Neither one is the better company, because they open the door to permanent coverage in two different places. Bankers Life underwrites its whole life: its underwriters review your medical history, you may need an exam, and what that buys you is range, from a single premium plan issued at age 0 through BasicLife at ages 17 to 85, with death benefit amounts listed as low as $2,500. Mutual of Omaha sells a whole life plan on its own site with no medical exam and no health questions at all, and the tradeoff is that it opens at age 45 and runs from $2,000 to $25,000. The two also reach you differently, Bankers Life through a career agent who sits down with your whole retirement picture, Mutual of Omaha through its own producers, through independent brokers, or online by yourself.
At a glance
| Bankers Life | Mutual of Omaha | |
|---|---|---|
| Company structure | Part of CNO Financial Group, with Colonial Penn and Washington National | A policyholder owned mutual, in business more than a century |
| Who issues the policy | Bankers Life and Casualty, Washington National, Bankers Conseco in New York | United of Omaha Life (Companion Life in New York) |
| How you buy it | A career agent who meets you in person or virtually | Agents and independent brokers, or apply online yourself |
| Individual life shelf | Term, whole life, universal life, juvenile whole life | Term, whole life, universal life, indexed universal, children's, accidental death |
| Whole life underwriting | Underwriters review your history, and you may need an exam | No exam and no health questions on the plan sold direct |
| Whole life issue ages | BasicLife 17 to 85, single premium plans from age 0 | 45 to 85, and 50 to 75 in New York |
| Whole life amounts listed | Death benefit amounts as low as $2,500 | $2,000 to $25,000 direct, and $5,000 to $25,000 in Washington |
| Term coverage listed | Face amounts starting at $100,000, initial term 10 or 20 years | Term Life Express and Term Life Answers, 10 through 30 years |
| Also known for | Medicare supplement, long term care and annuities for retirees | Medicare supplement, long term care, disability income, annuities |
Health answers open one door, age and amount open the other
Both companies aim at the same household, and both also write Medicare supplement and long term care coverage, so from a distance the product lists rhyme. The structural split is what stands between you and a permanent policy. At Bankers Life the gate is underwriting. Its life pages say underwriters review your medical history to decide whether the application is acceptable and to set your risk classification, and that you may need a medical exam. What that opens is range: single premium whole life issued from age 0, BasicLife at ages 17 to 85, a graded version at 50 to 85, and death benefit amounts listed as low as $2,500. At Mutual of Omaha the whole life plan on its own site asks no health questions and requires no exam, so nothing in your health record can stand in the way. The gate there is age and size instead. It opens at 45 and runs from $2,000 to $25,000. One company reads your health and then opens a wide shelf. The other stops reading your health and keeps the shelf narrow. Which gate you can walk through is the decision.
Who each one actually suits
Bankers Life
A retirement focused CNO Financial Group brand sold by career agents
- You would rather have a licensed agent go through your whole retirement picture in one sitting, at your kitchen table or on a video call.
- Medicare supplement or long term care coverage is on your list too, and Bankers Life describes itself as one of the largest providers of both.
- You want a small permanent policy, since Bankers Life lists whole life death benefit amounts as low as $2,500.
- You are under 45, or covering a child, since Bankers Life lists BasicLife from age 17 and its single premium whole life plans from age 0.
- You want convertible term of at least $100,000, with a conversion credit Bankers Life offers to policyholders up to age 60 and through the 61st month the term policy has been in force.
Mutual of Omaha
A policyholder owned Omaha mutual selling life through agents, brokers and online
- You would rather apply for a small whole life policy yourself, online, with no medical exam and no health questions, in amounts of $2,000 to $25,000.
- You like that a mutual answers to its policyholders rather than to shareholders, which Mutual of Omaha has done for more than a century.
- You want an independent broker able to set this carrier next to several others before you decide anything.
- You want a product Bankers Life does not list, such as indexed universal life or a thirty year initial term.
- Your health history is mixed and you like that the same company writes Living Promise in a level and a graded version alongside a plan that asks no health questions at all.
If you already hold one of them
If you already hold one of these, find out exactly which version you own before anyone compares anything. On a Bankers Life whole life policy, the useful thing to learn is whether it is the level BasicLife or the graded version, because that decides what is payable today, and on a term policy it is worth checking whether the conversion window is still open. On a Mutual of Omaha policy, check whether you hold the whole life plan bought direct or a plan an agent wrote, since the two are underwritten differently. Either way the coverage was priced on the health you had the day it was issued, which is worth more than most replacement offers admit, and we will say so if that is what we find.
