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Policygenius makes researching and finding a great deal on your insurance simple, thanks to its easy-to-use interface and written guides and resources.
9/10
Cost
9/10
Features
8/10
Ease of use
9/10
Services
9/10
If you’ve ever tried to purchase insurance for yourself or your family, you know how complicated it can get. Especially if you’re doing your best to compare different insurance providers and insurance rates, it’s easy to get bogged down by the different types of insurance on the market. You may also quickly find your email inbox inundated with various insurance options without fully understanding your needs.
This is where a platform like Policygenius comes in. Policygenius offers an all-in-one platform for researching your own insurance needs, comparing various insurance products, and even buying insurance. Learn more about how Policygenius can help you and what to expect from the service in this review.
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What is Policygenius?
Since its founding in 2014, Policygenius has helped millions of customers find better insurance. They are a leading insurance broker without any affiliations to other insurance companies. When you use their system to evaluate auto, health, homeowners, or life insurance, you won’t be obligated or pressured to work with a specific insurer.
Policygenius doesn’t provide insurance coverage itself. Rather, they are an online insurance marketplace that allows customers to determine what coverage amounts make the most sense for them and compare pricing and products before ever speaking to an insurance agent. Policygenius prides itself on ensuring that customers don’t experience any surprises as they shop around for the best life or car insurance, meaning that their rates are the most accurate you’ll find online before you start your formal application process.
When it comes to how Policygenius works, the process couldn’t be simpler! Policygenius works hard to make it easy for customers to figure out how much life insurance they need before they even start looking at products from life insurance companies. The same goes for other forms of insurance, meaning that Policygenius is your one-stop shop for all of your insurance needs.
To get the ball rolling with Policygenius, you’ll need to create an account on their website. Creating an account allows you to track your application status and chat with your agent about different aspects of your policy. All you need to do to make your free account is enter your first name and email and create a password.
Once you’ve created an account, you’ll answer three questions to help personalize the insurance advice you receive. The questions involve simple facts about you and your family, such as whether you have children under 18 (or plan to have kids soon), whether you rent or own your home, and whether you’re currently employed.
Once you’ve completed that brief questionnaire, you can get your recommendations. In this example, I was recommended to look into life insurance to protect my family and bundled home and auto insurance. Clicking on the “Get Started” button will take you to a page that works to determine how serious you are in your search at this point.
For example, if you’re looking at life insurance policies, you’ll be asked whether you’re still determining whether or not a life insurance policy is right for you, actively comparing quotes, or ready to fill out an application.
If you’re just getting started in determining whether or not a whole life insurance or term life insurance policy makes sense for you, you’ll be asked a series of questions that may or may not apply to you and your financial and family situation. For example, you’ll be able to input whether or not you have children or are planning to have kids in the foreseeable future, are married, max out your retirement fund, or are only interested in a life insurance policy that covers funeral expenses.
This in-depth questioning ensures you get the right coverage that meets your wants and needs. You’ll also input some information about your age, gender, zip code, and annual income to help ensure you get enough coverage. While a medical exam isn’t required, you will be asked questions about your tobacco use, weight, and any other health conditions you may have to determine the best insurance for you.
Policygenius’ process is quite similar when shopping around for auto or homeowners insurance, although you’ll fill out more specific information about your current housing and vehicle information.
Once you’ve finished your questionnaire, you’ll be asked to enter your email and phone number. A representative from Policygenius will then contact you to confirm the details of your application and discuss various insurance options with you. This will let you get all your questions answered promptly and help you fully understand exactly what sort of coverage you’re purchasing.
One of the best things about Policygenius is that it's free to use. Policygenius makes money from the insurance company you apply with whenever you get approved for insurance. Policygenius also won’t profit from your personal data, meaning you truly don’t pay anything for their website service. Plus, Policygenius will even shop around quotes to ensure you get the best deal on the market, allowing you to get even more value when you use Policygenius.
