The short answer
A mutual life insurance company has no outside shareholders. Its participating policyholders are its members, and they elect the board that directs management. A stock company is owned by shareholders, who elect its board. A mutual holding company sits between the two, a mutual parent that owns a stock insurer. Per figures Northwestern Mutual cites from the American Council of Life Insurers, 110 of 727 US life insurers were mutuals in 2022.
- Who elects a mutual's board
- Policyholders
- Mutual life insurers, 2022
- 110 of 727
- Their life insurance in force, 2022
- $8 trillion
On this page
- Who owns a mutual insurer
- Who elects the governing body of a mutual insurance company
- Mutual vs stock vs mutual holding company, side by side
- The list, true mutuals, holding companies and former mutuals
- Demutualizations, what owners got
- Why ownership shows up in your dividend
- State Farm, where the label needs care
- Questions people ask
Who owns a mutual insurer
The members do. State Farm's explainer puts it as an insurer that has members, not external shareholders, run for the benefit of its member policyholders, who often have governance rights set out in the policy contract[1]. Northwestern Mutual says the same about itself, that with a mutual company there are no shareholders[2].
Mutuals are a minority by count but not by size. Northwestern Mutual, citing the American Council of Life Insurers 2023 fact book, says a little more than 15 percent of US life insurers in 2022 were mutuals, 110 out of 727, and that they held $8 trillion of life insurance in force, more than half as much as the stock companies[2].
Who elects the governing body of a mutual insurance company
The policyholders. Northwestern Mutual's wording is that its policyholders elect a board, and the board directs the management of the company, including risk management, coverage and investment strategy[2]. In a stock insurer the shareholders vote, and Insurance & Estates describes policyholders there as customers, not owners[3].
That is the answer licensing exams look for. In practice, a policyholder's vote is one of many, so ownership works less like control and more like a claim. The claim is on surplus, which is where a participating dividend comes from.
Mutual vs stock vs mutual holding company, side by side
| Question | True mutual | Mutual holding company | Stock company |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who sits at the top | Policyholder members[1] | A mutual parent that owns the insurer's stock[3] | Shareholders[3] |
| Who elects the board | Policyholders[2] | Not stated in our sources | Shareholders[3] |
| Outside shareholders | None[2] | None, per Lafayette for its own case[4] | Yes |
| Sharing profits with policyholders | Through dividends on participating policies[3] | Not stated in our sources | No requirement to share with policy owners[3] |
| Examples | New York Life, Penn Mutual, MassMutual, Northwestern Mutual, Guardian[5] | National Life, OneAmerica, Ameritas, Lafayette Life, Mutual Trust[5] | MetLife, Prudential, John Hancock after demutualizing[5][3] |
Checked November 10, 2026. Plain descriptions from the sources named. The MHC rows describe the general structure, and the parent's charter governs each group.
A mutual holding company shows how two sources can both be right. Insurance & Estates calls Lafayette Life a stock insurance subsidiary of Western and Southern, a mutual holding company[3], and Lafayette says that because its parent is a mutual holding company it has no stockholders[4]. Both describe one structure. See the Lafayette Life page for that case.
- Ownership runs along the arrows
The list, true mutuals, holding companies and former mutuals
bankingtruths groups the companies that still sell participating whole life, with a year beside each[5]. The year means founding for the true mutuals. For the holding companies it is the year bankingtruths gives without saying what it marks, which we read as the year the structure began.
| Company | Group | Year shown | Source and notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York Life | True mutual | 1845 | bankingtruths[5] |
| Penn Mutual | True mutual | 1847 | bankingtruths[5] |
| MassMutual | True mutual | 1851 | bankingtruths[5] |
| Northwestern Mutual | True mutual | 1857 | bankingtruths[5] |
| Guardian Life | True mutual | 1860 | bankingtruths[5] |
| National Life Group | Holding company | 1999 | bankingtruths[5] |
| OneAmerica | Holding company | 2000 | bankingtruths[5] |
| Ameritas | Holding company | 2000 | bankingtruths[5] |
| Lafayette Life | Holding company | 2005 | bankingtruths[5]. One review calls it a mutual company |
| Mutual Trust Life | Holding company | 2015 | bankingtruths[5] |
| Equitable | Demutualized | 1992 | Insurance & Estates[3] |
| John Hancock | Demutualized | 1999 or 2000 | 1999 per bankingtruths[5], 2000 per Insurance & Estates[3]. Unresolved |
| MetLife | Demutualized | 2000 | Both sources[5][3] |
| Prudential | Demutualized | 2001 | Both sources[5][3] |
| Ohio National, now AuguStar | Demutualized | 2021 or 2022 | Plan announced March 2021[6], completed 2022[5][7], dated 2021 by Insurance & Estates[3] |
Checked November 10, 2026. Years as each source prints them. Where two sources differ, both are shown. Being on this list says nothing about a company's dividend, which is not guaranteed at any of them.
