Corebridge Financial IUL Review (2026)

Corebridge at a glance: who stands behind the policy

Corebridge Financial is the life and retirement business that American International Group (AIG) ran for decades, which AIG called AIG Life & Retirement before taking it public. The company that actually issues its life insurance is American General Life Insurance Company (AGL), a Texas insurer incorporated on April 11, 1960. AGL is licensed in every state except New York. In New York, policies come from a sister company, The United States Life Insurance Company in the City of New York (US Life). Both are wholly owned by Corebridge Financial, Inc., which is headquartered in Houston.

Corebridge says it had about 4.2 million policies in force in the United States as of March 31, 2024, and more than $380 billion in assets under management and administration as of March 31, 2026. It sells term life, indexed universal life (IUL), whole life for final expenses and annuities, mostly through independent agents. It also sells life insurance directly to consumers, online and by phone, through Corebridge Direct, which was called AIG Direct until 2024. For its annuity lineup, see our Corebridge annuity review.

Ownership: from AIG to Nippon Life to a merger with Equitable

The ownership story matters because it explains the names on older policies and the asterisk on today's rating.

• September 2022. AIG took Corebridge public, completing the initial public offering on September 19, 2022. The shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange.
• December 2024. Japan's Nippon Life Insurance Company completed its purchase of about 122 million Corebridge shares from AIG, 21.6% of the company when the deal was signed.
• May 2026. AIG sold its remaining shares. Its SEC filing dated May 8, 2026 reports that it no longer owns any Corebridge stock.
• Today. Nippon Life is the largest shareholder, with about 27.4% of the stock in its August 7, 2026 SEC filing.

On March 26, 2026, Corebridge and Equitable Holdings agreed to combine in an all-stock merger that values the combined company at about $22 billion. Stockholders of both companies approved it on July 30, 2026. The deal still needs regulatory approval and is expected to close by year-end 2026, according to Corebridge's second-quarter 2026 report. The combined company will use the Equitable name. Corebridge tells customers that until it closes, all contracts, services and points of contact stay the same. For the other side of the deal, see our Equitable annuity review.

How strong is Corebridge?

Corebridge lists these financial strength ratings for American General Life, US Life and its other insurers, with outlooks last updated April 8, 2026:

Corebridge's second-quarter 2026 report says AM Best placed the ratings under review, S&P placed them on CreditWatch with negative implications, and Fitch gave them a positive outlook, all because of the pending Equitable merger. "Developing implications" means the outcome could go either way. An A from AM Best is the third grade on its scale, one notch below A+. Many buyers accept A; some prefer A+ or better for a policy they plan to hold for 30 years or more.

A rating measures the company, not the policy. It tells you how likely Corebridge is to pay claims decades from now. It says nothing about whether a given IUL's caps and charges suit you.

For how we weigh ratings against other factors, see how we rate life insurance companies.

Corebridge's IUL lineup

Corebridge's 2025 annual report names two main IUL products, and its September 2025 announcement with Allstate Financial Services lists the same two. Corebridge says it has pulled back from guaranteed universal life and no longer sells guaranteed variable universal life.

Max Accumulator+ III is the accumulation policy, built to grow cash value and later supply retirement income. Corebridge's annual report gives its key buyer ages as 30 to 65. In June 2026 Corebridge added two index accounts, bringing it to five, and said it made changes designed to improve cash values compared with earlier versions. Its Income for Life rider can convert cash value into guaranteed lifetime income. Corebridge's consumer brochure does not publish its charges or surrender charge schedule, so get them on an illustration.

Value+ Protector is the protection policy, built for the death benefit rather than cash value. Corebridge's annual report gives its key buyer ages as 45 to 70. We could not find a current consumer brochure for it, so ask for its version, guarantees and charges on an illustration.

Corebridge's other life products are not IULs: Select-a-Term, a term policy with 18 length choices; guaranteed issue and simplified issue whole life for final expenses; and guaranteed universal life, which it now de-emphasizes.

Index options and how interest is credited

Max Accumulator+ III offers five index accounts plus a fixed-rate declared interest account. An index account does not buy stocks. It credits interest based on how an index moved over each index period, limited by a cap or participation rate, and a floor keeps the credit from going negative. Corebridge's consumer brochure describes the accounts this way:

• S&P 500 High Cap Rate and S&P 500 High Bonus: two S&P 500 accounts, one with a higher cap rate and one with a bonus feature. Ask for both caps and the bonus amount.
• Nasdaq-100: tracks 100 of the largest non-financial companies listed on the Nasdaq. Not available in California or New York.
• ML Strategic Balanced Index: blends the S&P 500, 10-year Treasury futures and cash to moderate volatility.
• PIMCO Global Optima Index: blends global stocks and U.S. bonds using a rules-based approach.

The two blended indexes are volatility-controlled designs. They are built to move less than the stock market, which is why carriers often pair such indexes with higher participation rates, but the ML index also subtracts a built-in annual index cost before any credit is figured. See our guide to volatility-controlled indexes. New York policies offer two index strategies.

Corebridge does not publish current caps or participation rates in its consumer materials. They are available on request, and Corebridge can change them for new index periods, down to each contract's minimums. A cap is only part of the value: a policy with a lower cap and lower charges can build more cash value than one with a higher cap and higher charges. Our guide to IUL cap rates explains how to weigh the two.

How Corebridge treats existing policyholders

This section matters most in an IUL, because you will own the policy for decades after the sale. We looked at three things: caps on older policies, cost of insurance charges, and lawsuits or regulatory actions.

