RiverSource (Ameriprise) annuities

Overview

RiverSource Life Insurance Company is the annuity and insurance company of Ameriprise Financial, the Minneapolis wealth manager, and RiverSource Life Insurance Co. of New York issues its contracts in New York. The Ameriprise group ranked #25 among U.S. groups by 2024 individual annuity direct premiums written, according to NAIC market share data, with $5.11 billion in premiums and a 1.21% market share. Its history (as IDS Life and under American Express) and its life insurance products are covered in the RiverSource life insurance profile.

RiverSource annuities are sold only through Ameriprise financial advisors, and the website sends buyers to an Ameriprise advisor rather than offering quotes. That makes RiverSource different from most companies on this list, which sell through many independent agents, banks and broker-dealers. If you buy a RiverSource annuity, you are almost always buying it as part of an Ameriprise advisory relationship, and you will not be comparing it side by side with other insurers' products at the same desk.

Its lineup is also unusual: it is built around market-linked products. RiverSource has stopped selling new fixed annuities and, after mid-2022, stopped selling variable annuities with living benefit riders, according to Ameriprise's 2025 annual report. What remains is investment-oriented variable annuities, a buffered structured annuity and an immediate income annuity.

Annuities it sells

• Variable annuities. RiverSource RAVA Apex and RAVA Vista (with New York versions) invest in subaccount funds that rise and fall with the market, with more than 120 investment options across the variable lineup. They come with a standard death benefit that protects the amount invested for beneficiaries, and optional death benefits for an extra fee chosen at purchase. New sales do not include guaranteed lifetime withdrawal riders. You carry the investment risk. See variable annuities: how they work, what they cost, who they suit.
• Inherited stretch annuity. RAVA 5 Access is sold only as a nonqualified stretch annuity for beneficiaries who inherit a nonqualified annuity, letting them take required annual distributions over their lifetime instead of a lump sum (annuity beneficiaries and inherited annuity options).
• Structured (registered index-linked) annuity. RiverSource Structured Solutions 2 is a RILA with more than 120 indexed accounts tied to five equity indexes and an ETF, with terms of one to six years. Each account has a buffer of 10%, 15%, 20% or 25% against index losses, or a 100% buffer that fully protects against loss if held to maturity (not in Oregon). Account types include standard, dual-directional (which can earn a positive return on a moderate loss), contingent return and one-year Income Choice accounts that pay monthly income. It has a $10,000 minimum, issue ages to 90, and a choice of a 6-year or 3-year surrender schedule starting at 9%. A market value adjustment can apply to withdrawals during the surrender period. Some accounts carry an annual fee in exchange for better crediting terms. It is not available in New York or Oregon.
• Immediate annuity. RiverSource SecureProvider is a single premium immediate annuity that pays for life or a set period in exchange for a lump sum, with some flexibility to access money if an unforeseen need arises.

A buffer is not a floor. If the index falls by more than the buffer, you lose the difference, and caps and participation rates reset at RiverSource's discretion at each new segment (never below guaranteed minimums stated in the prospectus). Both RILAs and variable annuities are securities sold by prospectus, and fees can be layered: mortality and expense charges, fund expenses and optional death benefit fees on variable annuities, and embedded costs in a RILA's caps. Read annuity fees, explained and annuity surrender charges and free withdrawals before buying.

Ownership and reinsurance

RiverSource is wholly owned by Ameriprise Financial, Inc., a public company traded on the New York Stock Exchange (AMP). It is not owned by private equity.

Its older fixed annuity business has been largely reinsured. According to Ameriprise's 2025 annual report, about 89% of RiverSource's remaining $5.2 billion of fixed annuity account value is reinsured with Commonwealth Annuity and Life Insurance Company, part of Global Atlantic. RiverSource remains the insurer on those contracts and still services them, so owners continue to deal with RiverSource (reinsurance: the insurers behind your insurer).

Financial strength

RiverSource publishes the same ratings for both of its companies: A+ (Superior) from AM Best as of November 19, 2025; A+ (Strong) from S&P Global Ratings as of December 18, 2025; and A1 (Good) from Moody's as of March 19, 2026, all with stable outlooks. These are solid ratings, though below the AA-range ratings of the strongest annuity writers (AM Best, S&P, Moody's and Fitch ratings explained).

Guarantees such as death benefits and immediate annuity payments depend on RiverSource's claims-paying ability; values in variable subaccounts and RILA segments are not guaranteed. State guaranty associations protect annuity benefits up to state limits; check yours with the state guaranty association coverage lookup.

Who it suits

RiverSource suits Ameriprise clients who want market-linked tax-deferred growth, either in a variable annuity or in a buffered structured annuity with a defined level of downside protection, as well as retirees who want an immediate annuity set up by their advisor and beneficiaries looking to stretch an inherited nonqualified annuity. It suits less well anyone who wants a fixed annuity or MYGA, a fixed indexed annuity, or a guaranteed lifetime withdrawal rider, none of which it sells new, and anyone who wants to compare quotes from many insurers or buy without an Ameriprise advisor.

• Strengths: a large structured annuity menu with buffers up to 100%; a 3-year surrender option on the RILA; a dedicated inherited stretch annuity; A+ ratings from AM Best and S&P and A1 from Moody's (2025-2026), with a public parent.
• Weaknesses: sold only through Ameriprise advisors; no new fixed, fixed indexed or income-rider annuities; RILA buffers still leave losses beyond the buffer, plus market value adjustments and surrender charges up to 9%; layered fees on variable annuities.

How to contact RiverSource (Ameriprise)