Best private health insurance UK 2026 (our expert, impartial reviews)

Bupa was ranked first with five stars in our 2025 reviews and has retained that position for 2026, despite us expanding our methodology to cover more measures. Over the past 12 months, Bupa has introduced free face-to-face private GP appointments⁴, following earlier upgrades like the dental allowance¹ and NCD improvements³. From January 2026, Bupa Direct Access can be used via webchat and through your My Bupa account⁵, as well as over the phone.

Bupa currently has a Trustpilot score of 4.5/5 from 40,262 reviews (checked 16th February 2026), which means it is rated Excellent for customer service. Of the 10,486 reviews in the past 12 months, 82% awarded four or five stars.

More: Read our in-depth Bupa health insurance review.

Bupa's health insurance should appeal to a wide range of different households, which helped it to top our assessment of Eligibility & Underwriting (89.9%). It also ranked first for Short/Long-Term Affordability (93.1%) and joint first for Treatment Pathways (96.4%) and Outpatient & Extra Benefits (90.9%). Strong review volumes and customer service ratings also suggest the policy performs well not just on paper, but in real-life situations too.

That said, Bupa won't be the right fit for everyone. Its main trade-off is the combined outpatient allowance², which offers less flexibility than some leading providers¹⁰ that use separate pots for consultations, diagnostics, therapies, and mental health. This means the cost of one type of treatment could quickly eat into the limit for another. And while Bupa's no claims discount rules are among the fairest we assessed, they don't quite match The Exeter's market-leading NCD structure, where you need to claim over £2,000¹¹ to drop three levels, compared to just over £1,200³ with Bupa for the same change.

WPA held its second-place ranking and five-star rating for the second consecutive year. Recent changes have made its health insurance even more compelling for the right customers. The headline improvement is the expansion of its Fast Track pathways, which now cover physiotherapy, skin lesions (via Skin Analytics), and cancer¹, all accessible without a GP referral. That's a major step forward for treatment access and closes what was previously a gap with Bupa. WPA also added an extra level at the top of its NCD ladder², benefiting long-standing members who haven't claimed and lessening the impact of premium increases.

WPA has the highest Trustpilot rating of the ten health insurance companies we assessed: 4.7/5 from approximately 5,000 reviews (checked 16th February 2026), and is rated Excellent. These reviews primarily cover health insurance and many are post-claim, not post-sale. The review volume is lower than that of larger insurers, but the rating itself is the strongest in our analysis.

More: Read our in-depth WPA health insurance review.

WPA finished first in two of the six categories we assessed: Hospital & Cancer Treatment (91.9%) and Customer Reviews & Clarity (90.2%), and joint first in Outpatient & Extra Benefits (90.9%) and Treatment Pathways (96.4%). In our other two categories, it finished no lower than fifth, making it a strong health insurance policy with the service to match. If excellent customer service is a priority for you, then WPA is particularly hard to beat.

One notable difference between WPA and eight of the other insurers we reviewed is that it doesn't offer a guided consultant option¹. That can cut both ways. On one hand, WPA's standard hospital list covers over 1,000 hospitals and clinics with the freedom to see most consultants up to its Fee Agreed limits¹. On the other hand, when you need a specialist, you'll do more of the legwork yourself, though WPA's new Healthcare Finder, powered by Doctify, is designed to make your choice easier.

The Exeter retained its third-place ranking and five-star rating for 2026, despite a significantly expanded assessment. The headline change is the enhanced NHS cash benefit from January 2026. Inpatient payments rose from £150 to £250 per night, a new £150 per day day-patient benefit was added, excess deductions from the payout were removed, and an overall £10,000 annual cap now applies¹. The HealthWise app was also upgraded with a redesigned interface, a new 'My Family' login for family members, and doubled appointment allowances for nutrition and lifestyle services from six combined to six each⁵.

