Health Insurance

Best Disability Insurance

Providing You With Funds When You Are Ill or Injured and Unable to Work

Updated March 10, 2023

Fact checked by

We recommend the best products through an independent review process, and advertisers do not influence our picks. We may receive compensation if you visit partners we recommend. Read our advertiser disclosure for more info.

An unexpected disability can hurt you financially as much as physically. If you fall and break your leg over the weekend, you’ll be unable to return to work for several weeks.

If the injury didn’t occur on the job, you won’t be covered by workers’ comp. While your health insurance policy will pay for your medical care, it can’t do anything for your lost wages in the coming weeks. If you typically make $1,500 a week and miss six weeks, that’s $9,000 in missed income; does your family have the savings necessary to cover that loss?

The right disability coverage protects against lost income while you’re unable to work. This enables you to recover from an illness or injury without worrying as much about missed work. While some employers offer disability insurance as part of employee benefits, many people opt to buy personal policies to make sure they are always covered.

We reviewed the best disability insurance so you know what to look for when buying coverage and how the right policy can protect you and your loved ones.

The 4 Best Disability Insurance of 2023

Best Overall: Guardian
Best Long-Term Disability Insurance: Breeze
Best for High-Risk Occupations: Assurity
Best for Noncancelable: The Standard

Best Overall : Guardian

Get a Quote

Guardian wins our best overall disability insurance category because it offers a wide range of options to meet your needs. It offers long- and short-term disability insurance policies in addition to both individual and supplemental coverage, with some form of coverage available in all 50 states. Multiple riders can be included in your policy for truly personalized coverage, with online quotes available for many.

Pros

Long-term, short-term, individual, and supplemental coverage options available
Multiple riders, including student loan payment protection
Supplemental disability coverage available without a medical exam
Online quotes available in most states

Cons

Group disability coverage maxes out at 60% of your income
Need to work directly with a representative in order to finalize and purchase coverage

Guardian's roots go all the way back to 1860 in New York, where it began writing policies to protect employees and individuals. The company offers a variety of disability insurance options across all 50 states and boasts an AM Best rating of A++ (Superior) for financial stability—the best rating available.

Through employers, Guardian offers short- and long-term disability income insurance. If you are self-employed or otherwise aren’t able to purchase coverage through your workplace—or simply want additional protection—Guardian also offers individual and supplemental disability insurance. There are many riders to choose from, such as student loan payment protection, that offer added peace of mind, which is why Guardian rises to the top of our list.

Guardian disability insurance is available to professionals, laborers, and those in either the medical or dental fields. As always, you’ll want to be sure to shop around a bit before committing to your coverage to ensure you’re getting the best possible price.

Note

As with any insurance product, the cost for a Guardian disability policy depends on your personal factors as well as the amount of coverage requested.

Coverage limits and limitations vary depending on the type of policy you choose and whether it’s through your employer or not. However, Guardian offers long-term disability coverage with elimination periods of 90 or 180 days, and with coverage lasting either two years, five years, 10 years, 20 years, or up to retirement.

You may be able to get a quote online, depending on your occupation and location, but purchasing coverage will require you to contact a Guardian representative. Medical exams are not required if buying supplemental disability coverage (you’ll just need to answer three yes/no questions), but likely will be required if buying any other type of policy.

Best Long-Term Disability Insurance : Breeze

Get a Quote

An online application and underwriting process make buying coverage easier than ever and help Breeze snags the top spot for the best long-term disability insurance. Buying coverage can take only minutes, there are no doctor’s visits for most applicants, and individual long-term coverage starts as low as $9 a month.

Pros

Online application takes as little as 15 minutes
An immediate decision—and instant coverage—available to eligible applicants
Coverage starts at only $9 per month
Monthly premiums waived as soon as disability coverage kicks in
Policies are noncancelable and guaranteed renewable until age 65 or 67

Cons

Breeze is a newer company with little history or feedback to reference
Short-term coverage not offered
Credit card on file required to move forward with application
The shortest elimination period available is 30 days
Medical exams required for some applicants

While the field of insurtech has been around for a while now, disability insurance wasn’t really part of the conversation until Breeze came into the picture in 2019. This company is putting a modern spin on individual long-term disability coverage, offering an application process that is entirely online with automated medical underwriting.

