US life insurance and annuity sales carried strong momentum into 2026, according to LIMRA. New annualized life insurance premium climbed 10% year over year to $4.5 billion in the first quarter, well above LIMRA's full-year forecast, led by indexed universal life and whole life. Total annuity sales reached $104.6 billion, marking the tenth consecutive quarter above the $100 billion mark, as registered index-linked annuities jumped 21% to $21.2 billion. The figures reflect sustained consumer demand for principal protection and guaranteed income amid elevated interest rates and market volatility.
Americans continued to buy life insurance and annuities at a robust pace at the start of 2026, with industry data from LIMRA showing demand for protection and guaranteed income holding up despite economic uncertainty and market volatility. New annualized premium plus excess for US individual life insurance rose 10% year over year to $4.5 billion in the first quarter, with policy count up 9%, a reading well above LIMRA's own full-year 2026 forecast of 2% to 6% growth.
The life insurance gains were broad. Whole life remained the single largest segment at about 36% of the market, with new premium up 9% to $1.6 billion and policy count climbing 13%. Indexed universal life again led the charge, with new premium up 14% to $1.1 billion, extending a sales run that has produced records in four of the past five years and now accounts for a quarter of new annualized premium. Variable universal life premium rose 12% and term life advanced 9%, while fixed universal life was the lone laggard. LIMRA has flagged a steady drift among middle-income and mass-affluent buyers toward products with retirement-savings features and downside protection, while millennials gravitate to combination products that bundle long-term care or other living benefits as medical costs rise.
The annuity market told a similar story of resilience. Total US annuity sales reached $104.6 billion in the first quarter of 2026, a 2% dip from a year earlier but the tenth consecutive quarter above the $100 billion threshold, a level that LIMRA's research head said appears to have stabilised as a new normal. Registered index-linked annuities (RILAs) were the standout, jumping 21% year over year to $21.2 billion, their second-best sales quarter on record and the 30th consecutive quarter of year-over-year growth. LIMRA is forecasting full-year 2026 RILA sales to exceed the record set in 2025.
The sustained demand reflects a confluence of favourable conditions: elevated interest rates that have made guaranteed-income and principal-protection products attractive, ongoing product innovation, and increased private-equity investment that has expanded carrier capacity. With consumers registering significant economic concerns and market volatility near a one-year high during the quarter, the appetite for protected growth and lifetime income underscores how central these products have become to American retirement planning.
Key Points
- 1US individual life insurance new annualized premium rose 10% to $4.5 billion in Q1 2026, beating LIMRA's full-year forecast
- 2Indexed universal life led with new premium up 14%; whole life remained the largest segment at about 36%
- 3Total annuity sales were $104.6 billion, the tenth consecutive quarter above $100 billion
- 4Registered index-linked annuities jumped 21% to $21.2 billion, a 30th straight quarter of growth
- 5Elevated interest rates, product innovation, and private-equity capacity are sustaining demand
Why This Matters
The continued strength of life insurance and annuity sales shows that American households increasingly value guaranteed income and downside protection as they plan for retirement, especially in a volatile, higher-rate environment. For insurers, the momentum supports earnings and validates heavy investment in indexed and registered index-linked products. The trend also carries policy weight: with LIMRA estimating that as many as 100 million Americans live with a life insurance coverage gap, sustained sales growth chips away at a long-standing protection shortfall, even as regulators watch how complex products are explained and sold.
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