The Exeter performs fairly well for customer service with a Trustpilot score of 4.1 out of 5 from 1,292 reviews (checked 16th February 2026)⁶. While it's not as high as the top-rated insurers and is based on fewer reviews, it's a solid score. Keep in mind that The Exeter's Trustpilot rating also includes feedback from its life and income protection customers, not just its private health insurance members.

More: Read our in-depth The Exeter health insurance review.

The Exeter finished in the top three in four of our six categories, including second for Eligibility & Underwriting (89.0%) and Short/Long-Term Affordability (89.8%), and third for both Hospital & Cancer Treatment (90.3%) and Outpatient & Extra Benefits (90.2%). The two categories where it didn't achieve quite as high ratings were Treatment Pathways (74.5%) and Customer Reviews & Clarity (75.9%), due to limited face-to-face self-referral options and lower review volumes respectively.

The Treatment Pathways gap is worth understanding. The Exeter requires a GP referral for all claims¹, with no direct access or self-referral routes for cancer, musculoskeletal or mental health concerns. Bupa and WPA both scored 96.4% in this category, largely because they let you bypass the GP for specific conditions. That said, The Exeter partially closes this gap through its HealthWise app, which offers consultations with physiotherapists, mental health professionals, dietitians, and lifestyle coaches⁵.

Vitality held its fourth-place ranking in our ratings from 2025, but dropped from five stars to 4.5 for 2026, a result of changes to our scoring methodology rather than any decline in the product itself. Vitality Personal Healthcare is the highest-rated 4.5-star health insurance product, sitting more than two percentage points clear of Aviva in fifth.

For 2026, mental health inpatient cover has moved from a per-year to a per-episode limit, with the benefit fully restoring after 56 days without treatment⁵. All members can also access new digital support through the Alvie cancer coaching app and the Wysa mental health app⁵.

Vitality has a Trustpilot score of 4.5/5 from 61,544 reviews (checked 16th February 2026)⁶, rated Excellent. In the past 12 months alone, 12,115 reviews were submitted⁶ - the second-highest volume of any insurer we assessed. While these reviews cover more products than just its health insurance, they reflect broad satisfaction across its membership.

More: Read our in-depth Vitality health insurance review.

Vitality finished in the top four in three of our six categories: Customer Reviews & Clarity (87.5%, #2=), Outpatient & Extra Benefits (89.2%, #4), and Treatment Pathways (92.7%, #3=). Its outpatient options scored second-highest in the market, behind only WPA, and its Trustpilot review volume is among the strongest.

The categories Vitality didn't score quite as highly in were Eligibility & Underwriting (78.4%, #6) and Short/Long-Term Affordability (78.8%, #5), both reflecting the ABC pricing model's impact on families and a lower maximum discount compared to traditional NCDs¹.

The biggest difference between Vitality and the three insurers ranked above it is how premiums are managed long-term. Bupa, WPA and The Exeter all offer traditional no claims discounts of up to 70% to 75%, with individual protection per person on the policy. Vitality's ABC model caps its discount at 7.5% and shares claims thresholds across the policy¹, making it weaker for families but a genuinely distinctive option for active individuals and couples who engage with the Vitality Programme³. If wellness rewards and self-referred therapy access matter more to you than long-term NCD protection, Vitality is worth serious consideration.

Aviva climbed from eighth to fifth in our 2026 reviews, with its star rating rising from four stars to 4.5. That jump is largely driven by changes to our methodology: a broader assessment framework that now captures Aviva's strengths in affordability tools, family features and accessibility more fully than before.

On the product side, the biggest change for 2026 comes to its MyHealthCounts programme, where adults can earn up to a 15% discount by tracking their activity and completing health assessments throughout the year¹². Aviva has added four new assessments to the programme, which it says will help members better understand additional risks, but it also raises the bar for earning the full discount.

Aviva has a Trustpilot score of 4.3/5 from 56,268 reviews (checked 16th February 2026)⁷. However, these reviews cover Aviva's entire range of products and services, not just health insurance. From our assessment, we could only confirm that 109 of its reviews in the past 12 months relate to health insurance, which is too few to draw meaningful conclusions.