Caps on policies it no longer sells

We could not find a consumer-facing Corebridge document that shows today's caps on older IULs, including earlier versions of Max Accumulator+. So we cannot show you how older policies are credited now or how far their caps have moved since they were sold.

What Corebridge does say is in its 2025 annual report, in a passage covering its universal life and annuity business. It expects "to continue to adjust crediting rates on in-force business, as appropriate, to be responsive to changing rate environments," subject to minimum guarantees. That is true of every IUL carrier: the cap in your illustration is a current rate, not a promise. If you own a Corebridge IUL, your annual statement shows your current rates. Compare them with your original illustration.

Cost of insurance charges

The cost of insurance is the monthly charge for the death benefit itself. A carrier raising it on existing policies is one of the biggest risks in any universal life policy. We found no public record of Corebridge or American General raising cost of insurance rates on its IULs, and we could not verify that either way, so treat it as unconfirmed rather than a clean record.

The annual report is candid that the option exists. It says Corebridge has "taken actions on in-force business" without naming products, and that it "may take additional actions on our in-force business, including adjusting crediting rates and cost of insurance," which "may result in litigation." Your policy lists the guaranteed maximum charges. Those maximums, not today's charges, are the real limit.

Lawsuits and regulatory actions

The legal cases Corebridge reports for its life business involve California laws that require a 60-day grace period and a 30-day notice before a policy lapses, and a chance to name a second person to receive lapse notices. None of them is about IUL design or crediting.

• Moriarty v. American General Life Insurance Co. (Southern District of California), filed in 2017. The owner argued American General did not apply those laws to a policy issued before they took effect. Class certification was denied in 2022. After an appeal and a remand, a jury ruled for the plaintiff on January 13, 2026, on a policy worth about $1 million. Corebridge's first-quarter 2026 report says the parties then reached a settlement.
• People of the State of California v. American General Life Insurance Co., filed in October 2024 in San Diego County Superior Court against American General and three other insurers. The state seeks civil penalties and other relief over California policies issued before 2013 that lapsed for nonpayment since January 1, 2013. Corebridge reports that trial is set for March 5, 2027.
• Four similar private suits filed in California in 2025 were listed in Corebridge's first-quarter 2026 report. Its second-quarter report no longer lists them, and it does not say how they ended.

In our search of public court records, we found no certified class action over Corebridge's IUL products as of September 2026. We have not completed a state-by-state review of regulatory actions and market conduct exams, so we make no claim either way on that point. Our guide to IUL lawsuits covers the wider picture.

Riders and living benefits

These riders are described in Corebridge's consumer materials for Max Accumulator+ III. Availability varies by policy and state, so confirm them for Value+ Protector.

• Income for Life Rider. Included on the policy. Per Corebridge's rider FAQ, after the policy has been in force 10 years, at ages 55 to 85, you can convert available cash value into guaranteed lifetime income that will not decrease, with optional yearly increases of 1% to 3%. A one-time charge comes out when you elect it, any loan must be paid off first, and afterward you cannot pay new premiums or take new loans. It requires the policy to use the guideline premium test under the tax code.
• Accelerated Access Solution. An optional chronic illness rider chosen at purchase. If the insured cannot perform two of six daily activities or is cognitively impaired, it pays benefits from the death benefit that you can spend on anything. It reduces the death benefit and is not long-term care insurance. Corebridge's materials describe its cost inconsistently, so get the charge in writing. See IUL living benefits.
• Overloan protection. Corebridge's rider FAQ refers to an Overloan Protection Rider on this policy. Riders like it can keep a heavily borrowed policy from lapsing, which matters because a lapse with a loan outstanding can trigger a large tax bill. Ask when it can be used and what it costs.

Another option is a Select Income Rider, at no charge, that pays beneficiaries in installments, which Corebridge says can lower the policy's costs. Ask which other riders, such as a terminal illness benefit, are available in your state and what each costs.

Underwriting and service

Corebridge offers full underwriting and a streamlined process called Agile Underwriting+. Corebridge says it can approve some applicants without a medical exam, lab work or an attending physician statement. For Max Accumulator+ III, its brochure says applicants 59 or younger applying for $2 million or less may qualify. Answer every application question fully: a missing material fact can put a policy at risk. For what the process looks like, see IUL underwriting.

For life policy service, Corebridge lists:

Who Corebridge fits, and who should look elsewhere

Corebridge is a strong candidate if you:

• Want an accumulation IUL and value a built-in path to guaranteed lifetime income later.
• Like spreading money across different kinds of index, including volatility-controlled blends.
• Plan to fund the policy steadily for well over a decade.
• Qualify for Agile Underwriting+ and would rather skip the exam.

Look elsewhere if you:

• Require an A+ or better from AM Best, or want to wait until the merger closes and AM Best settles the rating.
• Might need to surrender in the early years, when surrender charges apply.
• Want to see caps in writing before you talk to anyone. Corebridge does not publish them.
• Mainly want the cheapest permanent death benefit. Term or guaranteed universal life may cost less. See who should not buy IUL.

A word on taxes, since IUL is often sold on them. Income from an IUL usually comes from policy loans and from withdrawals up to your premiums paid. Both are tax-free only while the policy stays in force and is not a modified endowment contract. Corebridge's brochure adds that withdrawals in the first 15 years can be taxed as income first in some cases. If the policy lapses or is surrendered with a loan outstanding, the gain can become taxable in a single year. Our IUL taxes guide walks through the rules.

To compare Corebridge with other carriers, start with our list of the best IUL companies.