article
How Variable Universal Life Insurance Works
Learn more
Log in to other Northwestern Mutual sites:
Variable Universal Life (VUL) lets you protect the people you love with customized coverage and gives you control over how your cash value is invested.
Get insuranceVariable universal life gives you the protection of a generally tax-free death benefit along with the flexibility to customize your policy as your life and needs change. If you're interested in growing your wealth, VUL might be a smart move. That's because it gives you the opportunity to build even more cash value than you could with other types of permanent life insurance, potentially leading to a higher death benefit. However, it's important to know that since your policy's cash value is invested in the market, it can go up or down in value based on market volatility.
Get startedVUL builds cash value over time that grows, tax deferred, that you can use for anything, anytime.1 Your policy also has the potential to build even more cash value than you could with traditional permanent life insurance.
With VUL, you'll have the flexibility to choose the amount of your death benefit, how much you pay in premiums, and when you pay them. As long as there is enough cash value to pay your policy's monthly fees and expenses, your coverage will generally continue.
VUL also gives you flexibility in how your cash value is invested, allowing you to choose from multiple policy investment options managed by leading investment firms.
Our Strength and Stability account (SAS)2 lets you move some money out of the market permanently if you want to take on less risk over time. Plus, you'll get a crediting rate that's backed by the Northwestern Mutual general account.3
VUL also comes with the option to use automatic rebalancing, giving you periodic, automatic adjustments that can help keep your diversified investment plan on track.
With this feature, money is moved from a money market account to your investment accounts at regular intervals. That way, you generally purchase more investments when the market is down and fewer when it's up.4
When you work with Northwestern Mutual, we listen to the goals you have and design a financial plan tailored specifically to your life. Variable universal life insurance is a flexible tool that could be an important part of your plan, giving you lifelong protection while helping you meet more of your financial goals. Find out more about how we plan.
Our approach to planningA++ financial strength rating
AAA, Aaa, and AA+ the highest financial strength ratings of any U.S. life insurer from all four major credit rating agencies5
No.1 overall ranked insurance company
Best Life Insurance Company ranked by Nerd Wallet, 20206
Of our policyowners stay with us year over year7
No.1 most trusted financial companies for life insurance
Most Trusted Financial Companies for Life Insurance ranked by Investor's Business Daily, 20218
Our advisors will help you find out which type of insurance is right for you.
It's easy to get started—no commitment, just a conversation.