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5.0 NerdWallet rating Bottom line: New York Life offers a wide variety of policies and has minimal customer complaints, making it a strong choice for many buyers. on Nerdwallet Financial strength rating Exceptional Online purchase No NAIC complaints Fewer than expected Policies offered Term & permanent 5.0 NerdWallet rating Bottom line: New York Life offers a wide variety of policies and has minimal customer complaints, making it a strong choice for many buyers. Financial strength rating Exceptional Online purchase No NAIC complaints Fewer than expected Policies offered Term & permanent
New York Life
New York Life
How we review life insurance companies
In our life insurance reviews, our editorial team considers the customer and the insurer. These are some of the factors we take into account:
Policies offered. There are many types of life insurance on the market, and they fall into three key categories:
Term life insurance offers temporary coverage and a guaranteed payout if the policyholder dies during the term.
Permanent life insurance typically lasts a lifetime and builds cash value that can be borrowed against in the future.
No-exam life insurance issues coverage without the need for a medical exam.
Financial strength. We use AM Best ratings to confirm an insurer’s long-term financial stability and ability to pay claims. For life insurance, NerdWallet typically recommends considering insurers with ratings of A- or higher. Here’s the breakdown:
Exceptional: A+, A++.
Strong: A-, A.
Moderate: B, B+.
Complaints. These ratings are based on complaints to state regulators relative to a company’s size, according to three years’ worth of data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. The best life insurance companies have fewer than the expected number of complaints.
Buy online. This indicates whether an insurer allows you to apply for and buy a policy completely online.
Dive deeper: Ratings methodology for life insurance
New York Life bills itself as one of the nation’s oldest mutual life insurance companies. As a mutual insurer, New York Life is owned by its policyholders. Customers who buy certain products, such as whole life insurance, are entitled to vote in board elections and receive annual dividends. The company announced it will pay out a record $2.2 billion in dividends to policyholders in 2024.
» MORE: Compare life insurance quotes
Why you can trust NerdWallet: Our writers and editors follow strict editorial guidelines to ensure the content on our site is accurate and fair so you can make financial decisions with confidence and choose the products that work best for you. Here is a list of our partners, and here’s how we make money.
New York Life insurance
5.0
NerdWallet rating
New York Life earned 5 stars out of 5 for overall performance. NerdWallet’s ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formula takes into account consumer experience, complaint data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and financial strength ratings.
Based on these ratings, New York Life is one of our best life insurance companies.
New York Life insurance policies
Term life insurance. Its two term life insurance policies can be converted to permanent life insurance within a specified period.
Yearly Renewable Term policy can be renewed each year. Premiums start low and increase each year. The price changes if the policy is converted to permanent coverage.
Level Premium Term policy can be purchased in 10-, 15- or 20-year terms. Premiums stay the same throughout the entire term, also known as a “level-premium period.” When this period ends, your premium increases. The price also changes if the policy is converted.
You can customize term coverage from New York Life by adding options like the spouse’s paid-up rider. If you die, it allows your spouse to purchase their own coverage using the payout from your policy without taking a medical exam.
Other riders include the disability waiver of premium, which covers premiums if you become disabled, and a living benefits add-on, which allows you to withdraw cash from the death benefit to cover medical costs if you’re diagnosed with a terminal illness.
New York Life made our list of the best term life insurance companies.
Whole life insurance. New York Life has a few whole life insurance policies, including one that lets you customize the payment schedule. This provides the flexibility to pay off the policy early, eliminating premiums in later years. In 2022, the company launched Secure Wealth Plus, a whole life policy for people ages 0 to 60 that can be paid off in the span of 10 years.
New York Life is one of our best whole life insurance companies.
Universal life insurance. You can choose between two types of universal life insurance policies with New York Life.
Universal Life (basic) coverage lets you adjust your premiums and benefit amount.
Custom Guarantee, which has a set premium, automatically comes with a money back option rider, which returns a portion of the premiums you’ve already paid if you no longer need coverage.
Variable universal life. You can decide how to invest the cash value of New York Life’s variable universal life insurance policies, including in the stock market, which means they can come with increased risk as the market fluctuates. You have the option to choose your own investments or use existing models created by experts. The insurer offers two variable universal policies: Variable Universal Life Accumulator II and Market Wealth Plus, both of which are available in all states.
The company also offers several life insurance add-ons for its permanent life insurance policies, such as coverage that protects you if you become disabled or terminally ill.
» MORE: Cash value life insurance: Is it right for you?
New York Life customer complaints and satisfaction
Over three years, New York Life has drawn fewer than the expected number of complaints to state regulators for a company of its size, according to a NerdWallet analysis of data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
New York Life ranked No. 8 out of 22 companies for customer satisfaction in J.D. Power's 2023 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study.
» MORE: Life insurance: Policies, cost and best companies
More about New York Life
Policyholders can access coverage details via the website’s online portal. Once logged in, you can update beneficiaries, make payments, see policy details and more.
New York Life also offers additional financial products and services, including:
Annuities.
Long-term care insurance.
Mutual funds.
Estate planning.
Disability insurance.
How to contact New York Life
New York Life can be reached by:
Phone: Call 800-225-5695 on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET.
Email: Contact form via the website.
Live chat: Not available.
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Life insurance buying guide
Before you start comparing companies, choose the type of life insurance you want, such as term or whole life. Decide which life insurance riders, if any, you want the policy to include. Calculate how much life insurance you need and how long you want the coverage to last. Check that the insurers you’re considering offer the coverage you’re looking for.
When comparing rates, be sure the quotes are for the same amount of coverage over the same period of time. It’s also important to make sure the policy’s medical requirements match your needs. For example, if you want to skip the life insurance medical exam but don’t mind answering health questions, confirm that the application process for each policy you're comparing aligns with that.
Price may not be the biggest driver behind your decision to buy. Look at the number of consumer complaints each company receives, as high numbers can be a red flag about the quality of service.
For more guidance, see our life insurance buying guide.
Life insurance ratings methodology
NerdWallet’s life insurance ratings are based on consumer experience, complaint index scores from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners for individual life insurance, and weighted averages of financial strength ratings, which indicate a company’s ability to pay future claims. Within the consumer experience category, we consider ease of communication and website transparency, which looks at the depth of policy details available online. To calculate each insurer’s rating, we adjusted the scores to a curved 5-point scale.
These ratings are a guide, but we encourage you to shop around and compare several insurance quotes to find the best rate for you. NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines.
Insurer complaints methodology
NerdWallet examined complaints received by state insurance regulators and reported to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in 2020-2022. To assess how insurers compare with one another, the NAIC calculates a complaint index each year for each subsidiary, measuring its share of total complaints relative to its size, or share of total premiums in the industry. To evaluate a company’s complaint history, NerdWallet calculated a similar index for each insurer, weighted by market shares of each subsidiary, over the three-year period. NerdWallet conducts its data analysis and reaches conclusions independently and without the endorsem*nt of the NAIC. Ratios are determined separately for auto, home (including renters and condo) and life insurance.
