Guides
The Comdex ranking: one number for insurer strength
The Comdex blends an insurer's agency ratings into a single 1-to-100 score. How it is calculated, how to read it, and why it should never be your only check.
The Comdex is a composite score from 1 to 100 that combines an insurer's financial strength ratings from several rating agencies into one number. A score of 90 means the company's combined ratings sit at about the 90th percentile of rated insurers: better than roughly nine in ten. It is a convenient way to compare insurers quickly, but it is built entirely from other people's ratings and says nothing about price, service or claims behavior.
How the Comdex is calculated
The Comdex is not an independent opinion. It is arithmetic done on ratings that already exist. In outline:
- Collect the insurer's current financial strength ratings from AM Best, S&P, Moody's and Fitch (see AM Best, S&P, Moody's and Fitch ratings explained for the scales).
- Convert each rating into a percentile: where that grade sits among all grades the agency has issued to insurers.
- Average the percentiles from the agencies that rate the company.
According to the explanation published by My Annuity Store, the index is currently compiled and published by VitalSigns, a product of Zinnia Distributor Solutions, and a company must be rated by at least two agencies to receive a score. The same source gives a simple example: percentiles of 90, 85 and 80 from three agencies average to a Comdex of 85. Because the ranking is a vendor's product and not an industry or government standard, the exact inputs (for example, whether a fifth agency such as Weiss is included) can differ by publisher. Check the method of whoever shows you the number.
How to read a Comdex number
The score is relative, not absolute. It ranks an insurer against the other rated insurers, so:
- 80 and above is the range publishers such as My Annuity Store describe as superior financial strength.
- Scores in the 90s mean the agencies rate the company at the top of the field.
- A lower score means one or more agencies rate it below most peers. It does not mean the company is about to fail; a company can have a modest Comdex and still be rated in a secure category.
Because percentiles are used, a very high score can result from a single grade difference at the top of the scale. The gap between a 96 and a 92, for example, may be one notch at one agency and is rarely a reason to choose one insurer over another.
What the Comdex hides
It flattens differences. A company with A++ from AM Best, AA from S&P and no Moody's or Fitch rating can score the same as one with A+ from all four. You lose the detail on which agency is more cautious and why.
It depends on which agencies rate the company. A smaller insurer rated by only one or two agencies may score lower or not at all, even if its AM Best grade is strong. Many fraternal and smaller regional insurers are rated only by AM Best.
It lags. Percentile scores update when the underlying ratings do. A downgrade or outlook change may not move a published Comdex until later. Look at the underlying ratings and dates.
It does not measure what most shoppers care about. Price, underwriting fit, riders, customer service and claims handling are outside it. For those, see The NAIC complaint index and how to use it and What J.D. Power's life insurance study measures.
It is a vendor tool, not a regulator's. State insurance departments do not publish it. For regulatory and solvency data, see your state insurance department and the NAIC; the state guaranty association coverage lookup shows what protection applies if an insurer fails.
A practical way to use it
Use the Comdex as a screening filter, not a ranking of who to buy from:
- Find the Comdex for each insurer on your short list from a source that explains its method and date.
- Open each insurer's own ratings page and confirm the individual agency ratings, outlooks and dates.
- Treat any insurer with a notably lower score than peers, or with a negative outlook, as a reason to look closer, not an automatic exclusion.
- Compare the rest on price, product and service. The life insurer comparison tool and life insurance quote comparison worksheet help.
A hypothetical example: say you are comparing three 20-year term quotes of nearly the same price. The first insurer has a Comdex of 98, the second 94 and the third 78. The first two are both in the top tier, so choose between them on conversion rights, riders and service. The third deserves a look at which agency ratings are pulling its score down before you rely on it for 20 years.
Comdex versus the rating agencies' own grades
| Comdex | Agency rating | |
|---|---|---|
| Who produces it | A data vendor that compiles ratings | AM Best, S&P, Moody's, Fitch |
| What it is | A 1-to-100 composite of percentiles | An independent opinion by letter grade |
| Best use | Quick comparison across many insurers | The primary evidence for a single insurer |
| Main weakness | Hides detail; depends on which agencies rate the company | Scales differ and are hard to compare |
If you want the reasoning behind a grade, the agency's own report is the source. If you want a quick sorting tool across a long list, a composite is useful. Using both is better than either alone. Read how to choose a life insurance company for how financial strength fits with price, product and service.
Key takeaways
- The Comdex averages percentile rankings of an insurer's agency ratings into a single 1-to-100 score.
- It is a vendor's composite, not a regulator's or rating agency's measure, and methods can differ by publisher.
- High scores cluster at the top, so small differences among top-scoring insurers rarely matter.
- Always confirm the underlying ratings, outlooks and dates, and pair them with price, product and service checks.
- A low score is a reason to look closer, not proof a company will fail.