Applying takes about 15 minutes through a computer or mobile device, making it stand out among the competition. Many applicants will get an immediate decision with the option for instant coverage.

Note

Though Breeze does offer some affordable coverage options, you’ll probably pay more than the advertised $9 per month, especially if you want more coverage. You can get a fast quote on its site.

Elimination periods are available for 30, 60, 90, 180, or 365 days, with benefits lasting two years, five years, 10 years, or through age 65/67 (depending on your policy terms). Coverage typically maxes out at 60%, but may go to 80% of your salary, as well.

Breeze is known for requiring no medical exam, but paramedical appointments are required for some applicants; it just depends on how much coverage you want and how old you are.

Best for High-Risk Occupations : Assurity

Get a Quote

While many other companies shy away from those in high-risk professions, Assurity offers affordable disability income insurance for professions ranging from electrician to timberman. Coverage up to $20,000 is available with elimination periods as low as zero days, depending on your policy.

Pros

Elimination period ranging from 30 to 365 days—even zero days in certain cases
Policies are guaranteed renewable
Coverage can be conditionally renewed through age 75 if still working full-time

Cons

Coverage cannot be purchased online
Medical underwriting process can be more involved and time-consuming
Noncancelable rider not included in the base policy

Buying disability insurance can be tricky if you work in a high-risk profession; since you are put in more dangerous situations each day at work, you pose a greater risk to the insurer. High-risk occupations include things like construction, electrical work, timber work, machinery operations, and more.

Assurity offers long-term individual disability income insurance within a range of occupations. If you work in a high-risk field, however, you may find that Assurity is both one of your few options for coverage as well as one of the most affordable, making it best for high-risk occupations.

Note

You cannot buy coverage online and need to speak with an agent instead, but you can get a quote online that includes your selected policy options and riders.

Individual policies are offered with elimination periods of 30, 60, 90, 180, or 365 days, and up to $20,000 in total benefits. If you are offered short-term group disability coverage through your workplace, the elimination period could range from zero to 30 days.

The company was founded in 1890 and carries an A- (Excellent) financial strength rating from AM Best.

While many insurers have moved on to automated underwriting and data analytics, Assurity still uses a traditional medical underwriting process. Because this includes a human touch—and may involve requests for medical history and records—it can be more lengthy and time-consuming.

Best for Noncancelable : The Standard

Get a Quote

The Standard offers short- and long-term disability income insurance options with a slew of benefits, including optional noncancelable coverage. It also offers an exclusive family care benefit that can be used more than once and protects you if you need to care for a family member with a serious health condition.

Pros

Both short- and long-term disability options available
Family care benefit when you take care of sick family members
Policy features include rehabilitation and survivor benefits
Optional student loan payment rider available
Covers up to 66.67% of your income before adding additional rider benefits

Cons

The noncancelable feature is an optional rider
Individual disability coverage not available in Wyoming
Elimination periods start at 60 days

Founded in 1906, The Standard has been providing insurance coverage to Americans for more than a century. The company offers a few different insurance products, including both long- and short-term coverage for groups and coverage for individuals. The Standard holds an AM Best financial strength rating of A (Excellent), and it was one of the first insurers to implement a waiver of premium on a policy.

Note

You can easily get an estimated quote for coverage through The Standard’s website. However, if you are ready to purchase coverage, you’ll need to speak with one of their agents directly. A medical exam may also be required in order to finalize your policy.

Disability insurance through The Standard has elimination periods ranging from zero to seven days for short-term coverage and 60 to 360 days for long-term. Short-term disability coverage is available for up to one year. Long-term benefit periods are for one year, two years, five years, or through age 65 (or 67, depending on your policy terms).

While the noncancelable feature is an exceptional added rider, there are many benefits that are included with The Standard’s disability policies at no charge. The Family Care Benefit helps if you work 20% fewer hours, resulting in a 20% or more loss in income, due to caring for a family member. The rehabilitation benefit covers eligible rehabilitation expenses so you can return to work sooner. The Standard’s commitment to keeping you covered regardless of life events helps it win the noncancelable category.

What Is Disability Insurance?

If you are injured or get sick and cannot work, disability income insurance can help with monthly benefits to cover things like groceries, car payments, and even your mortgage. Unlike workers’ compensation insurance, disability insurance covers illnesses and injuries that are not work-related.

