complaint index and the Better Business Bureau, as well as A.M. Best financial strength scores.

We also considered CNBC Select audience data when available, such as general demographics and engagement with our content and tools.

Based on that criteria, our choices for the best whole life insurance are:

• Best for payment options: State Farm
• Best for couples: MassMutual
• Best for dividends: Northwestern Mutual
• Best for burial insurance: Ethos
• Best for living benefits: Guardian

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