Jackson National annuities

Overview

Jackson National Life Insurance Company, which markets itself as Jackson, is the main operating company of Jackson Financial Inc., a Lansing, Michigan, company listed on the New York Stock Exchange as JXN. The Jackson National group ranked #8 among U.S. groups by 2024 individual annuity direct premiums written, according to NAIC market share data, with about $17.57 billion in premiums and a 4.17% market share.

Jackson is almost purely an annuity company. It stopped selling new life insurance in 2012, and its life premiums come from older and acquired blocks, which the Jackson National Life life insurance profile covers. Its identity is the variable annuity, sold with optional living and death benefits through financial professionals at broker-dealers, banks and independent and fee-based advisory firms. It does not sell directly to consumers. Since 2021 it has added registered index-linked annuities, and in 2025 a fixed index annuity built around guaranteed income. Jackson National Life Insurance Company of New York issues contracts to New York residents.

Annuities it sells

• Variable annuities. The Perspective family (Perspective II and the fee-based Perspective Advisory II) is designed for growth with optional add-on benefits for protection, guaranteed lifetime income and legacy. The Elite Access family (Elite Access II and Elite Access Advisory II) is designed for accumulation, with optional benefits such as the Principal Guard accumulation benefit and the EarningsMax death benefit. The Jackson Retirement Investment Annuity is a fee-based variable annuity designed for registered investment advisors. Jackson's site also describes a +Protect living benefit. Add-on benefits cost extra on top of the contract's ongoing fees, and money in the subaccounts can lose value.
• Registered index-linked annuities. Jackson entered the RILA market in October 2021 with Market Link Pro, sold on commission, and Market Link Pro Advisory, for fee-based advisors. The May 2025 third generation added a Nasdaq-100 option and a full principal protection option, and the fourth generation, Jackson Market Link Pro 4 and Market Link Pro Advisory 4, launched in June 2026 with a Dow Jones Industrial Average option and flexible premiums. Protection options limit losses, and caps or similar terms limit gains.
• Fixed index annuities. The Jackson Income Assurance Suite, launched in August 2025, includes Jackson Income Assurance (commission-based) and Jackson Income Assurance Advisory (fee-based), each with 7- or 10-year versions. Both have a built-in guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefit for lifetime income, with an income base that can grow during deferral; interest credits are tied to the S&P 500.
• Fixed annuities. Jackson's annual report lists fixed annuities among its products, though its business is concentrated in variable and index-linked contracts.

Jackson's current lineup centers on market-linked contracts rather than plain fixed-rate or immediate income annuities. Every product here has a surrender period; read the prospectus or contract for the withdrawal charge schedule and every fee, and see annuity fees, explained and annuity surrender charges and free withdrawals.

Ownership and reinsurance

Jackson was owned by the British insurer Prudential plc from 1986 until September 13, 2021, when Prudential plc separated it and Jackson Financial became an independent public company. It has no private-equity or foreign controlling owner today.

Two reinsurance arrangements matter for annuity owners. In June 2020, before the separation, Jackson reinsured a large block of its fixed and fixed index annuities to Athene. And in January 2024 Jackson funded Brooke Life Reinsurance Company (Brooke Re), a Michigan-licensed affiliated captive reinsurer, and ceded to it the guaranteed benefit riders on its variable annuities, keeping the base contracts. Jackson said the structure would let it optimize hedging and stabilize capital generation. In both cases Jackson remains the insurer on your contract and the company that pays you; reinsurance changes who backs the risk behind the scenes, not your contract terms.

Financial strength

Jackson Financial's investor site lists Jackson National Life's ratings as of February 18, 2026: A (Excellent) from AM Best, A (Strong) from S&P, A3 (Good) from Moody's and A (Strong) from Fitch. In December 2025 AM Best affirmed the A rating and upgraded Jackson's long-term issuer credit rating to "a+", citing very strong risk-adjusted capitalization. These are solid ratings, a notch or two below the highest-rated annuity writers.

Variable annuity subaccount assets are held in a separate account, but optional guarantees and fixed and index-linked values depend on Jackson's claims-paying ability. If an insurer failed, state guaranty associations protect annuity values up to a limit; check yours with the state guaranty association coverage lookup.

Who it suits

Jackson suits investors working with a financial professional who want a variable annuity with a large menu of investment options and optional living benefits, or who want a RILA or an income-focused fixed index annuity from the same company, in either a commission or fee-based version. It suits less well buyers who want a simple fixed-rate or immediate income annuity, or who want to buy without an advisor. Variable annuities with riders are among the most expensive and complicated retirement products, so they make most sense for people who will use the guarantee they pay for.

Jackson has faced litigation over annuity charges. In Tredinnick v. Jackson National Life, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, buyers of Perspective, Elite and Retirement Latitude variable annuities alleged Jackson miscalculated withdrawal and recapture charges; Jackson agreed to an $8.75 million class settlement in 2021 while denying wrongdoing.

• Strengths: Long experience with variable annuities and living benefits; RILA and fixed index lines in commission and fee-based versions; A-range ratings from all four major agencies; public company with detailed disclosure.
• Weaknesses: Products are complex, with layered fees and surrender charges; little for buyers who want a plain fixed-rate annuity; variable annuity guarantee risk ceded to an affiliated captive; an $8.75 million settlement over withdrawal charges.

How to contact Jackson National