The top 10 health insurance companies in the U.S. for 2026
Kaiser Permanente, Humana and Horizon BCBS are the top three health insurance companies in 2026.
We asked current customers to rate their health insurance company on various points, from overall customer satisfaction to deductibles and provider networks.
These are the top ten health insurance companies based on the survey results and third-party ratings, including those of the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).
| 2026 Rank | 2025 Rank | Company | Overall rating | Survey score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Rank: 1 | 2025 Rank: 1 (tie) | Company name: Kaiser Permanente | Overall rating: | Survey score: |
| 2026 Rank: 2 | 2025 Rank: 5 | Company name: Humana | Overall rating: | Survey score: |
| 2026 Rank: 3 | 2025 Rank: NR | Company name: Horizon BCBS | Overall rating: | Survey score: |
| 2026 Rank: 4 | 2025 Rank: NR | Company name: BCBS of Michigan | Overall rating: | Survey score: |
| 2026 Rank: 5 | 2025 Rank: 4 | Company name: Highmark BCBS | Overall rating: | Survey score: |
| 2026 Rank: 6 | 2025 Rank: 5 | Company name: Health Care Service Corp. | Overall rating: | Survey score: |
| 2026 Rank: 7 | 2025 Rank: 3 | Company name: Aetna | Overall rating: | Survey score: |
| 2026 Rank: 8 | 2025 Rank: NR | Company name: BCBS of Florida | Overall rating: | Survey score: |
| 2026 Rank: 9 | 2025 Rank: 5 | Company name: Elevance Health | Overall rating: | Survey score: |
| 2026 Rank: 10 | 2025 Rank: NR | Company name: BCBS of North Carolina | Overall rating: | Survey score: |
What you need to know about the best health insurance companies
Below, we’ll take a closer look at the top health insurance companies in this year’s rankings.
Kaiser Permanente: 4.42
California-based Kaiser Permanente is the best health insurance company in our ranking for the second year in a row, thanks to solid survey scores across the board and a top NCQA score of 4.59. No other company score above 4.
Kaiser Permanente customers plan to renew at a rate of 95%, and 86% say the company is trustworthy.
Humana: 4.23
Humana climbed from fifth place last year to No. 2 for 2026. It had the best survey score of any company on the list and also scored highly for affordability. It was the most trusted company in our survey at 96% and also topped the billing process and low deductibles categories.
Humana received an A from AM Best and 3.33 out of 5 stars from the National Committee for Quality Assurance.
Horizon BCBS: 4.16
New to the rankings this year, Horizon (BCBS of New Jersey) had an excellent survey score and was the best company for seniors/older adults in our survey, topping the category at 85%. It was also the most recommended company; 100% of customer said they’d recommend it to a friend.
BCBS of Michigan: 4.14
Another newcomer to the list this year, BCBS of Michigan landed in fourth place with an NCQA score of 3.88 and good scores across the survey, including a score of 80% of customer satisfaction and 84% for ease of accessing policy documents and services.
The company holds an A rating from AM Best, indicating its financial stability and ability to pay claims.
Health Care Services Corp.: 4.09
HCSC rose one place for 2026 to fifth with a score of 4.09. It scored highly for digital experience with a 92% satisfaction rating, and 97% of customers plan to renew. These and other high scores contributed to a high overall survey score of 4.25%
The best health insurance companies for price, customer satisfaction and more
We ranked the companies above for overall performance, but some stood out in particular categories. Here are the winners for customer satisfaction, low deductibles, provider network and more.
- Best for price/affordability: Humana
- Best for customer satisfaction: Humana
- Best for policy offerings: Horizon BCBS
- Most likely to be recommended to others: Horizon BCBS
- Most trustworthy: Humana
- Best for renewals: BCBS of Florida
- Best for low deductibles: Humana
- Best for its provider network: Highmark
How to choose the best health insurance company and plan
When shopping for health insurance on the individual market, the choices can seem overwhelming. The first step is to determine your monthly budget for premiums and balance that with the out-of-pocket costs you’re willing to pay.
As a general rule, the more you pay monthly, the lower your deductible, copay and coinsurance amounts will be. So, you pay more monthly and less when you need care.
If you need medical care frequently throughout the year, paying more monthly to ensure lower out-of-pocket costs makes sense. However, if you’re young and healthy and don’t anticipate frequent doctor visits, you can likely choose a lower monthly premium and a higher deductible.
The next step is to decide what kind of provider network you want, which helps to determine the type of health insurance plan you should buy. Your choices include HMO, PPO, POS and possibly others.
With an HMO, you will have a primary care provider (PCP), who coordinates your care, and no out-of-network coverage. This usually means you will pay less.
With a PPO, you’ll have coverage in and out of network, and can usually make appointments with specialists without a referral. This usually means higher premiums.
