Best Life Insurance for Seniors 2024: Reviews, Costs & Comparisons (2024)

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Many retirees start thinking seriously about life insurance to pay for funeral expenses or to help take care of their family. However, as you age, your premiums increase. While the life insurance policies with the best rates and coverage might have passed you by, you still have options.

Best Life Insurance for Seniors of 2024

• Best for customer satisfaction: State Farm Life Insurance
• Best for term life insurance: Mutual of Omaha Life Insurance
• Best for retirement planning: New York Life Insurance
• Best for end-of-life care: John Hanco*ck Life Insurance
• Best for buyers flexibility: USAA Life Insurance
• Best for universal life: Prudential Life Insurance
• Best for a guaranteed issue:Corebridge Direct

Compare the Best Life Insurance for Seniors

Seniors looking for the best life insurance often have different priorities than younger people who buy life insurance. For example, seniors are less likely to view life insurance as an investment vehicle just as younger people are less concerned about end-of-life benefits. As such, we've taken these priorities into consideration when selecting the best life insurance for seniors.

Best senior life insurance for customer satisfaction

State Farm Life Insurance

State Farm Life Insurance takes the top spot in JD Power's life insurance customer satisfaction study. JD Power gathers thousands of consumer reviews and gives each insurer a score out of 1,000. State Farm offers a range of insurance products, including auto, life, pet, homeowners, and renters, with multi-policy discounts and other incentives to keep your insurance there.

Some policies exclude seniors over age 65 from applying for the first time. But all life insurance policies are quoted by licensed insurance agents employed by State Farm. Meeting with a State Farm agent allows buyers to communicate goals and needs and answer critical questions agents might have. In addition, qualifying seniors can access limited whole, term, and universal life policies. State Farm is among the companies also offering survivorship universal options. Essentially, spouses can get insured together, and a surviving spouse can continue to make payments and increase the death benefit. Both spouses can also take out loans and other withdrawals against the policy once they meet the requirements.

K of Clewiston, FL, a verified reviewer on ConsumerAffairs, said, "State Farm is the best insurance company out there. They have great Life Insurance Policies to fit your needs…..Also, their prices are the most reasonable out there."

Read our State Farm Life Insurance review.

Best senior life insurance for term life

Mutual of Omaha Life Insurance

Mutual of Omaha Life Insuranceremains one of the industry's most stable life insurance companies. Its size allows it to be more flexible in its underwriting for specific populations, including seniors. Regardless of your age, a licensed insurance agent can sort through your options and find one that makes sense.

However, its term life insurance policy stands out for seniors applying for the first time or younger buyers looking to renew term life policies. Term life insurance policies with Mutual of Omaha are renewable for qualifying applicants up to age 94. Of note, not all applicants will qualify to renew policies beyond any age, as approval is based on health history and other factors. Many life insurance policies also require a medical exam. However, Mutual of Omaha stands alone as it does not cut off term life buyers over 65.

One important thing to highlight is Mutual of Omaha's availability to resolve consumer issues, even when it's not the company's fault. For example, Roger of Eagle, AK, originally left a complaint on ConsumerAffairs, and the company promptly responded. He later updated his review, saying, "Thank You Mutual of Omaha! Physicians Mutual Dental has informed me of my mistake. You are a fine company serving the life insurance needs of USA citizens and expats as well."

Read our Mutual of Omaha Life Insurance review.

Best senior life insurance for retirement planning

New York Life Insurance

New York Life Insurancecaters to a forward-thinking customer. It offers many robust investment options. So its agents are extensively trained to answer all questions about its policies. Questions could be as simple as what penalties you'll pay to take early withdrawals or loans from your life insurance policy.

Like other retirement planning vehicles, the earlier you start, the better. Premiums will be lower, and you can apply for a large payout. But if you can afford higher premiums at a later age, New York Life still offers comprehensive policies with loans and early withdrawal options to take you into retirement. Riders can also customize its coverage. For example, whole life customers can buy a living benefits rider to withdraw money in the event of a terminal illness. Buyers can also add an accidental death rider until age 70 for an extra death benefit for loved ones. This satisfies borrowers who want stability but like the idea of a higher payout should they die in their prime working years.

New York Life's knowledgeable agents are highlighted by William of Starks, Louisiana, on ConsumerAffairs, saying, "They are willing to help and pay without hassle. They make sure all your needs are met. They check with you often to make sure your policy is up to date. If at anytime there are questions that need addressing they are readily available to help."

Read our New York Life Insurance review.

Best senior life insurance for end-of-life care

John Hanco*ck Life Insurance

John Hanco*ck Life Insurance is among many life insurance companies offering an accelerated death benefit, or "living benefits." Even if you don't want to use your life insurance for retirement planning, you have early withdrawal options to keep you comfortable in the event of a terminal illness. Buyers can exercise the rider at any age as long as waiting periods and other terms are met.

If you develop a qualifying condition, John Hanco*ck will pay 50-100% of your qualifying death benefit while you're still alive. However, it caps accelerated death benefit claims at $1 million if you expect to live a year or less. This could help balance costly medical bills and end-of-life costs beyond what social security or disability payments would comfortably cover.

Read our John Hanco*ck Life Insurance review.

