Aetna Health Insurance review

Aetna combines wide coverage with competitive quotes for a good health insurance offering.

Aetna review
(Image: © Aetna)

Top Ten Reviews Verdict

Aetna is a very well established healthcare insurance provider that has enviable financial resources, which means its policies are very affordable when compared to its peers.

Pros

  • +

    Competitive quotes

  • +

    Automatic claims tools

  • +

    Available in all 50 states

Cons

  • -

    Few short-term coverage options

Why you can trust Top Ten Reviews Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

Aetna is a well-recognized brand of health insurance with panoramic reach across the United States. Its insurance products are much the same as many offered by its competitors, with HMO and PPO options, plus dental insurance, Medicaid plans and pharmacy and disability insurance. Having been in business for over 150 years, it’s probably no surprise that its products are backed by an impressive financial rating. 

Aetna reports that it has over 18 million customers across all 50 states. Its network includes over one million healthcare providers of all stripes. The company has an equally impressive range of plans on offer, with individual, family, employer and Medicare insurance plans, plus a range of Health Savings Plans where customers can enjoy tax-free savings to put toward medical expenses. Aetna’s financial robustness has led Top Ten Reviews to award it the best value in our guide to the best health insurance companies. It ranks among companies such as Blue Cross Blue Shield and Humana.

Aetna's central website has a wealth of resources even for potential customers, and quotes are quickly dispatched to match customers with the best healthcare insurance for their region or state. Customers get access to award-winning public education programs. 

Aetna Health Insurance review : How much does it cost?

  • Policies quoted were lower than average
  • Website returned an impressive range of options
  • Clear what customers could expect for their monthly premiums
Aetna sample quotes

Sample quote for family: A man and a woman aged 35 with two kids aged 3 and 7: $1,076/month

Sample quote for a married couple: Aged 45-50, no pre-existing conditions: $685/month

Sample quote for an individual man or woman: Aged 45-50, no pre-existing conditions: $410/month

Quotes for health insurance policies vary dramatically depending on requirements and geographic locations, but overall, quotes for Aetna were below average for the industry and offered excellent value for money. Your results may vary, of course, based on your individual needs, but Aetna is certainly worth considering for this reason alone.

Aetna’s website returned an impressive range of options, each carefully and precisely described and it was clear what customers could expect for their monthly premiums. The overriding impression, though, is that Aetna provides excellent value polices.

Aetna Health Insurance review: Products

  • Individual, Family and Employer Health Insurance
  • Dental Insurance
  • Medicare Advantage Plans

Aetna insurance plans are accepted in all 50 states and its healthcare networks of professionals and institutions numbers well over one million – this, plus 13 million dental insurance plans and 8 million pharmacy plans add up to a reassuringly wide coverage situation. 

The size of this network reaps benefits for the customers, who can take advantage of the economies of scale that are a direct result, plus the century and a half of being in the market, establishing operational relationships and passing all of these benefits onto their customer base. 

Aetna’s website provides extensive resources for customers on par with any of its competitors. These resources include health-focused education programs aimed at helping the consumer make a more informed health-insurance purchase. 

From this same website, as well as being able to shop for plans, customers can find doctors, dentists or vision providers and manage any existing plans they have. This plan management includes such features as comparing costs for doctors visits and medical procedures, checking deductible levels and real-time access to care history and health information.  

Aetna’s intuitive mobile application also offers access to account information, personal health records, benefits and more. In addition, customers have the benefit of being able to talk to a nurse for medical advice 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Aetna review

(Image credit: Aetna)

Aetna Health Insurance review: Extensive network

  • Coverage across all 50 states
  • Should have nearby facilities
  • Offers health saving plans

Aetna provides coverage across all 50 states. Even if customers travel across the country or have family members on their plan that live in different states, (for example college students), the Aetna network should have nearby facilities or medical professionals. 

Aetna also offers a health saving plan that, simply put, is a program offered to Aetna customers that gives them the ability to put money away into an HSA to help meet insurance deductibles or other healthcare-related costs. 

Aetna’s system means that when customers use healthcare providers that fall inside the Aetna network, they do not have to fill out or file claim forms – everything is taken care of automatically.

Aetna Health Insurance review: Usability and user reviews

  • Plenty of reassuring independent ratings
  • 88% of existing policy holders plan to renew with Aetna
  • A+ rating with Better Business Bureau

The expansive reach of Aetna’s network means that user experiences are likely to differ considerably region to region and with individual practitioners and institutions, but there are plenty of reassuring independent ratings that make Aetna a worthwhile choice. In the first instance, Aetna’s long history and wealth of experience in the markets has resulted in a very strong financial standing, meaning that customer claims and financial obligations are easily taken care of. 

A recent survey by Insure.com stated that 88% of current Aetna policy holders plan to renew their health insurance coverage and current Aetna customers gave high satisfaction ratings. Aetna was recognized by J.D. Power and Associates as having “An Outstanding Customer Service Experience” for four straight years. This mainly related to Aetna’s concierge customer service call center. Aetna has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau

The Aetna website is very easy to use, with intuitive, straightforward processes for potential customers to receive quotes, as well as for existing customers to access their health records and upcoming appointments, as well as finding healthcare professionals in their region. 

Should I choose Aetna Health Insurance?

Aetna’s unrivaled history as a health-insurance provider puts it in good stead both in goodwill toward the brand name and in terms of financial robustness. Both of these factors mean that the polices offered to customers rate especially well in terms of value for money. 

The quotes received from Aetna regularly came in at a much better price than its main competitors, and its savings plans are also a real boon for people looking to manage their healthcare expenses more effectively. There isn’t too much in the way of downsides, one small caveat being that Aetna has fewer short-term healthcare policy options than some of the other big insurance companies. 

As well as our guide to the best health insurance companies, we also look at how to choose a health insurance plan. You might also want to look at something more specific when it comes to health cover, in which case you'll find our guides to the best dental insurance and best vision insurance useful. Looking further ahead and we rate the best life insurance options and best Medicare Part D plans

Paul Oswell

Paul Oswell is a US-based freelance writer for the Guardian, Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Times and more. While working for Top Ten Reviews, Paul has written about a broad range of subjects, but many of these concern money and tax. You'll find his bylines on articles from tax software to payday loans to create your own Will software.