Disability insurance coverage can be short- or long-term and can be purchased through the workplace or individually. If something happens and you have to use this coverage down the line, benefits received would be considered tax-free.

Short-Term vs. Long-Term Disability Insurance

An unexpected disability can come in many forms and often is temporary in nature. Short-term disability insurance is intended to provide coverage for those temporary illnesses, injuries, and conditions that would keep you out of work—or from working at your usual pace—for a brief while, but aren’t permanent. Short-term disability insurance also can protect your income while you’re waiting for long-term coverage to kick in if a condition is more permanent in nature.

While short-term disability benefits can last up to two years, many cover you for only three to six months. Examples of conditions that could be covered by a short-term disability insurance policy include:

Pregnancy and childbirth
Injuries such as a broken leg or back
Joint problems
Mental health or nervous system issues
Organ donation

Short-term benefits often have waiting periods of 14 days or less before they kick in, depending on the policy, though some don’t have a waiting period at all.

Long-term disability insurance is designed to help replace your income for a greater period of time if your injury, illness, or condition is longer-lasting. These policies have longer elimination periods—ranging from one month to two years before coverage will kick in—but benefits typically last somewhere between two and 10 years. Depending on the policy you purchase, coverage may even be available through retirement age.

Depending on the policy, your long-term disability insurance could cover things like:

Injuries stemming from a fall, car accident, etc.
Musculoskeletal diseases
Cancer
Mental health issues

What Is Not Covered by Disability Insurance?

Disability insurance coverage has its limitations and does not cover every situation. For instance, disability insurance will not cover long-term care needs; for that, you’d need to buy a long-term care insurance policy.

Disability insurance also won’t cover your actual medical care, even if the illness or injury qualifies you for disability coverage. Instead, you would call on your existing health insurance policy when it came to paying said medical bills.

If you have pre-existing conditions, you may have trouble getting approved for disability insurance. This is especially true when shopping for short-term individual policies. Pre-existing exclusions include things like pregnancy, chronic illness, or even diabetes.

What Is the Best Type of Disability Insurance?

The best type of disability insurance is the one that best meets your personal needs. Policies are offered to individuals or as group plans through an employer. Coverage options are either short- or long-term, and both are valuable depending on whether your illness or injury is temporary or not.

If you already have a group long-term policy through your workplace, it might be wise to add supplemental or individual short-term coverage on your own. This will help bridge the gap between when your disability occurs and when your existing coverage kicks in and also may offer other benefits such as student loan repayment protection.

How Do I Choose Disability Insurance?

If your employer offers a group short- or long-term disability insurance option, that may be an affordable option to consider. Of course, you also can purchase individual and/or supplemental coverage on top of that to further protect yourself and your income.

When choosing a disability insurance policy, you’ll want to look at the elimination period options, benefit coverages offered, available riders, and whether the policy is noncancelable. In some cases, you also might want to consider whether a medical exam will be required, if you can buy coverage online, or if you’ll need to chat with an agent.

What Does Disability Insurance Cost?

As with any insurance policy, the cost for disability insurance policies vary widely based on the type of coverage purchased, benefits selected, your age, your income, your occupational risk class, and even the elimination period chosen.

In our research, we found that $5,000 in monthly disability insurance coverage for a 35-year-old female could run anywhere from $95 to $290 per month. Your own experience—based on your own preferences and personal details—may differ.

Methodology

We compared more than 15 disability insurers before picking the best for each category. In doing so, we compared the products offered, pricing, the ease of getting a quote and then buying coverage, options for benefits, and how quickly coverage would kick in.

Of course, it also was important to choose insurers with a strong history of claims satisfaction, trusted coverage, and financial stability. We looked at data from the NAIC and AM Best in that analysis.

Article Sources

Investopedia requires writers to use primary sources to support their work. These include white papers, government data, original reporting, and interviews with industry experts. We also reference original research from other reputable publishers where appropriate. You can learn more about the standards we follow in producing accurate, unbiased content in our editorial policy.

Business Wire. "AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of Guardian Life Insurance Company of America and Its Subsidiaries."
Assurity. "Our Impact."
The Standard. "Our Financial Strength and Resiliency."