Best senior life insurance for flexibility

USAA Life Insurance

USAA Life Insurancepolicies are available to Americans from all walks of life, including military and non-military buyers. However, it offers unique whole life coverage to active duty military members beyond the government's equivalent of employer life insurance. USAA policies stick with the buyer wherever they work. With options for active duty military members, USAA is common among veterans with combat-related illnesses and disabilities sustained during deployment. Of course, buyers purchase these policies before the conditions become apparent.

USAA is among the limited life insurance providers still offering coverage with a history of cancer. Of course, not all buyers will qualify, and policy options are limited. Accounting for state laws, USAA life insurance policies may also pay out after a drug overdose (frequency may increase with more daily medications to treat age-related conditions) when other life insurance companies refuse. For seniors looking for a bit of flexibility, USAA could be an ideal option.

Read our USAA Life Insurance review.

Best senior life insurance for universal life

Prudential Life Insurance

Prudential Life Insuranceoffers survivorship options for life insurance shoppers. Unlike a standard life insurance policy, it covers two people. When one person passes, the policy continues growing as long as the surviving spouse continues making payments. The policy can increase to $65 million with a maximum age of 85. The two insureds cannot have an age gap of more than 25 years.

The PruLife SUL Protector program encompasses multiple categories such as the Preferred Best, Preferred Smoker, and Preferred Non-Tobacco. Universal life insurance policies with Prudential allow loans. So both parties can pull money out of the policy via loans at the cost of the final death benefit.

Read our Prudential Life Insurance review.

Best senior life insurance for guaranteed issue

Corebridge Direct Insurance

Corebridge Direct cannot deny your application if you fall within the set age limits. That's thanks to guaranteed issue: two words many seniors and even younger applicants aren't used to hearing about life insurance. Seniors aged 50 to 80 enjoy guaranteed coverage with no medical exam, and the application is 100% online.

Corebridge policies are small, maxing out at $25,000. So this would be appropriate for funeral expenses and/or a small death benefit for surviving family members.

Read our Corebridge Insurance review.

Senior Life Insurance Options Ranked by Customer Satisfaction

J.D. Power conducts an annual study of life insurance based on reported customer satisfaction. Then it assigns companies a score out of 1,000, listing the top performers on its website. So if you're shopping for life insurance, the following companies are the ones J.D. Power readers had positive experiences with.

Why Seniors Need Life Insurance

Life insurance is often thought of within the context of a younger person passing away early. However, seniors can also benefit from taking out a life insurance policy, though the purposes and benefits are often different.

Final Expenses: Most life insurance policies available to seniors are final expense policies, which help cover funeral costs, medical bills, and other end-of-life expenses, relieving the financial burden on loved ones.

Paying off remaining debt:When you pass away, your remaining debt doesn't evaporate. Your loved ones may inherit your assets, but they may also inherit your debt. If you don't have the means to pay off your debt, like a mortgage or medical debt, before you die, a life insurance policy can help your loved ones pay it off.

Lost income:Ideally, your senior years will be spent leisuring, preferably near a large body of water. Unfortunately, as the age of retirement keeps moving back, families are increasingly dependent on the income earned by older folks. As a result, life insurance may be needed to replace lost income when you pass away.

Legacy Planning: Even if your family doesn't have immediate need for money after you pass, you can still leave a strong foundation which your children and grandchildren can build upon.

Types of Life Insurance for Seniors

Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance

Guaranteed issue life insurance is a type of no medical life insurance with low qualifications for applicants. As a trade off, it has high premiums and offers limited coverage amounts, usually only enough to cover final expenses like funerals and burials/cremations. As such, it's typically meant for older people between the ages of 50 and 80, and many providers have age minimums.

While this policy is limited, that's by design. It really has one function, offering an option to seniors with poor health who wouldn't qualify for other life insurance policies. It'll ensure that your loved ones aren't left with large funeral bills once you're gone.

Simplified Issue Life Insurance

Simplified issue life insurance, similar to guaranteed issue, doesn't require a medical exam, instead requiring you to fill out a health questionnaire. However, qualifications for simplified issue are higher, and you may be denied if you have a serious or terminal illness. While it's harder to qualify, your premiums are lower than guaranteed issue life insurance, and your coverage will be higher. However, your coverage will still be lower compared to coverage from other types of life insurance.

Term Life Insurance

Term life insurance is generally the cheapest life insurance because it does not guarantee a payout. Instead, you're covered for a specific term, usually 10, 20, or 30 years — though you'll find shorter and longer terms on the market.

Term life is ideal for people who need coverage during a specific period in their life. For example, you may take out a term life insurance policy to cover your loved ones as you pay off a mortgage. If you pass away before the mortgage is paid off, the death benefits from your policy will help pay off the rest of your debts.

Why You Should Trust Us: How We Review Life Insurance for Seniors

Our life insurance rating methodology looks at a few key factors. To ensure a fair and even playing field for insurance companies and customers, we look at customer satisfaction, financial stability, types of policies offered, average premiums, coverage exclusions, and more. We also factor in recent controversies and ways an insurance company may engage with and improve its community.

Factors such as customer satisfaction and average premiums are equally weighted. However, we are aware not all charitable efforts are recognized, and not all controversies are based on facts, so a company's engagement with its community and recent controversies are considered separately.

See our full methodology for how we rate life insurance »

Best Life Insurance for Seniors FAQs