More: Read our in-depth Aviva health insurance review.

Aviva's strongest categories are: Eligibility & Underwriting (87.9%, #4) and Short/Long-Term Affordability (85.2%, #4), where its premium reduction tools¹, no joining age limit¹⁶ and family features¹² put it ahead of six other leading insurers. It sits mid-table in our Hospital & Cancer Treatment (85.0%) category, with solid cancer cover and no financial limits on MRI, CT and PET scans.

Aviva scores less well on the relative ease of getting treatment, with the second-lowest score in our Treatment Pathways category. Bupa, Vitality and WPA scored considerably better, thanks to direct access pathways and self-referral options that reduce the need to see a GP first². Despite being the UK's fourth-largest health insurer, Aviva also has a disappointingly low volume of member reviews for that product, making it hard for people to know what to expect.

The most significant change to mention is the introduction of the plan itself. The previous policy, Personal Health, is an established and well-known product, and the AXA Health Plan, somewhat starts from scratch. It scraps core cover and uses building blocks instead, changes the rules around underwriting, and tries to give people flexibility and simplicity at the same time.

AXA Health holds a Trustpilot score of 4.1/5 from 18,553 reviews (checked 16th February 2026)³, which is deemed "Great." Reassuringly, all of the reviews relate to the service customers have received on its private health insurance products, of which almost 5,000 have been left over the last 12 months⁴.

More: Read our in-depth AXA health insurance review.

AXA Health achieved a mixed set of scores in our assessment of the areas that matter most to health insurance customers. It fared well for Customer Reviews & Clarity (81.0%) and Treatment Pathways (89.1%), the latter due to its direct access bone, muscle and joint service¹, alongside its multiple digital healthlines¹. Where it fared less well in our review was Eligibility & Underwriting (62.9%), due to its upper age limit¹, lack of family discounts, and the exclusions affecting cancer and mental health survivors¹².

The AXA Health Plan is one of only two products we reviewed that you will find it difficult or impossible to purchase via a broker, with the other being Saga. While some will be content with going direct, the benefit of speaking with a broker is that you get a broad market comparison, and advice, which insurers themselves cannot provide.

Freedom dropped from sixth to seventh in our 2026 reviews, with its overall score moving from 84% to 77.1%, though its 4.5-star rating is unchanged. That change is largely driven by our expanded methodology, which now covers 18 detailed measures across six weighted categories. Freedom's weaker scores in newly measured areas, such as Remote & Digital Healthcare and Proactive Health Checks, contributed to the drop, rather than any deterioration in the product itself.

The most notable product change in the past 12 months was Freedom's move from community-rated pricing to an individual "performance" model in March 2025¹. Under the previous structure, premiums were pooled across the membership, sharing risk. The new model is based more on an individual policy's performance, which could lead to above-average price rises, and children's claims activity may now impact an adult's premium.

Freedom also now offers direct access for skin lesion assessment via Skin Analytics, giving members a route to skin cancer screening without needing a GP referral first.

Freedom has the lowest volume of customer reviews of any provider in our 2026 assessment. On Trustpilot it holds a 3.9 out of 5 rating and has collected just 47 reviews in the past 12 months. On Feefo, where it has a 4.5 out of 5 rating, it has only collected two reviews in the last year. As these numbers are so low, it's difficult to understand how its customers feel about the product and service.

More: Read our in-depth Freedom health insurance review.

Freedom stands up well on core product benefits, including Inpatient and Day Patient Surgery (87.4%) and Cancer Cover (87.2%, ranked fourth)¹⁷. Its Cash Benefits also performed well with a 94.3% rating¹, alongside its inpatient mental health cover¹ and approach to full medical underwriting³.

Freedom dropped points partly due to the unknown level of customer satisfaction, alongside a fairly limited range of remote and digital healthcare options¹. For most treatment types you'll also need a GP referral¹⁶, so the product doesn't offer the same level of self-referred benefits as some of the top-rated health insurance providers. Finally, the lack of transparency about its renewal pricing model¹ held it back in our affordability category.