Policygenius features
Policygenius offers a lot for free. Here are some of the biggest strengths of Policygenius’s online platform.
Ease-of-use
One major benefit of using a platform like Policygenius is that it provides a consistent experience. If you were trying to compare various insurance companies on your own, you’d likely need to create multiple accounts and wrestle with different website user interfaces from insurer to insurer. Policygenius’ website is simple, straightforward, and streamlined, making it easy for anyone to compare insurance options quickly.
High-quality live help
Life insurance is complicated. Especially if you have family members counting on your income to make ends meet or are shopping for something high-stakes, such as disability insurance, you’ll likely have some questions. Thankfully, live chat support is helpful from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. EST Monday through Friday and on the weekends from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST.
If you talk to someone over the phone to learn more about your insurance options, you can rest assured that you won’t have to deal with aggressive sales tactics. Since each representative from Policygenius is paid on a salary and not via commission, they’re not as incentivized to get you to make a purchase. Rather, while they want to help you get insurance, they’re much more patient and willing to answer your questions.
Wide variety of insurers and insurance types
Policygenius makes it easy to search for and compare a broad array of insurance companies and insurance products. In addition to life insurance, homeowners insurance, and automotive insurance, Policygenius can also help you with disability insurance.
Who is Policygenius best for?
Policygenius is a great platform with much to offer, but it’s certainly better suited for some customers than others. Here’s a quick rundown of who will benefit most from using Policygenius.
Budget-conscious shoppers
One of the most obvious reasons to use Policygenius is to save money. Whether you have an insurance policy or shop for automotive or homeowners insurance for the first time, Policygenius can help you shop around quickly and efficiently. If you want to weigh all your options and get the best deal possible, you’ll get many benefits from using Policygenius’ website, which will help you as a shopper.
Customers who want to understand what they’re paying for
Education is a core value of Policygenius, as evidenced by the quality of its support staff and the resources available on its website. If you’re the kind of shopper who wants to know exactly what you can expect from your insurance coverage, the straightforward way Policygenius walks you through each element of your insurance policy can be incredibly helpful. Their insurance checkup tool is even useful for customers with an existing policy who are curious whether they have the right coverage or an appropriate deductible.
Who shouldn’t use Policygenius?
Shoppers who want all the options
While Policygenius does a great job of helping you compare major insurers, it’s worth noting that it won’t give you quotes and estimates from every insurer you could qualify for. From Prudential and AIG to Transamerica and Pacific Life, you will get many options with Policygenius, but you won’t get all of them. As such, while Policygenius can serve as a great jumping-off point for your insurance research, you’ll likely want to perform some extra research beyond what Policygenius offers you to get an even fuller picture.
Your situation is sensitive or complex
In some situations, you may prefer to speak with an insurance agent in person rather than through a web chat or phone. If this is the case, Policygenius isn’t a great platform for you. At the same time, if you have extra extenuating circumstances related to your health or that may complicate the underwriting process, it may make sense to speak with representatives from each insurance company rather than use a comparison tool like Policygenius.
Pros and cons
Pros
Simple. As has been mentioned throughout this review, the straightforward user interface offered to consumers by Policygenius is a major benefit of using the platform. While some insurer’s websites can be cumbersome or tedious to navigate, Policygenius features a clean web design and is simple to use.
Powerful. Just because Policygenius is simple doesn’t mean that it’s limited. The online comparison tools give you important insights about the different insurers you’re evaluating while also making sure that the companies you’re learning about are relevant to your personal needs and situation.
Clear educational resources. To ensure that you know what your priorities should be in insurance coverage, Policygenius gives you the chance to talk to knowledgeable representatives via telephone or live webchat. Additionally, their online guides are a valuable resource for anyone interested in learning the ins and outs of a specific insurance product.
Free. It must be said that the fact that Policygenius offers so much to users free-of-charge is a big deal! You get a lot of value from this free service, especially when you add in the savings you can find on life, home, or auto insurance, among other sorts of policies.
