Life insurance market share in India based on new business premium, FY 2025–26. Source: Detailed Report of New Business, IRDAI.GOV.IN.
Based on new business premium for FY 2025–26, LIC has the highest life insurance market share in India at 56.66%. SBI Life is second at 9.26% and HDFC Life third at 7.97%. ICICI Prudential Life (5.40%) and Bajaj Allianz Life (3.17%) follow. This ranks insurers by new premium won in one year. It is not a ranking of total premium, policyholders, claims performance, profitability or service quality.
What Is Life Insurance Market Share?
Market share is an insurer’s slice of a defined pool. Here the pool is new business premium for FY 2025–26, which is April 2025 to March 2026. The calculation is:
Market share (%) = Insurer’s new business premium ÷ Total new business premium in the market × 100
The choice of pool matters. Rank the same insurers on total premium, policy count or assets and the order can look quite different.
What Is New Business Premium in Life Insurance?
New business premium (NBP) is the premium from new policies written during a reporting period, following the source’s own methodology. It is a flow measure. It captures what an insurer sold this year, not the book it has built over many years. [Internal link opportunity: Life Insurance Premium Guide]
That makes it a popular way to track competition. A strong sales year shows up quickly. The flip side is that NBP says nothing about renewal premium on older policies, which sits in total premium instead. The comparison table later in this article shows how these measures differ.
Key Highlights From the FY 2025–26 Numbers
- LIC is bigger than the rest of the market combined. At 56.66%, it leaves about 43.34% for every other insurer. All of those are private insurers.
- LIC’s share is roughly six times SBI Life’s, the next largest (56.66% vs 9.26%).
- The top three hold 73.89% (LIC, SBI Life, HDFC Life). The top five hold 82.46%.
- The tail is long. Fourteen of the 25 insurers shown, including the six listed under “Others”, each have less than 1%. Together they account for about 4.49%.
These totals are simple sums of the published percentages. Rounding can move them by a hundredth of a point.
Top Life Insurance Companies in India by Market Share
| Rank | Life insurance company | Market share (NBP, FY 2025–26) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) | 56.66% |
| 2 | SBI Life | 9.26% |
| 3 | HDFC Life | 7.97% |
| 4 | ICICI Prudential Life | 5.40% |
| 5 | Bajaj Allianz Life | 3.17% |
| 6 | Axis Max Life | 3.15% |
| 7 | Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance | 2.74% |
| 8 | Tata AIA Life | 2.67% |
| 9 | Kotak Life | 2.22% |
| 10 | PNB MetLife | 1.17% |
LIC, SBI Life and HDFC Life: Market Share in FY 2025–26
LIC market share: 56.66%
LIC → 56.66% → New Business Premium → FY 2025–26 → IRDAI Detailed Report of New Business.
LIC ranks first, and no other insurer comes close. It is also the only public-sector insurer in the list. The figure shows its scale in winning new premium during the year. It does not show the mix behind that premium, such as individual versus group business, and the infographic does not break it down.
SBI Life market share: 9.26%
SBI Life is second overall and the largest private insurer in the ranking. It sits 1.29 percentage points ahead of HDFC Life and 3.86 points ahead of ICICI Prudential Life. Its share is roughly a sixth of LIC’s.
HDFC Life market share: 7.97%
HDFC Life is third, 1.29 points behind SBI Life and 2.57 points ahead of ICICI Prudential Life. SBI Life and HDFC Life together hold 17.23%, which is still less than a third of LIC’s share.
ICICI Prudential, Bajaj Allianz, Axis Max and the mid-sized insurers
ICICI Prudential Life is fourth at 5.40%, clear of the pack below it. The next five insurers are tightly bunched: Bajaj Allianz Life (3.17%), Axis Max Life (3.15%), Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance (2.74%), Tata AIA Life (2.67%) and Kotak Life (2.22%). All five fall within one percentage point of each other. PNB MetLife (1.17%) rounds out the top ten.
Complete Life Insurance Market Share Ranking for FY 2025–26
The table continues from the top 10 above.
| Rank | Company | Market share (NBP, FY 2025–26) |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | Star Union Dai-ichi Life | 1.11% |
| 12 | Canara HSBC Life | 0.84% |
| 13 | IndiaFirst Life | 0.76% |
| 14 | Shriram Life | 0.53% |
| 15 | Ageas Federal Life | 0.34% |
| 16 | Generali Central Life | 0.32% |
| 17 | IndusInd Nippon Life | 0.32% |
| 18 | Pramerica Life | 0.32% |
| 19 | Go Digit Life | 0.32% |
| 20 | Others (combined) | 0.74% |
Ranks 16 to 19 share the same 0.32%, so their order within that group carries no real meaning. “Others” is a combined bucket, not a single company. The infographic breaks it down as follows:
| Company in “Others” | Market share |
|---|---|
| Bharti AXA Life | 0.23% |
| Edelweiss Life | 0.14% |
| CreditAccess Life | 0.14% |
| Bandhan Life | 0.11% |
| Aviva Life | 0.08% |
| Acko Life | 0.04% |
| Total | 0.74% |
What Does the Life Insurance Market Share Data Tell Us?
A concentrated top and a fragmented bottom can exist in the same market. One insurer holds more than half the pool, while more than half of all insurers shown hold under 1% each.
