Three annuities, three answers to one question: do you want guaranteed income now, guaranteed income later, or the right to decide later? A single premium immediate annuity (SPIA) starts paying next month. A deferred income annuity (DIA) locks in a bigger check that starts years from now. A multi-year guaranteed annuity (MYGA) simply earns a fixed rate and leaves every option open. As of August 2026, $100,000 buys a 65-year-old man $675/month for life in a SPIA (best of the 8 A-rated carriers we quote; single life with a 5-year period certain), a woman $637/month, and a couple $587/month. The same $100,000 in a 5-year A-rated MYGA at 5.75% grows to about $132,252, which at today's age-70 SPIA rate would buy roughly $993/month at 70. The ladder wins if he lives past about 80½; the SPIA wins if he does not, or if rates fall. Here is how to think it through.
The Three Contracts Side by Side
| Feature | SPIA | Deferred income annuity (DIA / QLAC) | MYGA |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Lump sum in, lifetime income out, starting within about a month. | Same contract, income start deferred 13 months to 40 years. QLAC = a DIA held in an IRA/401(k) under IRS rules. | Fixed-rate deferred annuity; a tax-deferred CD-like contract with a 2- to 10-year rate guarantee. |
| Income starts | Next month. | At the date you pick, typically 5-15 years out (QLAC: no later than 85). | Whenever you choose: take interest, withdraw, renew, or annuitize at term end. |
| Liquidity | None after issue (irrevocable). Period-certain or cash-refund options protect heirs, not you. | None; irrevocable and no cash surrender value. Optional return-of-premium death benefit during deferral. | Typically 10% free withdrawal per year; surrender charge plus market-value adjustment on larger early withdrawals; full principal + interest at term end. |
| What is guaranteed | Fixed monthly payment for life (and any period certain). | Fixed monthly payment for life from the start date; the payment per premium dollar is much higher because of interest plus mortality credits earned during deferral. | The interest rate for the term and your principal. Not lifetime income (unless you later annuitize). |
| Taxes (non-qualified) | Exclusion ratio: part return of principal, part ordinary income. | Exclusion ratio once payments begin; nothing taxable during deferral. | Tax-deferred growth; withdrawals taxed interest-first; 10% additional tax before 59½ (IRC §72(q)). |
| Who it fits | Retirees who need income now and want the highest guaranteed floor per dollar. | People 55-70 with income covered for the next 5-15 years who want cheap insurance against outliving assets, or IRA owners who want to shrink RMDs. | Savers who want a guaranteed rate above CDs and Treasuries, are not sure when (or whether) they will annuitize, and value access to principal. |
| Typical buyer age | 65-80 | 55-70 (income at 70-85) | 55-75 |
SPIA: Income Now, Priced Today
The SPIA is the simplest contract on the page and the one we quote most. You hand an A-rated insurer a premium; it hands you a fixed check for life. Our tables show single life with a 5-year period certain, per $100,000, from actual carrier quote surveys (August 2026); joint figures assume 100% to the survivor with both spouses the same age.
| Age at purchase | Male | Female | Joint (100% survivor) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | $627/mo | $612/mo | $567/mo |
| 65 | $675/mo | $637/mo | $587/mo |
| 70 | $751/mo | $699/mo | $640/mo |
| 75 | $873/mo | $810/mo | $722/mo |
Best available quote among 8 A-rated carriers, $100,000 premium, August 2026. Full tables by age: male, female, joint, or run your own numbers on the calculator.
Age and payout option drive the payment: a 70-year-old man gets $751 versus $675 at 65 (about 11% more), and life-only pays more than refund or long-certain structures (see payout options). What the SPIA does not do is grow. It is a pension you bought, not an investment, and if you have bills to cover next month that is precisely the point.
Deferred Income Annuity: Income Later, Bought Now
A DIA is a SPIA with the income start date pushed out, anywhere from 13 months to 40 years, per Schwab's product overview. During the deferral the insurer earns interest on your premium and pools it with other buyers, some of whom die before payments start (mortality credits). Both forces push the eventual payment well above what an immediate annuity or a bond ladder can produce. Two published illustrations give the flavor; we cite them only as illustrations:
- Fidelity Viewpoints (July 7, 2026): a 70-year-old woman placing $210,000 in a QLAC with income deferred to age 80 is quoted guaranteed income of $40,440 per year, roughly 19% of premium annually. Fidelity does not disclose the carrier or payout option (source).
- Blueprint Income's life-only illustration: a 60-year-old man's income per $100,000 is roughly 2.1x higher when the start date moves from 60 to 70. That table has carried the same dollar figures for many months, so treat it as a ratio, not as current pricing.
