Your location won’t affect your life insurance rates — life insurance quotes depend mostly on what type of policy you buy and how much coverage you get, along with personal details about your health and medical history.
That’s why our recommendations for the best life insurance companies in Maryland are similar to our picks for the best overall companies. But your location can affect some parts of the life insurance shopping process, like company availability and local laws, here’s what you need to know.
Policygenius rating | Best for … | AM Best score | Number of complaints | Cost | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4.9/5 ★ | Overall, term life, cheapest | A+ | Fewer than average | $ | |
5.0/5 ★ | No-medical-exam, young adults | A | More than average | $ | |
4.6/5 ★ | Pre-existing conditions, smokers | A | More than average | $ | |
4.8/5 ★ | Marijuana users | A | Fewer than average | $ | |
4.9/5 ★ | Whole life | A++ | Fewer than average | $$$ | |
4.1/5 ★ | Seniors | A+ | Fewer than average | $$ | |
4.8/5★ | Guaranteed universal | A+ | Fewer than average | $ |
Methodology
Why you can trust our picks
Our recommendations are based on internal and external expert analysis, as well as our Policygenius Life Insurance Price Index, which uses real-time data from leading life insurance companies to determine pricing trends. When reviewing a life insurance company, our editorial team uses a proprietary scoring rubric with five factors — price, policy details, financial strength, transparency, and customer experience — to assign an unbiased rating between one and five stars. These ratings are also taken into consideration as part of our company recommendations. We don’t get paid for our reviews.
Our reviews and recommendations can help you find a reliable insurer for your family’s financial protection, but the best life insurance company for you depends on multiple factors. A licensed agent at Policygenius can support you during the application process to ensure you get the right coverage for your circumstances at the most competitive price.
Best overall life insurance company in Maryland: Legal & General America
The best life insurance company in Maryland is Legal & General America, which also does business as Banner Life and William Penn in some states. We chose Legal & General America because it offers cheap life insurance rates even if you have a spotty medical record.
Another strength of Legal & General America is its customer service. It gets about 60% fewer complaints from its policyholders than what’s expected for the industry.
Cheapest life insurance company in Maryland: Legal & General America
Legal & General America has some of the cheapest life insurance rates across lots of different profiles, but remember: your location doesn’t affect what you’ll pay for life insurance.
Comparing quotes from multiple life insurance companies before you buy is the best way to find affordable coverage. It also helps to get a policy when you’re still relatively young, since rates will only get more expensive as you age.
Best term life insurance in Maryland: Legal & General America
The best term life insurance in Maryland comes from Legal & General America. That’s because Legal & General offers term lengths of up to 40 years and policies worth up to $65 million in coverage, and $2 million for a no-medical-exam policy.
Term life insurance is the best type of policy for most people and it’s pretty straightforward, you just choose how long you want your policy to last (the term) and the amount you want your loved ones to get after if you die while the policy is active death (the death benefit).
Best no-medical-exam life insurance in Maryland: Brighthouse Financial
Brighthouse Financial is the best company for no-medical-exam life insurance in Maryland. Applicants in good health may be able to qualify for up to $3 million in coverage and a 30-year-term without needing to take a medical exam.
A no-medical policy is basically just a normal term policy with a streamlined application process that cuts out the lengthy medical exam part. If you qualify for no-med life insurance, you may be able to get a policy in as little as 24 hours.
Best whole life insurance in Maryland: MassMutual
The best whole life insurance company in Maryland is MassMutual. Whole life is a kind of permanent life insurance policy, which means it can last for the rest of your life. That’s why financial strength is so important, and MassMutual scores an A++ from AM Best.
A whole life policy also comes with a cash value component that you can use while you’re still alive, in addition to the death benefit portion.
Best guaranteed universal life insurance in Maryland: Pacific Life
The best company for guaranteed universal life insurance in Maryland is Pacific Life. Pacific Life has great stability ratings (A+ for financial strength AM Best). Pacific Life accepts applications up to 80 years old, and offers up to $2 million in coverage, both higher than other companies.
Guaranteed universal life insurance is a type of permanent coverage that’s best if you want dependable benefits and low rates. It also has a cash-value component, but doesn’t gain value as much as other types of policies.