Small gaps mean unstable ranks. Bajaj Allianz Life leads Axis Max Life by just 0.02 points. PNB MetLife leads Star Union Dai-ichi Life by 0.06. Four insurers are tied at 0.32%. A slightly different year could reorder any of these.
One year cannot show direction. This dataset shows where insurers stand, not whether they are gaining or losing ground. Shares are relative. An insurer can grow its premium and still lose share if the market grows faster. To spot trends, compare against earlier IRDAI reports. [Internal link opportunity: Insurance Market Analysis]
The numbers do not explain themselves. Distribution reach, product mix, pricing, regulation and consumer demand all influence new business, but the infographic does not attribute any insurer’s result to a particular cause. Treat any such explanation as an informed guess unless it comes with evidence.
Market Share vs New Business Premium vs Total Premium
These measures are often mixed up in headlines, and they are not interchangeable.
| Measure | What it tells you | Covered by this ranking? |
|---|---|---|
| New business premium | Premium from new policies written in the period | Yes, the basis of the ranking |
| Market share | An insurer’s percentage of the defined pool | Yes, derived from NBP |
| Total premium | Broader premium income, generally including renewals on older policies | No |
| Policy count | Number of policies | No |
| Number of policyholders | Number of people covered | No |
| Claims paid / claim settlement ratio | How claims were handled | No |
| Profitability | Earnings after costs and claims | No |
| Assets under management | Assets the insurer holds | No |
| Solvency | An insurer’s financial cushion against regulatory requirements | No |
| Customer satisfaction | Service experience | No |
An insurer can lead on new premium and rank lower on total premium, and the reverse. This article contains no information on total premium, so it draws no conclusion about it.
Does Higher Market Share Mean Better Life Insurance?
No. Market share tells you how much new premium an insurer won, not how it treats policyholders. A large share can reflect wide distribution, strong brand recall or a particular product mix. It cannot tell you whether the insurer pays claims quickly, is financially stronger, or offers a better policy.
The reverse holds too. A small share is not a warning sign. It may mean a younger company, a narrower product range or a selective distribution strategy. Rank alone cannot tell you which.
How to Compare Life Insurance Companies Beyond Market Share
Once you have a shortlist, look at the things this ranking cannot show:
- Claim settlement record. Check recent multi-year figures from insurers and IRDAI, and look at how many claims were settled and how many were rejected. [Internal link opportunity: Claim Settlement Ratio Explained]
- Solvency. The latest reported solvency ratio indicates the insurer’s cushion against long-term obligations.
- Product type and fit. Term, endowment, ULIP and whole-life plans serve different goals. Choose the type before you choose the brand. [Internal link opportunity: Term Insurance Guide]
- Cost against cover. Compare premium, sum assured, policy term and premium-paying term. Separate guaranteed benefits from non-guaranteed ones.
- Riders. Critical illness, accidental death and waiver-of-premium riders add cost, so add only what you need. [Internal link opportunity: Life Insurance Riders]
- Exclusions and waiting periods. These decide what a claim will and will not cover. Read them before you buy.
- Persistency and servicing. Persistency shows how many policies stay in force after the first year. Servicing covers how easy it is to file a claim, pay premiums and get support.
Conclusion
The FY 2025–26 picture is one dominant insurer, a private tier led by SBI Life and HDFC Life, and a long tail of smaller companies sharing under 5%. The ranking is a useful map of who is winning new premium. It is a single-year snapshot and says nothing about claims, financial strength or fit.
If you are choosing a policy, start with what you need to cover and for how long, then compare claim records, solvency, features and exclusions. [Internal link opportunity: Term Insurance Guide] For a sense of how another segment compares, see our analysis of health insurance. [Internal link opportunity: Health Insurance Market Share]
Frequently Asked Questions
Which life insurance company has the highest market share in India?
LIC, at 56.66% of new business premium in FY 2025–26, according to the Algates Insurance infographic citing IRDAI’s Detailed Report of New Business.
What is LIC’s market share in FY 2025–26?
LIC’s reported share is 56.66%, measured by new business premium. That is more than all other insurers combined.
What is SBI Life’s market share?
SBI Life’s reported share is 9.26%, the second highest overall and the highest among private insurers.
What is HDFC Life’s market share?
HDFC Life’s reported share is 7.97%, ranking third.
Which are the top 10 life insurance companies in India by market share?
In order: LIC (56.66%), SBI Life (9.26%), HDFC Life (7.97%), ICICI Prudential Life (5.40%), Bajaj Allianz Life (3.17%), Axis Max Life (3.15%), Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance (2.74%), Tata AIA Life (2.67%), Kotak Life (2.22%) and PNB MetLife (1.17%).
What is the combined market share of private life insurers?
About 43.34%. LIC is the only public-sector insurer in the ranking, so the private total is the remainder after LIC’s 56.66%. This is arithmetic on the published percentages.
What is new business premium in life insurance?
It is the premium from new policies written during a reporting period, following the source’s methodology. It excludes renewal premium on older policies.
How is life insurance market share calculated?
Divide an insurer’s new business premium by the total new business premium in the market and multiply by 100. The infographic does not specify the exact denominator it uses.
What is the difference between new business premium and total premium?
New business premium covers premium from newly written policies. Total premium is a broader measure that generally also includes renewals. Market share based on one can differ from market share based on the other.
Does higher market share mean a better life insurance company?
No. It shows how much new premium an insurer won, not its claim settlement, service, profitability or financial strength. Check those separately before choosing.