We do not publish DIA rates because they move with every rate change and depend heavily on deferral period, refund option, and carrier. If a DIA interests you, ask us for a dated quote; we run it alongside the SPIA so you see both on the same day's pricing. The DIA's weakness is the same as its strength: it is irrevocable, it pays nothing for years, and if you die before the start date without a return-of-premium rider the premium is gone. It is insurance against a long life and should be sized like insurance, not like a portfolio.
QLAC rules for 2026. A qualified longevity annuity contract is a DIA bought with pre-tax IRA or 401(k)/403(b) money. The premium limit is $210,000 per person for 2026 (couples up to $420,000), income must begin by 85, and the premium is removed from your required-minimum-distribution base until income starts. SECURE 2.0 (Section 202) repealed the old 25%-of-account cap, though some older web pages still cite it. Roth and inherited IRA money cannot fund a QLAC. See how annuities are taxed.
MYGA: Earn a Fixed Rate and Decide Later
A MYGA is the fixed-rate cousin of a CD, issued by an insurer instead of a bank. You choose a term of 2 to 10 years and the rate is locked for that term. Interest grows tax-deferred, most contracts allow 10% free withdrawals each year, and at maturity you can walk away with principal plus interest, renew, or roll the balance into a SPIA or DIA. Larger withdrawals during the term incur a declining surrender charge (often starting around 8-9% and stepping down yearly) plus a market-value adjustment. Best rates as published on August 18, 2026 (any rating; rates vary by state and premium band and change without notice):
| Term | Highest rate listed by My Annuity Store | Best compound rate, other carriers | Treasury yield, same term |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3-year | 6.10% simple (Knighthead Staysail 3, A-) = ~5.76%/yr compounded | 5.85% (Revol One, B++) | 4.25% |
| 5-year | 6.80% simple (Knighthead Staysail 5, A-) = ~6.03%/yr compounded | 6.15% (Revol One, B++); 5.75% (Fidelity Security Life, A) | 4.38% |
| 7-year | 7.20% simple (Knighthead Staysail 7, A-) = ~6.00%/yr compounded | 6.15% (Revol One, B++); 6.10% (Heartland National, B++) | 4.54% |
| 10-year | 6.25% compound (Revol One DirectGrowth 10, B++) | 6.15% (Heartland National, B++) | 4.72% |
MYGA rates as listed by My Annuity Store, updated August 18, 2026. Annuity.org's August 14, 2026 list shows different leaders (for example, Mountain Life 6.30% compound, B+, for 5 years and Canvas 6.30% compound, B++, for 10 years); published rates differ by source, state, and premium band. Treasury par yields: U.S. Treasury, August 17, 2026. Simple-interest products do not compound; the compound-equivalent yields are our arithmetic.
Three cautions before you chase the top line. The 6.80% and 7.20% headline products pay simple interest, so their true annual yield is closer to 6.0%. The highest rates come from B++ and A- carriers; the best A-rated compound rate on the same list is 5.75% for five years (Fidelity Security Life TaxVantage MYGA 5 (A)). And a MYGA is still an insurance contract: if the carrier fails your backstop is the state guaranty association, typically $250,000 of present value per owner per insurer (check your state's limit). Even so, the A-rated compound rate sits about 137 basis points above the 5-year Treasury (4.38%), which is why MYGAs are the natural parking place for money earmarked for a future annuity. For a bank comparison see annuity vs. CD.
Worked Example: SPIA Now vs. a MYGA-then-SPIA Ladder
The most common real-world choice is not SPIA versus DIA; it is SPIA today versus park it in a MYGA and buy the SPIA at 70. Here is that comparison with $100,000 at 65, using our August 2026 SPIA quotes and the 5.75% A-rated 5-year MYGA rate above. Important assumption: the ladder path assumes SPIA rates in five years are the same as today's age-70 quotes. Nobody knows that. If rates fall, the ladder pays less; if they rise, more.