Saga has climbed from ninth place last year to eighth in our 2026 rankings with an overall score of 74.5%, which gives it a four-star rating. Saga's higher position is due to our expanded assessment looking at policies in greater detail, rather than any product changes — its plans haven't changed since our last review.

Saga has a Trustpilot rating of 4.0 out of 5, based on 42,809 reviews (as of 16th February 2026), lower than that of many other health insurers. There are plenty of recent reviews, but many relate to its broader range of products rather than health insurance, making feedback harder to interpret. Its fairly recent change of underwriter may also mean past reviews don't reflect the current claims experience.

More: Read our in-depth Saga health insurance review.

Saga ranked joint third in our Treatment Pathways category (92.7%), reflecting its mental health, cancer and musculoskeletal direct access. It also placed fourth in our Hospital & Cancer Treatment assessment (87.2%), meaning its core benefits perform well in some of the most important cover areas. Its remote and digital healthcare is among the best we've seen, and it scored top marks for its NHS usage benefits¹.

Saga's lowest positions were ninth for Eligibility & Underwriting (68.1%) due to its restrictive minimum age (shutting out anyone under 50¹) and lack of family friendliness¹. It also placed ninth for Outpatient & Extra Benefits (76.3%), where its outpatient benefit structure varies according to the plan¹².

National Friendly has retained its four-star myTribe rating for 2026, but, owing to our expanded rating methodology, has moved up from tenth to ninth.

The most significant change to MyPMI plans over the past 12 months was the addition of the Friendly Dentist benefit¹². Launched in August 2025, it gives all plan members unlimited access to a 24/7 chat service with qualified dentists¹².

National Friendly also launched a new health insurance policy called Friendly Health in 2025; however, as it primarily covers outpatient diagnosis and treatment, it's not comparable to MyPMI or the other products in this review.

National Friendly has a low review count on Trustpilot, a total of 318 (checked 16th February 2026), with a rating of 4.1 out of 5. In the past 12 months, it has collected just 109 reviews, and we were only sure that six of them relate to its health insurance. As such, it's hard to know how satisfied its members are with its product.

National Friendly performed strongly in our Eligibility & Underwriting (88.1%) assessment, ranking third overall in that category. This was driven by a joint-first score for Underwriting Options (91.8%) with The Exeter, due to its flexible approach to full medical underwriting and uniform five-year lookback³⁴. Its remote and digital healthcare offering also impressed, scoring 96% and ranking joint third¹².

Where National Friendly lost ground was Additional Policy Benefits, ranking last (68.9%). Its Cash Benefits scored just 54.3%, the lowest of all ten insurers, because members must choose between the NHS overnight stay benefit and the fixed cash allowance¹². Mental Health Cover was also the weakest in the market at 62.5%, largely due to inpatient mental health being excluded entirely¹ and outpatient sessions capped at ten per year¹.

General & Medical has slipped down our rankings for 2026, having been ranked seventh in 2025. It has earned a four-star rating, but despite us reviewing its top level plan, our more comprehensive methodology this year has exposed some significant weaknesses in comparison to the other insurers.

The biggest change in the past year is that General & Medical has partnered with Scan.com to triage members before diagnostic tests begin, removing the need to provide GP medical notes upfront. You still need a written GP referral to start a claim, but after that Scan.com triages you before any diagnostic tests take place. It's an interesting concept and only time and member feedback will show whether this is a benefit or barrier to treatment.

General & Medical has only 348 reviews on Trustpilot and an overall customer score of 3.7 out of five, the lowest of any health insurer we've assessed. Only 81 of those have been provided in the past 12 months, so it's very difficult to see how its overall membership feels about its service.

General & Medical's best category in our assessment was its Outpatient and Extra benefits (87.2%), where it placed fifth. It also ranked reasonably well for Eligibility & Underwriting (75.6%). However, for the remaining four categories it was in the bottom two.