Thrivent life insurance review: Low rates for Christians
Thrivent offers competitive rates on life insurance policies, but applicants must attest to being Christian.
By
Logan SachonLogan SachonSenior Managing Editor, Life Insurance & ResearchLogan Sachon is a former senior managing editor of life insurance and research at Policygenius. As a journalist, her work has appeared in The Guardian, Business Insider, CNN Money, BuzzFeed, Money Under 30, VICE, New York Magazine, and elsewhere.
Edited by
Adam MorganAdam MorganEditorial DirectorAdam Morgan is an editorial director at policycentral who leads the life insurance and annuities team. Previously, he led editorial teams matrixed across multiple financial publications at Red Ventures — including Bankrate, NextAdvisor, Million Mile Secrets, and others. As a journalist, his work has appeared in Esquire, Scientific American, The Guardian, Los Angeles Times, and elsewhere.
Our proprietary ratings methodology takes multiple factors into account, including customer satisfaction, cost, financial strength, and policy offerings. See the “Ratings methodology” section for more details.
4.5
AM Best rating
AM Best is a global credit rating agency that scores the financial strength of insurance companies on a scale from A++ (Superior) to D (Poor).
A+
Cost
Using a mix of internal and external rate data, we grade the cost of each insurance company's premiums on a scale from least expensive ($) to most expensive ($$$$$).
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The bottom line
Thrivent has high customer experience and financial ratings and competitive rates, but it only offers products to people who attest that they are Christian.
Note: Thrivent products are not available through the policycentral marketplace.
Pros
Competitive rates
Whole life policies may pay dividends
Cons
Products only available to people who attest to being Christian
Term life not available in NY
Basic coverages offered
Term life insurance: Thrivent’s term life insurance product is available to people age 18 to 75 for terms of 10, 15, 20, and 30 years. Coverage is available for $100,000 to $2 million.
Universal life insurance: Thrivent offers universal life insurance, a permanent policy with flexible premiums.
Variable universal life insurance: Thrivent’s variable universal life insurance product is called Thrivent Accumulation Variable Universal Life. VUL products feature cash value investing options.
Additional coverages offered
Accelerated death benefit for terminal illness rider: For no additional cost, the accelerated death benefit rider provides part of the death benefit if you are diagnosed with a terminal illness.
Disability waiver of premium rider: For an additional cost, the waiver of premium rider waives premiums during a period of disability.
Ratings methodology
Price
4.1/5
Our price rating scale compares insurance companies’ life insurance costs for a sample $1 million 20-year term policy for a 35-year-old female non-smoker with a Standard Plus health classification. Thrivent’s rates put it in the second most affordable category according to our rating system.
Customer experience
5.0/5
Our customer experience scale uses data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) complaint index. Thrivent has a score of at 0.02, which means it receives fewer complaints than expected for a company of its size. (That number would be 1.0.)
Transparency
3.6/5
Our transparency rating scale measures how easily shoppers and policyholders can find information about an insurer on its website. Thrivent gets points for having clear contact information, a support hub, and for displaying financial information, but lost points for not having its policy details, including coverage amounts, term lengths, and average rates, clearly posted. It also lost points for not having a chat feature.
Financial strength
4.9/5
Our financial strength rating is a weighted combination of three industry-leading metrics to measure a company’s financial health: A.M. Best, Standard & Poor’s, and Moody’s. Thrivent has an A++ rating from A.M. Best, an AA+ rating from Standard & Poor’s, and an Aa2 rating from Moody’s.
A closer look at Thrivent
Who is Thrivent best for?
Thrivent requires its life insurance applicants to also apply for membership in its fraternal benefits organization, and to agree to a statement of Christian common bond. Applicants must select that they are “Christian, seeking to live out my faith” or the “spouse of a Christian who seeks to live out his or her faith.”
What makes Thrivent unique?
Thrivent’s requirement of Christian identification sets it apart from other life insurance companies, including other fraternal benefit associations like Foresters Financial.
Who should consider a different life insurance company?
Anyone who is not willing or able to sign Thrivent’s statement of Christian common bond should look for life insurance coverage elsewhere.
Thrivent life insurance rates
Thrivent does not publish its life insurance rates.
Thrivent’s history, reputation, and social responsibility
Thrivent Financial for Lutherans was founded 2002 through the merger of the Aid Association for Lutherans (AAL), which was founded in 1902, and the Lutheran Brotherhood, which was founded in 1917. The company, known as Thrivent, is based in Minneapolis, MN. [1]
The company is a membership-owned fraternal organization. In 2013, its membership voted to extend membership to all Christians, not just Lutherans. [2] Thrivent defines a Christian as one who believes in the Apostles Creed. Insurance policy applicants must also apply for membership and sign a statement of Christian common bond, attesting that they or their spouse are a “Christian living out [their] faith.” [3]
Thrivent calls itself "the original purpose-based company," and helps its clients with guidance and resources to make contributions to their communities through volunteering and impact investing. [4]
Thrivent in the news
In January 2023, Thrivent announced it would distribute $400 million in dividend payments and credited rate enhancements to its clients in 2023. (Thrivent)
In August 2023, Thrivent was named number 351 on the Fortune 500 list of the biggest U.S. companies. (Fortune)
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Thrivent vs. other life insurance companies
Compare Thrivent to similar life insurance companies using the table below.
policycentral uses external sources, including government data, industry studies, and reputable news organizations to supplement proprietary marketplace data and internal expertise. Learn more about how we use and vet external sources as part of oureditorial standards.
Logan Sachon is a former senior managing editor of life insurance and research at Policygenius. As a journalist, her work has appeared in The Guardian, Business Insider, CNN Money, BuzzFeed, Money Under 30, VICE, New York Magazine, and elsewhere.
Adam Morgan is an editorial director at policycentral who leads the life insurance and annuities team. Previously, he led editorial teams matrixed across multiple financial publications at Red Ventures — including Bankrate, NextAdvisor, Million Mile Secrets, and others. As a journalist, his work has appeared in Esquire, Scientific American, The Guardian, Los Angeles Times, and elsewhere.
