What Type of Life Insurance Does Not Require a Medical Exam?

Most any type of policy is eligible for no-exam underwriting. It used to be that if you wanted to skip the exam, only low-coverage insurance policies were available to you. These are still available and sold as burial or funeral insurance , or guaranteed-issue policies. But now, insurers have a number of sophisticated means by which to collect health and other information, so they don’t need to rely on your exam. Plus, it costs them money to administer it and time to receive and review the results. No-exam underwriting allows insurance carriers to issue life policies faster, which is often good for both the customer and the insurer. So whether you’re looking for term or permanent coverage, a whole life policy or an indexed universal life policy, it’s available somewhere without a medical exam. But not all companies offer no-exam life insurance on all or even any of their policies, so you’ll need to do some research to find one that does. (The companies in the list above are an excellent start.) The one caveat is that not everyone is eligible for no-exam underwriting. If you have health issues that raise red flags for the insurance company, you may be required to undergo a medical screening to complete your application.

Can You Borrow Money From a No-exam Life Insurance Policy?

Yes, if it's a policy with a cash value. No-exam life insurance policies are just like regular life insurance policies. The only difference is that a medical screening is not required during the application process. Once approved, the policy functions just as it would had you taken an exam. So if you’ve purchased a permanent life insurance policy that builds a cash value, that cash value will be available to you, subject to any surrender period or other standard policy conditions.

How Do I Choose the Best Life Insurance Policy?

Choosing the best life insurance policy for you depends on your life insurance needs. How much coverage do you need? (Ideally, you’ll get enough to pay off your debts and replace your income, at the very least.) How long do you need it for? Your needs may change once your kids are grown and your home is paid off, for instance. The next question to ask is, how much premium can you afford?

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Best No-Medical-Exam Life Insurance Companies

Nationwide has high coverage amounts, happy customers, and free perks

Meredith Mangan

Updated January 02, 2024

Reviewed by

Samantha Silberstein

Fact checked by

Khara Scheppmann

No-medical-exam life insurance refers to any life insurance policy you can apply for without taking a medical exam. Instead of an exam, you answer health questions and the insurance company checks your medical and other records. You may also have a phone interview in some cases. It's best suited for the healthiest applicants. But if you qualify, you can get a policy within a few days, or sometimes instantly online. To select the best no-medical-exam life insurance companies, we analyzed more than 50 data points across 91 companies and calculated scores based on the following categories: no-med-exam availability and features (28% of score), policy types and features (20%), financial stability (15%), customer satisfaction (15%), ease of application (13%), and online resources.

Best No-Medical-Exam Life Insurance

Best Overall: Nationwide
Best for Financial Stability: Guardian
Best for High Coverage: Penn Mutual
Fewest Complaints : Pacific Life Insurance

Companies reviewed

Features considered

5,005

Data points analyzed

We collected over 5,000 data points from 91 life insurance companies to measure financial stability, customer satisfaction, product and feature variety, and the overall buying experience. We then evaluated each company based on 55 metrics to develop unbiased, comprehensive reviews.

Read our Full Methodology

with our partner Covr Financial from multiple providers before buying.

Best Overall : Nationwide

AM Best Rating: AM Best is a credit rating agency that assigns insurance companies a letter grade from “A++” to “D.” A company’s grade indicates its ability to pay its claims and honor its financial obligations. A+
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes

Get A Quote

Pros

No-medical-exam life insurance with up to $5 million in coverage
Excellent customer satisfaction
A wide range of policy types
Three living benefits included in most policies
Allows credit card payments

Cons

No-med-exam coverage limit less impressive if you’re 50+
Burial insurance only available to existing policyholders

Nationwide is a well-rounded, financially stable life insurer that delivers across categories. That’s why it’s also our top pick for best life insurance companies. The company offers up to $5 million of coverage without requiring eligible applicants to undergo a medical exam. This is the second-highest amount among our top picks, and no-exam underwriting is available for most policy types.

Nationwide offers a wide range of policy types, and most include three free living benefit riders. They may let you access part of your death benefit while you’re still alive if you’re diagnosed with a chronic, critical, or terminal illness. Of the 91 life insurance companies we reviewed, Nationwide is one of only a handful to offer such a benefit.

Nationwide is also one of the few life insurance companies to accept credit card payments. And customers take notice—the company ranked second in a J.D. Power customer satisfaction survey and has received very few customer complaints over the past three years, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).

However, if you’re over 50, Nationwide’s no-med-exam options are less generous, only allowing you up to $1 million if you’re 51 to 60 years old. While that may be sufficient for many applicants, it’s far less than what some competitors offer for this age group. The company also offers burial insurance with up to $50,000 in coverage that doesn’t require a medical exam. But it’s only available to existing Nationwide policyholders.

