Nationwide Life Insurance Company

For nearly 100 years, Nationwide has been offering a full range of insurance and financial services across the country, including annuities, mutual funds and retirement plans. Currently based in Columbus, Ohio, Nationwide is a Fortune 100 company with over $295 billion in assets.

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    Jennifer Schell

    Jennifer Schell

    Financial Writer

    Jennifer Schell is a professional writer focused on demystifying annuities and other financial topics including banking, financial advising and insurance. She is proud to be a member of the National Association for Fixed Annuities (NAFA) as well as the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA).

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    Savannah Pittle
    Savannah Pittle, senior financial editor for Annuity.org

    Savannah Pittle

    Senior Financial Editor

    Savannah Pittle is an accomplished writer, editor and content marketer. She joined Annuity.org as a financial editor in 2021 and uses her passion for educating readers on complex topics to guide visitors toward the path of financial literacy.

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    Timothy Li, MBA
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    Timothy Li, MBA

    Business Finance Manager

    Timothy Li, MBA, has dedicated his career to increasing profitability for his clients, including Fortune 500 companies. Timothy currently serves as a business finance manager where he researches ways to increase profitability within the supply chain, logistics and sales departments.

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  • Updated: July 4, 2023
  • 5 min read time
  • This page features 11 Cited Research Articles
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Our Partnerships, Vision and Goals

We pride ourselves on partnering with professionals like those from Senior Market Sales (SMS) — a market leader with over 30 years of experience in the insurance industry — who offer personalized retirement solutions for consumers across the country. Our relationships with partners including SMS and Insuractive, the company’s consumer-facing branch, allow us to facilitate the sale of annuities and other retirement-oriented financial products to consumers who are looking to purchase safe and reliable solutions to fill gaps in their retirement income. We are compensated when we produce legitimate inquiries, and that compensation helps make Annuity.org an even stronger resource for our audience. We may also, at times, sell lead data to partners in our network in order to best connect consumers to the information they request. Readers are in no way obligated to use our partners’ services to access the free resources on Annuity.org.

Annuity.org carefully selects partners who share a common goal of educating consumers and helping them select the most appropriate product for their unique financial and lifestyle goals. Our network of advisors will never recommend products that are not right for the consumer, nor will Annuity.org. Additionally, Annuity.org operates independently of its partners and has complete editorial control over the information we publish.

Our vision is to provide users with the highest quality information possible about their financial options and empower them to make informed decisions based on their unique needs.

About Nationwide

Nationwide began as the Farm Bureau Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, selling its first policy in 1926. During the 1930s, the company expanded into fire and property insurance before moving into life insurance with the acquisition of the Life Insurance Company of America.

In 1955, Farm Bureau Mutual changed its name to Nationwide, indicating its goal to move beyond regional coverage and offer products from coast to coast.

Beginning in the 1960s, Nationwide pioneered a number of insurance industry firsts, including endorsing Medicare before being required by law, offering a medical benefits incentive to policyholders wearing a seat belt at the time of an automobile accident, and opening the first 24-hour claims reporting service.

Today, Nationwide is a Fortune 100 company based in Columbus, Ohio. Controlling over $295 billion in assets in 2022, Nationwide offers a full range of insurance and financial services across the country, including annuities, mutual funds and retirement plans.

Variable and fixed annuities are investments that offer many benefits to an investor. Contact a qualified investment advisor to see which type works best for your investment goals.

Credit Ratings

Credit ratings, also called financial strength ratings, offer consumers insight into the financial stability of an annuity provider. These scores are issued by independent credit rating agencies.

If you’re interested in purchasing an annuity, it’s a good idea to investigate the ratings of the company you’re looking at before you buy. The higher the rating, the more you can trust that the insurance company can uphold its end of an annuity contract.

Credit Agency Rating
AM Best A+
Moody’s A1
Standard & Poor’s A+
Source: Nationwide

Types of Nationwide Annuity Products

Nationwide offers a variety of types of annuities to help customers grow their retirement savings.

