AM Best

What AM Best does

AM Best, founded in 1899 and headquartered in Oldwick, New Jersey, is a privately held global credit rating agency, news publisher, and data analytics company specializing exclusively in the insurance industry. The company operates as the world's first and largest insurance-focused rating agency, assessing the creditworthiness of and reporting on over 16,000 insurance companies across more than 100 countries. Its core rating product, Best's Credit Ratings, provides independent forward-looking opinions on insurer balance sheet strength, operating performance, business profile, and enterprise risk management using proprietary methodologies including the Best's Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR) Model and the Best's Credit Ratings Methodology (BCRM). The company also issues Performance Assessments for Delegated Underwriting Authority Enterprises (DUAEs) covering MGAs, MGUs, Coverholders, and Program Administrators.

AM Best's platform architecture centers on BestLink as the primary online data hub, supplemented by BestESP (electronic statement preparation for NAIC/OSFI regulatory filings), dedicated APIs (Credit Ratings, Schedule P Loss Reserves, State/Line), and Best's Financial Suite available in US, Global, Solvency II, and Canada editions. Supplementary products include a substantial news and research franchise (Best's Review magazine, Best's News, BestDay, BestWire, market segment outlooks, special reports) and sub-brands such as BestMark, Best's Preliminary Credit Assessment, and Best's Insurance-Linked Securities & Structures Methodology. Operational infrastructure spans seven offices (Oldwick, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, London, Mexico City, Singapore) and wholly-owned regulated subsidiaries in the EU, UK, Singapore, and DIFC.

The revenue model is a diversified B2B enterprise model combining issuer-paid rating fees, subscription data products (BestLink, Best's Financial Suite), regulatory services (Best's Regulatory Center), API licensing, redistribution and media licensing (Media Program), and advertising. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. Customer segments span insurers (life, P&C, health, reinsurance, captives, specialty), agents and brokers, insurance regulators, investors and asset managers, DUAEs, and insurance-focused media. Distribution mixes direct enterprise sales, channel partners, regulatory relationships, and a global website with mobile apps and active social media presence.

Name

AM Best

Legal name

A.M. Best Company, Inc.

Website

https://web.ambest.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1899

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

AM Best is the world's first and largest credit rating agency specializing exclusively in the insurance industry, assessing 16,000+ insurers across 100+ countries via Best's Credit Ratings, Performance Assessments for DUAEs, and BestLink data and analytics platforms serving carriers, brokers, regulators, investors, and delegating entities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Oldwick

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

AM Best provides independent credit ratings and performance assessments focused exclusively on the global insurance industry, covering insurers, reinsurers, and delegated underwriting authority enterprises. Its offerings include Financial Strength Ratings, Issuer Credit Ratings, National Scale Ratings, the BestLink data and analytics platform, BestESP regulatory filing software, the BCAR capital adequacy model, AM Best API Services, and a portfolio of news, research, and market segment outlooks. The company sells these products and services to insurance companies, regulators, brokers, investors, and other insurance industry participants worldwide.

Product overview

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher, and data analytics provider specializing exclusively in the insurance industry. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio of credit ratings (Financial Strength Ratings, Issuer Credit Ratings, Issue Credit Ratings, and National Scale Ratings) and performance assessments for delegated underwriting authority enterprises. The product portfolio centers on Best's Credit Ratings as the core product, supported by data and analytics platforms (BestLink, BestESP, API Services), research products (Best's Review, Best's News, Best's Special Reports, Market Segment Reports), regulatory and compliance tools (Best's Regulatory Center US/CN and Global, Data Submission), and various supplementary services including professional resources, podcasts, video content, and advertising. The architecture follows a platform-plus-modules model where BestLink serves as the central hub for data access, supplemented by specialized products for different user needs including insurers, brokers, regulators, and investors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• BestMark: Visual indicator of AM Best's independent opinion of an insurer's global financial strength and ability to meet its ongoing insurance policy and contract obligations.
• BestMark for National Scale Ratings
• BestMark for Press Release
• Best's Performance Assessment for Delegated Underwriting Authority Enterprises (PA for DUAEs)
• BestLink
• BestESP
• BestWire

Products and services

• Best's Credit Ratings

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• S&P Global Ratings: S&P Global Ratings is the world's largest credit rating agency and a direct competitor in insurance financial strength and issuer credit ratings. It also offers broader cross-sector ratings and integrated analytics that AM Best cannot match, making it the most relevant incumbent peer.
• Moody's Ratings: Moody's is a global multi-sector credit rating agency that competes in insurance ratings alongside AM Best, particularly for issuer credit and insurance-linked securities. Its broader analytical platform serves as the principal substitute for AM Best in the institutional investor segment.
• Fitch Ratings: Fitch Ratings is a major global credit rating agency that competes with AM Best in insurance financial strength ratings and is also widely recognized as an ECAI in the EU and UK. It is one of three multi-sector rating agencies whose regulatory status constrains AM Best's pricing power.

Emerging players

• Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA): KBRA is a growing US-based credit rating agency that has expanded into insurance and financial services ratings, partially overlapping with AM Best's coverage. Its NRSRO status and rising share in insurance-linked securities make it the most credible emerging competitor in AM Best's core vertical.
• DBRS Morningstar: DBRS Morningstar is a North American-headquartered credit rating agency that is expanding its insurance rating capability and is recognized as an ECAI in key markets. It competes with AM Best for insurance-related ratings business and institutional data subscriptions.
• Egan-Jones Ratings Co. Egan-Jones is a US-based NRSRO credit rating agency active across multiple asset classes including insurance and financial services. While not insurance-exclusive, it overlaps with AM Best in serving mid-market insurers and structured finance issuers.

Direct peers

• Demotech: Demotech is a US-based financial stability rating company focused on personal, commercial, and specialty insurers — a direct niche competitor to AM Best in regional and specialty insurance ratings. While smaller in scale, it is the closest functional peer in the insurance-only rating niche.

Others

• Insurance Information Institute: The Insurance Information Institute is a US insurance industry research and education organization that publishes industry data and analysis. While not a rating agency, it is an adjacent information services peer that competes for industry research and media attention alongside AM Best's Best's Review and Best's News.
• Verisk Analytics: Verisk is a major data analytics provider serving the insurance industry with proprietary risk, claims, and underwriting data. As an adjacent data and analytics peer, it competes with AM Best for institutional insurance data spend and increasingly for embedded analytics distribution.
• Wolters Kluwer Compliance Solutions: Wolters Kluwer provides regulatory and compliance data solutions to the insurance industry, including tools comparable to AM Best's BestESP filing software and Best's Regulatory Center. It is an adjacent ecosystem peer in insurance data, regulatory filing, and compliance services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/AmbestCo
• YouTubeambest.com/AMBestYouTube
• Facebookfacebook.com/ambestcompany
• LinkedInambest.com/corplinkedin
• Instagraminstagram.com/ambestcompany

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about AM Best