Read the Full Nationwide Life Insurance Review

Best for Financial Stability : Guardian

AM Best Rating: AM Best is a credit rating agency that assigns insurance companies a letter grade from “A++” to “D.” A company’s grade indicates its ability to pay its claims and honor its financial obligations. A++
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes

Get A Quote

Pros

No-med-exam life insurance with up to $3 million in coverage
Highest financial stability rating
Very few customer complaints relative to its size
Policies are eligible for dividends

Cons

Limited website information
No online application

Guardian offers up to $3 million in coverage without a medical exam to applicants up to 50 years old. Though not as substantial a sum as either Penn Mutual or Nationwide, it’s sufficient for many applicants. But aside from its no-medical-exam coverage, Guardian is a standout company. For starters, it’s the only one on this list to have secured an A++ rating from AM Best for financial strength. An A++ is the ratings agency’s highest grade and indicates that Guardian has a “superior” ability to pay its claims. In fact, only nine of the 91 insurers we reviewed were rated so highly.

On top of this, Guardian has received very few customer complaints over the past few years and pays dividends to eligible policyholders. However, the company did not do so well in the J.D. Power customer customer survey—out of 21 of the largest life insurers, it came in 11th, with a score that was just below average. There is also very little policy-specific information on Guardian’s website, which could be problematic if you prefer to research a company’s offerings without contacting an agent.

Read the Full Guardian Life Insurance Review

Best for High Coverage : Penn Mutual

AM Best Rating: AM Best is a credit rating agency that assigns insurance companies a letter grade from “A++” to “D.” A company’s grade indicates its ability to pay its claims and honor its financial obligations. A+
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes

Get A Quote

Pros

No-med-exam life insurance with up to $7.5 million in coverage
No-med-exam life insurance available to 64-year-olds
Strong dividend-paying history
Well-priced term policies
Very few customer complaints relative to its size

Cons

Limited website information
Online applications not available
Quotes not available on website

Penn Mutual takes the cake when it comes to high-coverage and high-issue-age no-medical-exam life insurance. The company offers up to $7.5 million in coverage to applicants as old as 64. Of the 91 life insurance carriers we reviewed, no other offered this much coverage without an exam. Nor did any other company offer no-medical-exam life insurance over $1 million to 64 year olds without receipt of recent lab work and an attending physician’s statement (APS).

Penn Mutual pays dividends on eligible policies and has done every year so for the past 174 years, which is one reason it made our list of best whole life insurance companies. Plus, the company offers very well-priced term policies for a range of age groups and has a very low incidence of customer complaints, given its size, according to the NAIC.

But Penn Mutual’s website leaves a lot to be desired. Not only are quotes unavailable, but there’s little information on what the company actually offers. To better understand your options and policy-specific features, you’ll need to reach out to an agent.

Read the Full Penn Mutual Life Insurance Review 2023

Fewest Complaints : Pacific Life Insurance

Investopedia's Rating

4.1

AM Best Rating: AM Best is a credit rating agency that assigns insurance companies a letter grade from “A++” to “D.” A company’s grade indicates its ability to pay its claims and honor its financial obligations. A+
Accepts Credit Cards: No

Get A Quote

Pros

No-med-exam life insurance with up to $5 million in coverage
High issue ages for no-med-exam coverage
Outstanding customer satisfaction
Affordable term coverage
Policy details are online

Cons

Quotes unavailable on the website
Can’t apply without an agent

Pacific Life leads the pack when it comes to the fewest complaints received relative to company size over a three year period. In fact, of the 91 insurers we reviewed, only two other companies received fewer (they each got zero complaints). Pacific Life also comes in fourth out of 21 companies in J.D. Power’s customer satisfaction survey.

The company offers coverage up to $5 million without a medical exam to applicants up to 50 years old, and $3 million to applicants up to 60. Many companies that offer no-med-exam coverage to 60 year olds do not offer as much as $3 million. And aside from Penn Mutual’s $7.5 million coverage cap, $5 million is the highest amount we’ve seen for any age group. We also like that you can find a wealth of policy-specific information on Pacific Life’s website. You’ll see policy names, coverage details, and whether they’re available in your state. This level of transparency is uncommon in the life insurance industry. Pacific Life also has affordable term insurance, especially for applicants in their 40s and younger. However, you won’t find quotes on the company’s website and you will need to apply for any type of coverage with an agent.

Read the Full Pacific Life Insurance Review

	Best For	AM Best Rating AM Best is a credit rating agency that assigns insurance companies a letter grade from “A++” to “D.” A company’s grade indicates its ability to pay its claims and honor its financial obligations.	Term Life Sample Cost	Policy Types	Accepts Credit Cards		Reset All
Nationwide	Best Overall	A+	$26.25/month	Final Expense, Indexed Universal (IUL), Term, Universal (UL), Variable Universal (VUL), Whole	Yes	Get A Quote	Hide, not for me
Guardian	Best for Financial Stability	A++	$27.47/month	Term, Universal (UL), Whole	Yes	Get A Quote	Hide, not for me
Penn Mutual	Best for High Coverage	A+	$23.92/month	Term, Universal (UL), Variable Universal (VUL), Whole	Yes	Get A Quote	Hide, not for me
Pacific Life Insurance	Fewest Complaints	A+	$23.64/month	Indexed Universal (IUL), Term, Universal (UL), Variable Universal (VUL), Whole	No	Get A Quote	Hide, not for me

Final Verdict

All of the companies on this list represent good options for getting life insurance without a medical exam. All are A+ rated or better for financial strength and have received fewer complaints than expected when averaged over a three-year period. If you don’t need more than $3 million in coverage and are 50 or younger, any company on this list could be a good fit. But if you’re over 50 and looking for a death benefit of more than $1 million, you can rule out Nationwide. If you’re over 60, your only option for high-coverage no-medical-exam life insurance is Penn Mutual. And regardless of your age, Penn Mutual is your only option if you need a death benefit greater than $5 million and don’t want to take an exam. If you’re looking for term coverage, try Penn Mutual or Pacific Life; for dividends, Penn Mutual or Guardian. If you want free living benefits, look to Nationwide. And if you’d like a wellness plan with your life insurance, John Hancock delivers.