Variable Annuities

Deferred variable annuities allow clients and advisors to determine how assets are invested across a range of investment options, including stocks, bonds and money markets.

As the value of these investments fluctuates with the market, the value of the contract will move up and down over time. For this reason, variable annuities are best suited to investors who can withstand some market risk in exchange for potentially higher returns over the long term.

Nationwide variable annuity products:

  • Nationwide Advisory Retirement Income Annuity (NARIA)
  • Nationwide Destination B 2.0
  • Nationwide Destination Navigator 2.0
  • Nationwide Destination All American Gold 2.0
  • Destination Freedom+
  • Nationwide Destination Future
  • Nationwide Destination Architect 2.0
  • Nationwide O Series Variable Annuity
  • The Best of America IV
  • Soloist

Fixed Annuities

Fixed rate annuities are not subject to market volatility and so offer a potentially safer way to grow your money.

Fixed annuities let you save for retirement with a tax deferral on earnings, meaning you won’t get a yearly tax bill on your earnings until you begin drawing an income from them. A fixed annuity can also guarantee income for life no matter how long you live.

Nationwide fixed annuity products

  • Nationwide Secure Growth

Fixed Index Annuities

Fixed index annuities provide a source of guaranteed income that balances growth potential and protection. Like a fixed annuity, fixed index annuities offer long-term savings options, tax deferral on earnings, and principal protection in a down market.

Your money can grow based on the performance of an underlying index, such as the S&P 500. And while the benchmark index follows the market, your principle is never directly exposed to the stock market.

As a result, while a fixed index annuity offers more growth potential than a fixed annuity and carries less risk, fixed index annuities may offer less potential return than a variable annuity.

Some fixed index annuities may offer optional riders, such as living benefit riders for guaranteed lifetime income or enhanced death benefits to aid in estate planning.

Nationwide fixed index annuity products:

  • Nationwide New Heights Select 8
  • Nationwide New Heights Select 9
  • Nationwide New Heights Select 10
  • Nationwide New Heights Select 12
  • Nationwide Peak
  • Nationwide Peak 5
  • Nationwide Peak 10
  • Nationwide Summit

Immediate Annuities and Fixed-Immediate Annuities

An immediate annuity is the most basic type of annuity. A one-time lump-sum contribution is converted into an ongoing, guaranteed source of income for life or a set period of time. Income withdrawals can begin immediately or be deferred for up to a year.

Immediate annuities and fixed-immediate annuities do carry certain risks, including locking up funds for a period of time (or indefinitely), inflation diminishing the value of your funds, and penalties that may result if you need to withdraw more than is allowed at a given time.

Nationwide’s immediate annuity product

  • INCOME Promise Select

Registered Index-Linked Annuities

Registered index-linked annuities (RILAs) offer a tax-deferred long-term savings option with more growth potential than a fixed-indexed annuity (but less risk than a variable annuity) with downside protection against volatile markets, low interest rates and high inflation.

Also known as ‘structured annuities,’ RILAs offer tax-deferred growth opportunities that are available through an underlying index or indexes. However, a RILA is not a stock market investment and does not directly participate in any stock or equity investments.

While funds placed into RILAs will be partially protected from market downturns, investors accept a level of risk in exchange for higher upside potential.

Nationwide registered index-linked annuity products

  • Nationwide Defined Protection Annuity

Client Resources

Customers of Nationwide Life Insurance Company can log in to their accounts online with their username and password. Through this online site they will be able to view policy documents, view their existing coverage and contact local agents, among other functions.

For website help or questions about help with your insurance coverages, billing and claims, Nationwide can be reached at 1-877-669-6877.

For assistance with annuities, life insurance, mutual funds and retirement plans, Nationwide can be reached at 1-800-848-6331.

Please seek the advice of a qualified professional before making financial decisions.
Last Modified: July 4, 2023