| Path | Age 65-70 | Balance at 70 | Income from 70 | Income forgone 65-70 | Simple breakeven age |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A. SPIA now (male 65) | $675/mo | n/a (annuitized) | $675/mo | $0 | n/a |
| B. MYGA 5.75% then SPIA at 70 (male) | $0 (interest accrues) | $132,252 | ~$993/mo | $40,500 | about 80½ |
| B2. MYGA 6.80% simple then SPIA at 70 (male) | $0 | $134,000 | ~$1,006/mo | $40,500 | about 80 |
| A. SPIA now (female 65) | $637/mo | n/a | $637/mo | $0 | n/a |
| B. MYGA 5.75% then SPIA at 70 (female) | $0 | $132,252 | ~$924/mo | $38,220 | about 81 |
| B2. MYGA 6.80% simple then SPIA at 70 (female) | $0 | $134,000 | ~$937/mo | $38,220 | about 80½ |
SPIA figures: best of 8 A-rated carriers, single life with a 5-year period certain, per $100,000, from actual carrier quote surveys (August 2026); the age-70 income is scaled by the MYGA balance (for example, $751 × $132,252 ÷ $100,000 = ~$993). MYGA growth: 5.75% compounded annually for 5 years, or 6.80% simple interest (1 + 0.068 × 5). Breakeven is simple payback: income forgone divided by the extra monthly income after 70, ignoring interest on payments received and taxes.
How to read it: the man who waits gives up $40,500 of guaranteed income between 65 and 70, then collects about $318/month more than the man who bought at 65. That extra check needs roughly 127 months to repay the skipped income, so the ladder pulls ahead about 80½. The Social Security period life table gives a 65-year-old man roughly 17 to 18 more years on average, so a majority of buyers would reach that breakeven, but only under the frozen-rate assumption, and only if you did not need the $675/month at 66. Beyond the arithmetic, the ladder buys five years of liquidity (the MYGA balance is yours if health or plans change), a death benefit (die at 68 and heirs get the full balance, not the remainder of a 5-year certain), and option value (at 70 you can buy a SPIA, a DIA, split the money, or keep rolling MYGAs).
What the SPIA-now buyer gets in return: $675/month starting next month, no reinvestment decision, no rate risk five years out, and the highest guaranteed floor for the years he is most likely to spend it. If your essential expenses are not covered today, that certainty is worth more than a breakeven at 80½. If they are covered, the ladder is a reasonable bet, and a partial ladder is often the best of both (below).
Tax note for non-qualified money: MYGA interest is not taxed until withdrawn, and rolling the matured balance into a SPIA by IRC Section 1035 exchange or annuitization defers it further, spreading the gain across the payments under the exclusion ratio (IRS Publication 939). Cashing out at 70 and then buying the SPIA with the proceeds triggers the tax on $32,252 of interest in one year; do not do that.
Which One? A Short Decision Flow
- Do you need more monthly income within the next 12 months? Yes: SPIA. Compare all 8 carriers on best SPIA rates; in our August 2026 survey the best and lowest quotes at 65 differ by about 15%. No: continue.
- Is the money you would use inside an IRA or 401(k), and are RMDs a problem? Yes: price a QLAC (up to $210,000) with income at 80-85, plus a SPIA for near-term needs if any. No: continue.
- Are you confident you want lifetime income starting at a specific future age (say 70 or 75) and can afford to lock the premium away until then? Yes: get a dated DIA quote and compare its guaranteed payment against the MYGA-then-SPIA ladder above; the DIA usually pays more because it carries mortality credits, but it is irrevocable. No: continue.
- Do you want the rate guarantee but not the commitment? Yes: MYGA, ideally an A-rated compound-interest contract with a term that ends at your intended annuity age. Revisit at maturity.
- Married? Whatever you pick, price the joint-and-survivor version; at 65 the couple's figure is $587/month versus $675 single life, and household expenses rarely fall by half when one spouse dies.
Partial Strategies: Annuitize Some Now, Ladder the Rest
Nothing requires an all-or-nothing choice, and most of our clients with $250,000 or more do not make one. A common structure at 65: annuitize enough today to close the gap between Social Security and essential expenses, place the next tranche in a 5-year MYGA earmarked for a SPIA at 70, and leave the rest invested. On $500,000 that might be $200,000 in a SPIA now (about $1,350/month for a man) and $150,000 laddered, which also keeps each contract under most states' $250,000 guaranty limit and captures the best rate at two carriers. We walk through the sizing in how much a $500,000 annuity pays, the timing in best age to buy an annuity, and carrier strength in best annuity companies.
Bottom Line
Buy the SPIA when you need the income now; at August 2026 pricing it pays a 65-year-old man $675/month per $100,000 with no rate risk and no decisions left to make. Buy a DIA or QLAC when the money's job is to insure against a long life and you can lock it away; get a dated quote rather than trusting undated online tables. Use a MYGA when you want a guaranteed rate above Treasuries and CDs while you decide; the 5.75% A-rated 5-year ladder produces about $993/month at 70 in our example, at the cost of $40,500 of skipped income and a bet that rates hold. Whichever path fits, price it across carriers on the same day. Request a free comparison quote and we will run the SPIA, the DIA, and the ladder for your age, state, and premium side by side, or start with the calculator to see your SPIA figure now.
