UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna Insurance: Which Is Better?

UnitedHealthcare and Cigna are both formidable health insurance companies in the industry, each offering a wide range of plan types and network coverage. Both have large provider networks, though UnitedHealthcare’s network is larger than Cigna’s. Additionally, UnitedHealthcare offers health insurance in more states than Cigna, which is why UnitedHealthcare takes the lead in this comparison.

Read our UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna comparison to see which company is best for your health insurance needs.

Key Takeaways UnitedHealthcare and Cigna both provide a diverse array of health plan options. UnitedHealthcare has a larger network than Cigna, with 1.7 million providers. UnitedHealthcare has slightly better customer reviews than Cigna across several online platforms. A 2023 J.D. Power study found that UnitedHealthcare was the best-rated health insurance company in three regions, while Cigna was the best-rated insurer in only one region.

History of UnitedHealthcare

Richard Burke founded UnitedHealthCare’s parent company, UnitedHealth Group, in 1977 while he was still a health analyst at InterStudy. There, he worked alongside Dr. Paul Ellwood, who pioneered the health maintenance organization (HMO) as a means to lower healthcare costs by changing how medical providers were paid.^[1]

Click to read our full UnitedHealthcare review.

History of Cigna

Cigna, as it exists today, was born in 1982 out of the merger of two longstanding health insurance providers: the Insurance Company of North America (INA), which was formed in 1792, and the Connecticut General Life Insurance Company, which was formed in 1865.^[2]

Cigna and its predecessors have played a prominent role in many aspects of American history. For example, INA paid out claims to help rebuild large parts of Chicago and San Francisco after natural disasters impacted them in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Today, Cigna’s reach extends beyond the United States to numerous countries around the world.^[2]

Click to read our full Cigna review.

UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna: A Quick Glance

Comparison	UnitedHealthcare	Cigna
Plan Types	CDHP, EPO, FSA, HDHP, HMO, HMO-POS, HSA, Indemnity, Medicaid, Medicare, POS and PPO	CDHP, EPO, FSA, HDHP, HMO, HMO-POS, HSA, Indemnity, Medicaid, Medicare, POS and PPO
Availability	50 states (insurance types vary by location)	Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia (dental coverage available in all states except Massachusetts)
Coverage Limit	Varies	Varies
Deductible	Varies	Varies
Maximum Annual Benefit	Varies	Varies
Waiting Period	Varies	Varies
Providers In-Network	1.7 million physicians and care professionals and over 7,000 hospitals and care facilities	1.5 million
Covers Telehealth	Yes	Yes
Policy Management	Mobile app, online account, phone	Mobile app, online account, phone

UnitedHealthcare Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Offers health coverage in every state	Poor online reviews
Greater network of providers compared to Cigna
Higher than average customer satisfaction rating in Pennsylvania

Cigna Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Network of 1.5 million providers	Limited availability of medical plans
Adhered to government-mandated medical loss ration standards in 2024	Poor online reviews
Higher than average customer satisfaction in the Southwest and Texas regions

UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna: Plan Structures

UnitedHealthcare and Cigna both provide a diverse array of health insurance plan options, such as HMO, PPO and POS plans, as well as specialized options like CDHP, EPO and HDHP. Additional offerings include FSA, HMO-POS, HSA, indemnity, Medicaid and Medicare. Each company caters to both individual and family needs, offering group health insurance plans through employers, as well as vision and dental insurance.

Plan	UnitedHealthcare	Cigna
Individual and family	✓	✓
Medicare	✓	✓
Medicaid	✓	✓
Dental	✓	✓
Vision	✓	✓
Small business	✓	✓
Self-employed	✓	✓
Short-term	✓	✓
Student	✓	✓
Supplemental (accident, critical illness, hospital indemnity and international travel)	✓	✓

UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna: Plan Availability

UnitedHealthcare beats Cigna with nationwide availability in every state, plus the District of Columbia and the Virgin Islands.^[3] However, individual and family plans vary in availability depending on location. Cigna, on the other hand, only offers medical plans in the following 11 states:^[4]

• Arizona
• Colorado
• Florida
• Georgia
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Mississippi
• North Carolina
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Virginia

Even if you live in one of these 11 states, Cigna health insurance is not necessarily available in your county. Nevertheless, Cigna does notably offer dental insurance in all states except Massachusetts.^[4]

UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna: In-Network Providers

UnitedHealthcare wins this round, boasting an impressive network of 1.7 million providers, as well as 7,000 hospitals and care facilities.^[5] Cigna’s network remains considerable, comprising 1.5 million providers.^[6] You can locate a provider through Cigna by clicking here or through UnitedHealthcare by clicking here.

UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna: Cost

Rates for health insurance are personalized and vary based on factors like age and lifestyle. Both companies use standard tiers (bronze to platinum) to determine costs, where the bronze tiers have the highest out-of-pocket costs but the lowest premiums and the platinum tiers have the reverse.

UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna: Policy Management

Members of UnitedHealthcare and Cigna can manage their insurance policies via mobile app, web-based interface or through direct communication with customer service agents. The digital platforms simplify health insurance plan management by enabling you to:

• Assess various expenses
• Evaluate medication costs
• Locate medical professionals
• Settle invoices
• Monitor expenditures
• Check the status of claims

When comparing the two companies’ apps, they each score well on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. Both companies receive scores above four out of five on both storefronts, meaning your experience will likely be similar on both apps. However, UnitedHealthcare does come out ahead with a slightly higher average score:

Company	Google Play Store	Apple App Store
Cigna	4.2/5 stars[7]	4.8/5 stars[8]
UnitedHealthcare	4.6/5 stars[9]	4.7/5 stars[10]

UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna: Coverage Limits

Health insurance companies like UnitedHealthcare and Cigna are prohibited from imposing monetary caps on what are deemed essential medical services when you’re a policyholder. They must cover at least some of the cost of these benefits.^[11] These essential services encompass:^[12]

• Ambulatory patient services
• Emergency services
• Hospitalization
• Pregnancy, maternity and newborn care
• Mental health and substance use disorder services
• Prescription drugs
• Rehabilitative and habilitative services and devices
• Laboratory services
• Preventive and wellness services and chronic disease management
• Pediatric services

UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna: Medical Loss Ratio

The Medical Loss Ratio (MLR) represents the percentage of premium income that a health insurance company allocates toward patient care and enhancing service quality. Regulations mandate that insurers must allocate a minimum of 80% of individual health insurance plan premiums or 85% of group plan premiums toward health care services. If these thresholds are unmet, the remaining amount is returned to the insured parties as a rebate.^[13]

Cigna reported an MLR of 83.2% in 2024, placing them above the regulated minimum.^[14] Meanwhile, UnitedHealthcare reported an MLR of 85.5% in 2024, placing them slightly above Cigna for the year.^[15]

UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna: Enrollment Process

The annual enrollment window kicks off on November 1 each year, offering the opportunity to select health insurance plans from UnitedHealthcare and Cigna via the health insurance exchange.^[16] Employer-sponsored options may also be available through these health insurance companies. Enrollment outside of this designated period is permissible if you experience a life-changing event, such as:

• Acquiring U.S. citizenship
• Job transition
• Marital status changes (marriage or divorce)
• Childbirth or adoption
• Income dropping below the federal poverty threshold
• Loss of existing health coverage (due to a partner’s job loss or death)
• Relocating residences

UnitedHealthcare and Cigna provide Medicare Advantage plans, with their enrollment period running from January 1 to March 31 annually.^[17] They also offer Medigap and Part D options, which require you to have Original Medicare (Parts A and B) first.

The sign-up window for Original Medicare spans from October 15 to December 7 each year.^[17] Initial enrollment in Original Medicare is possible outside these dates if you’re becoming a first-time member.

UnitedHealthcare vs. Cigna: Policyholder Experience

Below is a table showing ratings based on customer reviews and company reviews from several online sources for both UnitedHealthcare and Cigna.

Company	UnitedHealthcare	Cigna
ConsumerAffairs	1.2/5 stars[18]	1.2/5 stars[19]
Best Company	3/5 stars[20]	2.5/5 stars[21]
BBB	No rating	1.04/5 stars[22]

Public opinion is not particularly strong for either carrier, although UnitedHealthcare holds a slight edge over Cigna. Additionally, a 2025 study by J.D. Power on commercial member health plans found that Cigna outperforms UnitedHealthcare in 13 out of 20 regions where both were ranked. Notably, UnitedHealthcare only ranked above the regional average in Pennsylvania, while Cigna only ranked above the average in the Southwest and Texas regions.^[23]

How To File Claims With UnitedHealthcare and Cigna

If you visit an in-network doctor or health care center, they’ll handle the insurance claim filing process for you. For out-of-network services, you’ll be responsible for submitting the claim form yourself. Both UnitedHealthcare and Cigna offer specific forms for this purpose, which must be sent to the designated address. Additionally, you can monitor the progress of your claim via the web interface or mobile application provided by your health insurance company.