Demutualizations, what owners got
A mutual can turn itself into a stock company. Northwestern Mutual calls the process demutualization and says policyholders will typically receive shares of company stock for their ownership stake[2]. Insurance & Estates says MetLife and John Hancock policyholders received stock or cash[3]. Ohio National went the cash route. Its 2021 plan had Constellation fund cash payments or policy benefits totaling $500 million for eligible members[6], and bankingtruths lists it as demutualized in 2022 in exchange for cash payments[5].
- Dashed span, John Hancock dated 1999 by one source and 2000 by another
- Each dot is one event. Equitable 1992, MetLife 2000, Prudential 2001, Ohio National plan March 2021, completed 2022, AuguStar name 2023
The Ohio National story ends with a name change. Constellation announced in July 2023 that the two Ohio National issuers were expected to become AuguStar Life Insurance Company and AuguStar Life Assurance Corporation in the fourth quarter of 2023[8]. A policy issued as Ohio National now sits with a company that is no longer a mutual.
Why ownership shows up in your dividend
With no shareholders, a mutual's board can send its payout to participating policies. Northwestern Mutual's 2027 announcement shows the scale.
Example. How much of one mutual's 2027 payout goes to whole life
- Expected total payout for 2027
- $10.4 billion
- Going to whole life policyowners
- about $8.9 billion
- Whole life share, $8.9B divided by $10.4B
- about 85.6%
Northwestern Mutual release of October 27, 2026, which rounds the share to about 85% and says neither the existence nor the amount of a dividend is guaranteed in any year[9]. Our division of its rounded figures.
Ownership does not settle the size of any one year's dividend, and it is not a financial strength rating. The dividend rates each company declared are on the dividend ledger, and what to do with a dividend once paid is on dividend options.
State Farm, where the label needs care
State Farm is often called a mutual, and one review says so directly[10]. The company's own release says the group has 14 property and casualty companies and two life companies, each managed on an individual affiliate level, and its mutual explainer is written about State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company[11][1]. We found no source that states the ownership form of State Farm Life Insurance Company itself, so we do not label it. Its two life companies reported $924 million in dividends to policyholders for 2025[11].
Questions people ask
Who elects the governing body of a mutual insurance company?
Its policyholders. Northwestern Mutual says its policyholders elect a board, and the board directs management.
Is a mutual company better for whole life?
Ownership tells you who has a claim on surplus, not how good a policy or company is. Compare guaranteed values, the current dividend scale, loan terms and the company's financial strength.
What is a stock insurance company?
An insurer owned by shareholders, who elect its board. Insurance & Estates describes its policyholders as customers, not owners.
What happens to my policy if my mutual demutualizes?
Owners have typically been paid in stock or cash for their ownership claim, per Northwestern Mutual and Insurance & Estates. What happens to existing policies and their dividends is set by the company's plan, so read that document or ask the insurer.
Last updated November 11, 2026. Found an error? Tell us and it goes in the corrections log.
Sources (11)
- State Farm Simple Insights, what a mutual insurance company is, March 17, 2026. Opened November 10, 2026. statefarm.com/simple-insights
- Northwestern Mutual, What is a mutual insurance company, modified 2026-09-30. Opened November 10, 2026. northwesternmutual.com/life-and-money
- Insurance & Estates, Steve Gibbs, Mutual vs stock insurance companies, true mutuals and holding companies, updated March 3, 2026. Opened November 10, 2026. insuranceandestates.com
- Lafayette Life, About Lafayette Life, last updated 2/14/2025. Opened November 10, 2026. westernsouthern.com/lafayette
- bankingtruths, John Hutchinson, Mutual vs. stock vs. mutual holding insurance companies, updated September 2026. Opened November 10, 2026. bankingtruths.com
- InsuranceNewsNet staff, Ohio National to demutualize in response to challenging conditions, March 23, 2021. Opened November 10, 2026. insurancenewsnet.com
- The Insurance Pro Blog, Brandon Roberts, dividend rates of six mutual insurers over ten years, updated October 31, 2026. Opened November 10, 2026. theinsuranceproblog.com
- Constellation Insurance, Ohio National life business repositioned as AuguStar Life, Cincinnati, July 17, 2023. Opened November 10, 2026. constellationinsurance.com
- Northwestern Mutual newsroom, record expected dividend payout for 2027 announced, 2026-10-27. Opened November 10, 2026. news.northwesternmutual.com
- Insurance & Estates, State Farm whole life insurance review, updated February 27, 2026. Opened November 10, 2026. insuranceandestates.com/state-farm
- State Farm newsroom, 2025 financial results, Bloomington, 26 February 2026. Opened November 10, 2026. newsroom.statefarm.com