Common questions
Which is better, Bankers Life or Mutual of Omaha?
Neither, taken on its own, because the two ask you for different things before they will issue permanent coverage. Bankers Life reviews your medical history and may ask for an exam, and in exchange its whole life shelf runs from age 0 on a single premium plan up to 85, with amounts listed as low as $2,500. Mutual of Omaha will sell you a whole life plan direct with no health questions at all, and that plan opens at 45 and stops at $25,000. Start with which of those two doors is open to you, because that decides more here than any product feature does.
Who actually issues each policy?
Bankers Life life policies are underwritten by Bankers Life and Casualty Company of Chicago, Illinois, by Washington National Insurance Company of Carmel, Indiana, and in New York by Bankers Conseco Life Insurance Company of Jericho, New York, all part of the CNO Financial Group family of brands. Mutual of Omaha life insurance and annuities are underwritten by United of Omaha Life Insurance Company, which is licensed nationwide except in New York, where Companion Life Insurance Company underwrites instead. The name on the first page of your policy is the company that pays the claim, so it is worth reading. We do not print financial strength grades here, because they change and a figure copied into an article ages badly. Look each issuer up yourself at ambest.com.
Can I buy either one without meeting an agent?
Only one of the two is set up that way today. Mutual of Omaha lets you apply for its whole life plan online, in a four step application it says takes about five minutes, with no medical exam and no health questions. Bankers Life points you to a local agent instead: you request a quote through its site, and an agent or producer contacts you, then meets you in person or virtually. If sitting with someone is the part you want, that is the design working. If it is the part you would rather skip, the online door is at the other company.
Does either one require a medical exam?
It depends on the product, and the two describe it differently. Bankers Life says its underwriters review your medical history to decide whether the application is acceptable and to set your risk classification, and states plainly that you may need a medical exam. Mutual of Omaha sells its whole life plan direct with no medical exam and no health questions, while its term and universal life products are underwritten in the ordinary way. Either way, answer every health question accurately, because a life policy has a contestability period of roughly two years.
What ages can apply for whole life at each company?
Bankers Life publishes a range by plan: BasicLife at ages 17 to 49 and 50 to 85, BasicLife Graded at 50 to 85, its single premium Innovative Life plans from age 0 to 85, and Secure View at 17 to 75. Mutual of Omaha lists its whole life plan for people aged 45 to 85, and ages 50 to 75 in New York. Both companies note that policies and terms vary by state, so confirm what is offered where you live before you count on a figure.
Both companies also sell Medicare and long term care coverage. Does that change the life decision?
It can, and it is a fair reason to weigh one over the other. Bankers Life describes itself as one of the largest providers of Medicare supplement insurance and long term care insurance for people near or in retirement, and its agent model is built to handle those alongside a life policy. Mutual of Omaha also writes Medicare supplement, long term care, disability income and dental coverage. Holding several policies at one company can simplify servicing, though it is worth confirming that each one is still the right product on its own terms rather than keeping them together out of habit.
Which one is cheaper?
Nobody can answer that before knowing your age, your health, the amount you want and the state you live in, and the two underwrite differently, so the answer moves from person to person. There is one structural point worth holding onto. A plan issued with no health questions is priced for everyone who applies, while an underwritten plan is priced on the health you can document, and neither of those is automatically the better deal. Someone in good health may do well going through underwriting, and someone with a complicated history may find the plan that never asks is the only offer on the table. The honest step is to fix the coverage amount first, then have both priced on your real information and read the two side by side.
If I already have one of these, should I switch to the other?
Not automatically, and often not at all. Coverage you already own was priced on the health you had when it was issued, so if your health has changed since, replacing it can cost more or may not be available on the same terms. Any honest comparison starts by valuing what you already hold, and a review that ends in keep what you have is a perfectly good result.
Can I hold policies from both companies at once?
Yes. There is no rule against owning coverage from more than one insurer, and plenty of households do, often because policies were bought at different life stages for different reasons. What matters is that the total coverage matches what your family would actually need, and that you are not paying twice for the same job.
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The right answer depends on you, not on the brochure.
Rates for Bankers Life and Mutual of Omaha both depend on your age and health, which means the better buy for your neighbour may be the worse buy for you. A licensed professional will price both against what you already have and tell you which is genuinely better, including when the honest answer is to keep what you have.
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This comparison is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Product availability, pricing and underwriting differ by state, age and health, and change over time. Policy Review Center is a free comparison and referral service, not an insurance agency, insurer, or producer, and it connects you with independent licensed agents. Carrier names are used for reference only and do not imply any endorsement or affiliation.