Best life insurance for seniors in Maryland: Prudential
The best life insurance company for seniors in Maryland is Prudential because it can still offer affordable rates for applicants up to 70 years old, even with a pre-existing age-related health condition, like high blood pressure, osteoporosis, or a heart attack.
Best life insurance for young adults in Maryland: Brighthouse Financial
Brighthouse Financial is the best life insurance company for young adults in Maryland. Life insurance is usually cheap if you apply while you’re young, but Brighthouse Financial has even cheaper rates than average and offers a no-medical-exam option.
Best life insurance for pre-existing conditions in Maryland: Corebridge Financial
We found that Corebridge Financial is the best life insurance company in Maryland if you have pre-existing conditions. Corebridge Financial specializes in offering affordable coverage even if you have high cholesterol, a heart attack, diabetes, or if you’re in recovery from alcohol use disorder.
Best life insurance for marijuana users in Maryland: Lincoln Financial
Lincoln Financial is the best life insurance company in Maryland if you use marijuana, since Lincoln Financial doesn’t classify marijuana users as smokers. You can even get affordable coverage if you use marijuana up to 6 times a week.
Don’t hide it from your life insurance company if you use marijuana. Misrepresenting yourself on your application could put any future claims in jeopardy.
Best life insurance for smokers in Maryland: Corebridge Financial
We think that Corebridge Financial is the best life insurance company for smokers in Maryland. Corebridge allows you to reapply for better rates after just one year of not smoking (other insurance companies require multiple years smoke-free before you can apply for lower rates).
How is life insurance different in Maryland?
While living in Maryland has no effect on your life insurance rates, there are some state-specific laws and regulations that you should know about before you buy a policy. [1]
Contestable period: The contestable period in Maryland is two years after you buy a policy. If you die during this time, your insurance company can deny a claim if it finds out you misrepresented yourself when you applied.
Free look period: Maryland’s free look period is 10 days after you get a policy. You can cancel your policy during this period and still receive a full refund.
Grace period: The grace period for missed payments in Maryland is 30 days. After that period, your insurance company can cancel your policy for nonpayment.
Guaranty Fund protection: If your life insurance company goes bankrupt, Maryland’s Guaranty Association will step in and cover up to $300,000 of your death benefits and $100,000 of your policy’s cash surrender value.
Time to settle a claim: Your life insurance company has to process a claim within 30 after receiving proof of death or your death benefit starts gaining interest.
Largest life insurance companies in Maryland
Here are the 10 largest life insurance companies in Maryland by market share. [2]
Company | Market share in Oregon |
|---|---|
New York Life | 8.01% |
Northwestern Mutual | 6.98% |
Prudential | 6.91% |
MetLife | 5.40% |
Sammons | 3.72% |
Lincoln Financial | 3.64% |
State Farm | 3.63% |
Minnesota Mutual | 3.24% |
Pacific Life | 3.01% |
Trustmark | 2.78% |
What happens if a life insurance company goes bankrupt in Maryland?
If your life insurance company goes bankrupt, which happens only rarely, the Maryland Life and Health Insurance Guaranty Association will cover part of your policy’s benefits as long as you keep up with your premiums.
The Guaranty Association would cover up to $300,000 in death benefits and $100,000 in cash surrender value. If you move, your new state’s Guaranty Association will take over. You can also switch insurance companies.
How to find a lost life insurance policy in Maryland
If you have a connection to the deceased person, you can search the Life Insurance Policy Locator Service from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners to find a lost life insurance policy in Maryland.
Average life insurance rates in Maryland
Based on our analysis of Policygenius data from 2024, the average monthly cost of life insurance in Maryland for a $500,000, 20-year term life insurance policy is $27 per month ($307 per year) for women and $32 per month ($373 per year) for men.
Remember that your life insurance rates don’t depend on where you live. Your exact rates will depend on your medical history, coverage needs, and other factors.
Frequently asked questions
What is the number one life insurance company in Maryland?
The number one life insurance company in Maryland is Legal & General America for its flexible term limits and affordable rates for healthy applicants as well as smokers and people with pre-existing conditions.
What is the life insurance free look period and grace period in Maryland?
The free look period in Maryland is 10 days. During this period, you can still cancel your life insurance coverage and receive a full refund from your life insurance company.
What types of life insurance are available in Maryland?
You can get lots of different types of life insurance in Maryland, including term and whole life insurance. You can also buy no-medical-exam life and final expense life insurance.
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