In a year marked by market uncertainty, demographic shifts, and a growing demand for guaranteed income, annuities emerged as a clear winner. According to LIMRA’s latest report, total U.S. retail annuity sales soared to $434.1 billion in 2024, setting a new all-time record and reflecting a 13% increase from the previous year. This is the third consecutive year annuity sales have broken records — a clear sign that more Americans are turning to annuities as a cornerstone of their retirement strategy.
(Source: LIMRA)
But what’s behind this surge? And more importantly, what does it mean for your retirement future?
Let’s unpack the data and take a closer look at how different types of annuities performed — and how you might position them in your own retirement income plan.
Why Annuities Are Gaining Momentum
Before diving into the numbers, it’s important to understand why annuities are gaining so much traction — especially now.
In short: people are craving financial certainty.
Retirees and pre-retirees alike are navigating a volatile landscape. Rising interest rates, inflation, market corrections, and fears about outliving savings have created a perfect storm of financial anxiety. And while traditional investment vehicles like stocks and mutual funds remain popular, they don’t offer the kind of guarantees that many Americans now prioritize.
Enter annuities.
Annuities offer something increasingly rare in retirement planning: predictability. Whether it’s guaranteed income, principal protection, or a hybrid strategy with growth potential, annuities are designed to address key retirement risks in ways that other tools simply can’t.
2024 at a Glance: Annuity Sales Highlights
Here’s a snapshot of what 2024 looked like in the annuity world, based on LIMRA’s report:
- 💰 $434.1 billion in total annuity sales (a 13% increase from 2023)
- 📈 Sales exceeded $100 billion per quarter for the first time ever
- 🏦 Roughly 8 out of 10 insurance carriers saw positive growth
- 🔒 Investors showed strong demand for annuities offering income guarantees and downside protection
This level of widespread growth across both product categories and insurance providers reflects more than just short-term trends — it highlights a deeper shift in retirement planning behavior.
Breaking Down the Growth: Which Annuities Led the Way?
Let’s explore how each type of annuity performed in 2024 and what these numbers mean for you.
1. Registered Index-Linked Annuities (RILAs): Balancing Risk and Growth
📊 2024 Sales: $65.6 billion
🔼 Growth: +38% year-over-year
RILAs were one of the biggest standouts of the year. These hybrid annuities link performance to an underlying market index (like the S&P 500), but with a built-in buffer to protect against losses. In essence, you give up a portion of the upside in exchange for downside protection.
Ideal for: Investors who want growth potential but can’t stomach major losses in retirement.
Why the surge? Volatile equity markets made traditional variable annuities feel risky, while RILAs offered a “middle ground” with some market exposure and protection from catastrophic losses.
2. Fixed Indexed Annuities (FIAs): Growth Without Market Losses
📊 2024 Sales: $126.9 billion
🔼 Growth: +32% year-over-year
Fixed Indexed Annuities (FIAs) also had a banner year. These annuities offer principal protection — you can’t lose money due to market downturns — but your growth is linked to a market index, typically capped at a certain percentage.
Ideal for: Conservative investors who want market participation without market risk.
Why the popularity? Many investors were looking for safe alternatives to CDs and bonds. With higher cap rates (thanks to interest rate conditions), FIAs delivered better potential returns without the stomach-churning drops of the stock market.
3. Traditional Variable Annuities (VAs): Making a Comeback
📊 2024 Sales: $60.9 billion
🔼 Growth: +18% year-over-year
Traditional VAs, which offer full market participation (and full exposure to market losses), saw a rebound after several years of decline. The rise in equity markets in 2024 made these annuities more attractive — especially those offering guaranteed living benefits.
Ideal for: Investors who want full market exposure, along with optional income riders or death benefits.
What’s changed? Newer versions of VAs come with more flexible features, better fee structures, and optional benefits that can help turn them into powerful income planning tools.
4. Fixed-Rate Deferred Annuities (FRDs): Cooling Off
📊 2024 Sales: $153.2 billion
🔽 Decline: -7% year-over-year
FRDs had been red-hot in 2022 and 2023, riding the wave of rising interest rates. But as those rates started to stabilize and decline, interest in FRDs cooled a bit.
Ideal for: Short-term savers who want guaranteed growth for 3–5 years, often as an alternative to CDs.
Still relevant? Absolutely. While growth slowed, $153 billion in sales is still massive. Many retirees use FRDs as “safe money” buckets in their income strategy.
5. Income Annuities: Steady Growth for Lifetime Payouts
📊 SPIAs (Single Premium Immediate Annuities): $13.6 billion
📊 DIAs (Deferred Income Annuities): $4.9 billion
🔼 Growth: +2% for SPIAs, +19% for DIAs
Income annuities are designed to do one thing well: guarantee income for life. They’re gaining popularity, especially among retirees who fear outliving their savings or losing purchasing power to inflation.
Ideal for: Anyone seeking longevity protection and simple, predictable income.
Why now? Rising interest rates have led to higher payout rates, making income annuities more attractive. And with life expectancy on the rise, locking in a lifetime income stream offers serious peace of mind.
What This Means for Your Retirement Strategy
If you’re like many Americans approaching retirement, you’re probably wondering: Is it too late to secure guaranteed income? The good news is — it’s not. In fact, 2024’s record-setting annuity sales show that more people are taking proactive steps to protect their retirement lifestyle.
Here’s why annuities deserve a second look:
- ✅ Protection against market loss
- ✅ Guaranteed lifetime income options
- ✅ Tax-deferred growth
- ✅ Optional inflation protection
- ✅ Peace of mind during uncertain times
Looking Ahead: What’s Next for Annuity Sales?
While 2024 was a record-breaking year, LIMRA projects a moderation in annuity sales moving forward. Their forecast calls for:
- 🔮 $350+ billion in total annuity sales in 2025
- 📉 Normalization as interest rates stabilize
- 🧠 Continued innovation in product design and features
- 👥 Sustained demand driven by demographics and retirement income needs
That means annuities won’t be fading into the background anytime soon — especially for retirees looking to hedge longevity, inflation, and sequence-of-returns risks.
Don’t Miss the Annuity Conversation
Whether you’re nearing retirement or already in it, annuities deserve a seat at the table — not as a one-size-fits-all solution, but as a versatile tool in your income strategy toolkit.
If you want to learn more about how annuities might fit into your unique retirement plan, or you’re interested in a second opinion on your current income strategy, let’s connect. Visit GetMyAnnuity.com for a more personalized insight.
And if you’re a financial professional, estate planner, or CPA, consider this your call to action: annuities are no longer an “alternative” — they’re mainstream. Let’s help more Americans retire with confidence.
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