Some companies offer HMO and PPO plans, while others are solely HMO. There are also a few hybrid plan options to choose from. Knowing what you want for coverage will help you narrow your company choices. From there, you can look at the availability of providers in your area and, of course, the company’s reputation.
Silver plans provide a good balance of monthly premiums with out-of-pocket costs. Coinsurance is 70% with a silver plan, meaning you will pay 30% of the costs after your deductible is met, up to the out-of-pocket limit. Silver plans are a good choice for people who are in generally good health but don't want high out-of-pocket costs if something goes wrong. Bronze plans are a popular choice with those who value low monthly premiums and are willing to pay more when they need care. Coinsurance is set at 60%, meaning you will pay 40% if you do need care, up to the out-of-pocket limit. Bronze plans are good for those who don't expect to need many services outside of preventative care throughout the year.
ACA platinum plans have the highest monthly premiums, but the lowest out-of-pocket costs. You'll pay more monthly in return for lower deductibles, copays and coinsurance amounts. Coinsurance with platinum plans is 90%, which means you pay 10% after the deductible, up to your out-of-pocket limit. Platinum plans are good for those who anticipate a lot of medical needs throughout the year.
Gold plans cost a little less than platinum plans, and come with higher out-of-pocket costs. The coinsurance amount on a gold plan is 80%, which means you pay 20% after the deductible, up to your out-of-pocket limit. A gold plan is a good idea if you think you'll need a lot of care throughout the year, but don't want to pay platinum premiums.Health insurance finder tool
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Preferred-provider Organization (PPOs)
Preferred-provider organization (PPOs) plans are the most common type of
employer-based health plan. PPOs have higher premiums than HMOs and HDHPs, but
those added costs offer you flexibility. A PPO allows you to get care anywhere
and without primary care provider referrals. You may have to pay more to get
out-of-network care, but a PPO will pick up a portion of the costs.
Find out more about the differences between plansHealth maintenance organization (HMO)
Health maintenance organization (HMO) plans have lower premiums than PPOs.
However, HMOs have more restrictions. HMOs don't allow you to get care outside
of your provider network. If you get out-of-network care, you'll likely have to
pay for all of it. HMOs also require you to get primary care provider referrals
to see specialists.
Find out more about the differences between plansHigh-deductible health plans (HDHPs)
High-deductible health plans (HDHPs) have become more common as employers look
to reduce their health costs. HDHPs have lower premiums than PPOs and HMOs, but
much higher deductibles. A deductible is what you have to pay for health care
services before your health plan chips in money. Once you reach your deductible,
the health plan pays a portion and you pay your share, which is called
coinsurance.
Find out more about the differences between plansExclusive provider organization (EPO)
Exclusive provider organization (EPO) plans offer the flexibility of a PPO with
the restricted network found in an HMO. EPOs don't require that members get a
referral to see a specialist. In that way, it's similar to a PPO. However, an
EPO requires in-network care, which is like an HMO.
Find out more about the differences between plans
Learn more about individual insurance plans
Know more individual insurance / ACA 
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Methodology
70+
Carriers reviewed
1,750
Consumers surveyed
60+
Insurance metrics examined
34,600
ZIP codes examined
In the fall of 2025, we surveyed more than 1,750 insurance consumers (almost 1,500 of which had health insurance). The survey was conducted by online market research company Dynata.
Respondents were asked to name their health insurer and then grade it in a number of categories, including:
- Customer satisfaction
- Ease of service
- Policy offerings
- The cost of insurance/affordability
- Low deductible
- Preferred providers available
- Not needing a referral
The percentage of respondents who said they were satisfied or very satisfied with their insurer is presented in the results.
We then asked respondents to provide a yes or no response to indicate their agreement with the following statements:
- I plan to keep my coverage with my current health insurance company
- I would recommend my health insurance company to others
- I trust my health insurance company
The percentage of respondents who said yes is presented in the results.
The editors compiled the survey results and then selected – based on the number of survey responses – the top companies for further evaluation.
We then collected data from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), which evaluates and rates health plans, and National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ complaint data, which ranks a company by the number of customer complaints it receives. The Insure.com team identified the NAIC codes of each underwriting company for each carrier and calculated a weighted average complaint index, weighted by the annual written premium. The associated NAIC complaint index score was used in the calculations.
With the help of Prof. David Marlett, Ph.D., Managing Director of the Brantley Risk and Insurance Center at Appalachian State University, the editors created a rating system to determine which insurance companies were best in each sector. For life insurers, we took the following and gave each a weight.
- Survey: 60% of the total score (10% customer satisfaction, 10% recommended, 10% policy retention, 10% trust, and 20% affordability)
- NCQA: 25% of total score
- NAIC: 15% of total score
Each insurer was awarded between half a star and 5 stars. No company in the ranking received less than half a star in any category, and 5 stars was the most any insurer could receive.
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