Cons
Isn’t exhaustive. While Policygenius does a good job of hitting all the major insurance providers out there, their overall list of insurance companies is by no means definitive. There are a lot of insurance companies out there, and especially if you’re interested in evaluating a smaller or more geographically specific company, you may need to do some research on your own.
Some repetition possible. Since Policygenius doesn’t collect as much personal data as an actual insurance company, when you do start an application for insurance from the provider you plan on purchasing coverage from, you may need to re-input certain details that you’ve already added to your Policygenius account.
You won’t always get instant results. To get accurate price comparisons, it may take a day or so to start getting your insurance quotes. Generally speaking, this will be something that’s discussed when you reach out to your representative on the phone.
Policygenius vs. competitors
Insurance Type
Policygenius
The Zebra
Insurify
Life Insurance
Yes
Yes
Yes
Auto Insurance
Yes
Yes
Yes
Home Insurance
Yes
Yes
Yes
Disability Insurance
Yes
No
No
Renters Insurance
No
Yes
No
Cost
Free
Free
Free
The Zebra
When it comes to other online comparison tools, The Zebra is the only website of the above platforms that can hold a candle to Policygenius. Like Policygenius, The Zebra lets you quickly compare life, auto, home, and renters insurance. That being said, Policygenius offers disability insurance, and The Zebra doesn’t.
Insurify has a bright and colorful user interface like Policygenius; however, it’s the most limited of the above options. Insurify will give you life, auto, and home insurance quotes, but that’s where the list ends. That said, it’s also free to use, which is nice.
Any time a customer makes an insurance purchase through a broker like Policygenius they get a commission from that sale. It’s important to note that Policygenius is completely free of charge and the commission amount they are paid is baked into the price of the policy you’re shopping for. This means there aren’t any hidden fees or reasons not to use a broker when compared with an individual insurance company’s website.
How accurate are the quotes offered by Policygenius?
Policygenius takes pride in the accuracy of their quotes, even offering an advisor to help with more complicated insurance quotes based on your health history and other factors.
Is Policygenius a licensed insurance broker?
Yes. All insurance brokers must be licensed in the states they operate in, and Policygenius is no exception just because they’re based on the internet. You can learn more about the licenses Policygenius holds on the disclosures page of their website.
Is Policygenius legit?
Whether you’re looking to compare big-name insurance companies like Mutual of Omaha and Prudential or just trying to find the cheapest life insurance quotes, Policygenius has much to offer. Even if you’re just performing an insurance checkup to feel more confident in your existing coverage, Policygenius can be a major help when it comes to navigating the complex world of insurance.
Policygenius makes researching and finding a great deal on your insurance simple, thanks to its easy-to-use interface and written guides and resources. While there are certainly some people who may prefer to deal with matters of insurance in person rather than online, if you’re the type of consumer who wants to get as much information about whether a policy is a good fit for you before you make a purchase, there’s a lot to like about Policygenius.
Ultimately, whether or not you use a comparison tool is up to you; however, with so much value offered free of charge, it doesn’t hurt to use a comparison website. This is specifically true since you aren’t obligated to pick any insurer recommended to you by Policygenius.
Joy Wallet is an independent publisher and comparison service, not an investment advisor, financial advisor, loan broker, insurance producer, or insurance broker. Its articles, interactive tools and other content are provided to you for free, as self-help tools and for informational purposes only. They are not intended to provide investment advice. Joy Wallet does not and cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information in regard to your individual circumstances. We encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding specific investment issues. Featured estimates are based on past market performance, and past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.
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Brent Ervin-Eickhoff is a Chicago-based writer, stage director, and filmmaker with a background in digital marketing and content creation. In addition to Joy Wallet, Brent has written for Complex, Volkswagen, HowlRound, Picture this Post, and Third Coast Review, among others. He currently serves as the Associate Director of Marketing for Content Creation at Court Theatre at the University of Chicago. Brent graduated from Ball State University with Academic Honors in Writing.
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