Methodology: How We Rate Annuity Products
Last updated:
Our annuity product ratings are an expert assessment, not a calculation. We examine the same set of factors on every contract we review, then a reviewer weighs them and assigns a score out of five. This page explains exactly what we look at, what each score means, and why we do not publish a formula.
Why there is no formula
We could publish a set of weights and claim the rating falls out of arithmetic. It would not be true, and it would be easy to disprove by testing the weights against our published scores.
The honest description is that an experienced reviewer examines a defined list of factors and forms a judgment. That is how analyst ratings work across the financial industry, and it is the only description of our process that survives scrutiny.
There is a second reason. The factor that decides a rating changes with the product. An income annuity lives or dies on its guaranteed payout rate, while an accumulation product lives on its caps and participation rates. A single fixed formula applied to both would produce worse ratings, not more objective ones.
What we examine on every product
Every review works through the same list. The relative importance shifts by product type, but nothing on this list is skipped.
| Factor | What earns a mark for or against |
|---|---|
| Crediting rates | Caps, participation rates, and spreads measured against what comparable contracts are paying at the time of review, not against the product’s own history |
| Index menu | How many indices are offered, and how many are established benchmarks rather than proprietary indices with short live track records |
| Crediting methods | Whether the annual point to point, monthly sum, and performance triggered options are genuinely usable or padded to look like choice |
| Income rider value | Guaranteed payout rates at realistic ages, measured against the rider fee rather than the roll up rate a brochure leads with |
| Liquidity and surrender terms | Surrender period length, charge schedule, free withdrawal allowance, and whether a market value adjustment applies |
| Premium bonus | Whether a bonus is genuine value or is recovered through lower caps, a longer surrender, or a vesting schedule |
| Carrier strength | The issuing company’s Financial Strength Score, which is itself a published calculation |
What each score means
The score is a judgment about this contract against the alternatives available for the same job, at the time of the review.
| Score | What it means |
|---|---|
| 5.0 | Best in its category, with no meaningful compromise we can identify |
| 4.0 to 4.9 | Competitive, with a clear buyer it suits and no structural flaw |
| 3.0 to 3.9 | Workable, but beaten on at least one important dimension by an alternative we can name |
| 2.0 to 2.9 | Hard to justify against simpler or cheaper options for the same goal |
| Below 2.0 | We would not place this contract for a client in the situation it is marketed for |
A rating is not a prediction of what a contract will pay. It is an assessment of the terms as filed and the rates in effect on the review date.
How weighting shifts by product type
An income annuity is judged first on guaranteed payout rates at the ages a buyer is likely to turn income on, and on what the rider costs to get them. Caps matter far less, because the account value is not the point.
An accumulation annuity is judged first on crediting rates and the quality of the index menu. A long surrender period weighs more heavily here, because the contract has to earn that commitment through growth potential alone.
A multi year guaranteed annuity is the simplest case. The rate, the term, the surrender terms, and the carrier are close to the whole story.
Where you can check our reasoning
Every product review states its rating with a one line justification directly beneath it, and every review carries a What We Like section and a What Gives Us Pause section with specific, numbered criticisms.
That is the evidence behind the score. If a review gives a contract three stars, the reasons are on the page in plain language, and you are welcome to disagree with them.
We also publish current market rates so you can check our comparisons yourself against today’s best fixed annuity rates.
Who reviews these ratings
A rating that rests on judgment only means something if you know whose judgment it is. The factors above are applied by a credentialed professional who reads the carrier filing and the current rate sheet for each contract, not generated from a spreadsheet.
Reviews are written by Jason Caudill, MBA, founder of My Annuity Store, and every rating carries the review date it was assigned.
How we stay independent
My Annuity Store is compensated by insurance companies when a client purchases an annuity. That is how the platform is free to use, and it is the obvious reason to ask whether our product ratings can be trusted.
Three rules apply. No insurance company can pay to receive, raise, or remove a rating. Commission levels are not a factor we consider and never have been. We rate products we do not offer, using the same criteria as the ones we do.
We publish low ratings on products from companies we place business with. If our ratings only ever flattered our partners, they would be worthless, including to us.
What a rating cannot tell you
A rating compares a contract to its alternatives. It cannot tell you whether an annuity is right for your situation at all, and a five star contract bought for the wrong purpose is a worse outcome than a three star contract bought for the right one.
Rates change. Carriers file new caps and payout rates regularly, and a rating reflects the terms in effect when we reviewed the product. Each review carries its review date for that reason.
We also cannot review every product. Our coverage reflects what we can obtain full filings and current rate sheets for.
Corrections
If you believe a review contains a factual error about a product’s terms, contact us at info@myannuitystore.com or call 855-277-8088. We will check it against the carrier filing and correct anything that is wrong.
We will not change a rating because a company disagrees with our judgment.
Last reviewed September 10, 2026. Product ratings are editorial assessments produced by My Annuity Store, Inc. They are not credit ratings, they are not issued by a rating agency, and they are not a recommendation to buy any specific contract.