How To Choose a No-Medical-Exam Life Insurance Policy

Term life insurance is designed to last for a specific number of years, such as 30, and then expire. Permanent life insurance is designed to last your entire lifetime, and is therefore more expensive than term. You may also want to combine term and permanent policies to have a higher-coverage term policy during your working years or while you’re raising a family, and then a lower-coverage permanent policy that will kick in once the term coverage expires.

Term policies let you choose the length of the term (a 40-year term is the longest we’ve seen), and often provide the option to convert your term coverage to permanent. Permanent policies have a cash value, which may be accessed via withdrawals and loans.

Once you’ve figured out your budget and the general type of coverage you need, you should begin to get quotes from financially stable companies with track records of good customer satisfaction.

If you want a no-exam life insurance policy, it may be helpful to know that most of the 91 companies we reviewed offer some sort of policy that doesn’t require an exam. You’re best off first finding a good company (or a few you like), and then seeing what kind of policy you can get without an exam. This list and our rankings of the best life insurance companies are both good places to start. And be sure to compare multiple quotes for no-exam life insurance because some policies are cheaper than others (depending on the type of no-exam underwriting used).

A number of companies offer life insurance policies without requiring a medical exam, but you’ll generally be eligible for the lowest premiums with those that ask thorough health questions on the application.

More Ratings of Top Life Insurance Companies

Frequently Asked Questions

What Type of Life Insurance Does Not Require a Medical Exam?

Most any type of policy is eligible for no-exam underwriting. It used to be that if you wanted to skip the exam, only low-coverage insurance policies were available to you. These are still available and sold as burial or funeral insurance, or guaranteed-issue policies. But now, insurers have a number of sophisticated means by which to collect health and other information, so they don’t need to rely on your exam. Plus, it costs them money to administer it and time to receive and review the results. No-exam underwriting allows insurance carriers to issue life policies faster, which is often good for both the customer and the insurer.
So whether you’re looking for term or permanent coverage, a whole life policy or an indexed universal life policy, it’s available somewhere without a medical exam. But not all companies offer no-exam life insurance on all or even any of their policies, so you’ll need to do some research to find one that does. (The companies in the list above are an excellent start.) The one caveat is that not everyone is eligible for no-exam underwriting. If you have health issues that raise red flags for the insurance company, you may be required to undergo a medical screening to complete your application.
Can You Borrow Money From a No-exam Life Insurance Policy?

Yes, if it's a policy with a cash value. No-exam life insurance policies are just like regular life insurance policies. The only difference is that a medical screening is not required during the application process. Once approved, the policy functions just as it would had you taken an exam. So if you’ve purchased a permanent life insurance policy that builds a cash value, that cash value will be available to you, subject to any surrender period or other standard policy conditions.
How Do I Choose the Best Life Insurance Policy?

Choosing the best life insurance policy for you depends on your life insurance needs. How much coverage do you need? (Ideally, you’ll get enough to pay off your debts and replace your income, at the very least.) How long do you need it for? Your needs may change once your kids are grown and your home is paid off, for instance. The next question to ask is, how much premium can you afford?

Methodology

In order to compile our list of the best no-medical-exam life insurance companies, we developed a comprehensive life insurance methodology. We started off by researching what consumers want from life insurance companies, and for that, we looked to third-party consumer studies, including J.D. Power’s 2021 U.S. Life Insurance New Business Study and the 2021 Insurance Barometer Study, by Life Happens and LIMRA.

With those findings in mind, we gathered more than 50 data points on 91 life insurance companies, including ratings for financial strength, customer satisfaction, and customer complaints, as well as information about years in business, online tools, no-exam options, dividends, maximum issue ages, and available riders. Our review process gave preference to companies with solid financials, few customer complaints, high no-exam coverage amounts available, high-issue ages for no-exam coverage, and a broad product portfolio. Companies received ratings boosts for online resources, including online quotes and live chat, and included living benefit riders. We ranked each company according to the following categories and weights.

28%: No-med-exam availability and features
20% Policy types and features
15%: Financial stability
15%: Customer satisfaction
13%: Ease of application
9%: Online resources

To finalize our list, we compared individual offerings between top companies by considering ratings from third parties such as AM Best and J.D. Power, and delving deeper into product specifics—including cost and the availability of dividends. We used this research to determine the best no-medical-exam life insurance companies.

Article Sources

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