Living benefits (also known as guaranteed living benefits) are optional guarantees that can be built into variable annuity products.  These "options" are typically added as "riders" to a variable annuity contract.  Living benefits are very powerful product features and something that should be discussed with a financial advisor whenever the conversation involves variable annuities. 

This site's glossary provides a solid overview of living benefits.  In a nutshell, living benefits provide owners of variable annuities with income, accumulation, or withdrawal guarantees that can provide a significant measure of protection against market risk while the annuitant is alive.

A list of various types of living benefits is as follows--scroll over or click on any of the terms below to learn more about the living benefit:

1) Guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefit

2) Guaranteed minimum accumulation benefit

3) Guaranteed minimum income benefit

4) Guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefit