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    Financial planning for your retirement nest egg

    august 7, 2026

    Does financial planning sound intimidating? It doesn’t have to be. Building a well-rounded strategy can start with simple questions about your goals and can give you confidence in your future. By understanding the key elements of a sound financial plan—with the help of a financial professional—you may be able to mold a more complete vision of the retirement you want to live.
     

    What is financial planning?

    Financial planning is a process for setting, tracking and achieving your financial goals over time. It involves evaluating your current financial situation, determining where you want to be in the future and establishing a strategy for getting there. And when it comes to retirement, financial planning is an integral part of helping you live the life you want when your working days are done.
     

    Financial planning first step: self-awareness

    A powerful first step to any financial plan is knowing yourself. Setting money aside for the future can help you start building financial stability. But better understanding your goals for retirement—and potential roadblocks to getting there—will help clear your path toward retirement success.

    • Cut the stress out of retirement. Stress can stem from many sources, but financial stability is a common concern for people approaching or living in retirement. Learn five steps to help achieve financial stability for a stress-free retirement.
    • Pursue your next passion. Make the most of retirement by staying active. Discover activities for seniors that can help support your well-being and strengthen connections with friends and family.
    • Prepare your financial plan. Do you know how much money you need to retire? Our retirement income and expense calculator can help identify potential income gaps and provide an estimate that works for your retirement needs.
       

    What makes a well-rounded financial plan?

    With clarity around what you want out of retirement, you can better strategize your path to getting there. Your financial professional can help you address these key areas to make your financial plan balanced and tailored to your retirement goals.

    • Saving, investing and generating income. Once you retire, covering your day-to-day expenses with savings becomes key. An annuity may help bridge the gap between your retirement savings and other sources of retirement income by providing a steady stream of income.
    • Balancing protection and growth. Depending on your risk tolerance, asset growth is possible with many different types of annuities. Think of income protection and growth in the form of a risk spectrum—how much are you willing to expose yourself to potential market loss and how much do you want to gain?
    • Planning tax-efficiently. Saving on your tax bill may be important to you—particularly when drawing income and investing. Whether your annuity earns a fixed rate of interest, offers growth tied to an index or includes investment subaccounts, these earnings have the potential to grow tax deferred* until withdrawn.

     

    How annuities may fit into your financial plan.

    An annuity is a retirement product that may provide a source of income when you need it. It can help complement traditional sources of retirement income, such as Social Security. Plus, if you don't need income right away, your assets may continue to grow tax deferred.

    Annuities may potentially serve multiple purposes in your financial plan to help meet your unique retirement needs. As with any investment, annuities can be selected based on a balance between the risk and reward of the specific product.

    To understand them better, let’s look at different types of annuities (along with various investment types) and how they’re commonly utilized in financial plans.

     

    Annuity types: Fixed index annuities (FIA) returns based on the performance of an index, and there is no return-nor loss-when the index is negative. Registered index-linked annuities (RILA) greater potential returns in exchange for some protection when an index is negative. Variable annuities (VA) full market participation in exchange for absobing loss due to market downturns. Investment types: Risk spectrum scale depicting Less risk / Less reward up to More risk / More reward showcasing CDs, Bonds, Mutual Funds, Stocks in that order. Disclaimer: this risk spectrum is for illustrative purposes only, is not intended as a complete comparison of all characteristics of the referenced investments, and does not showcase all potential differences and risks.

     

    Planning calculators and tools to support your retirement goals

    At Jackson, we have a variety of financial calculators and tools that can help clear up the financial planning process. With these tools, you can work with your financial professional to explore how much income you might need in retirement—and when. Then you can make a more informed decision about whether, and which, annuity products are a right fit for your plan.

    • Retirement expense and income calculator. Work with a financial professional to effectively project expenses in retirement using factors such as current income, retirement age and retirement state. You can also calculate the gap between essential expenses and guaranteed† income.
    • Social Security calculator. Social Security is a foundational part of a retirement income plan, and deciding when to start collecting monthly benefits is an important decision.
    • Tax deferral calculator. Explore how savings may perform in a tax-deferred account compared with a taxable account to help inform a more tax-efficient retirement strategy.

     

    Talk to your financial professional about your retirement goals and how an annuity may support your financial plan for retirement.

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    *Tax deferral offers no additional value if an IRA or qualified plan, such as a 401(k), is used to fund an annuity and may be found at a lower cost in other investment products. It also may not be available if the annuity is owned by a legal entity such as a corporation or certain types of trusts.

    †Guarantees are backed by the claims-paying ability of Jackson National Life Insurance Company or Jackson National Life Insurance Company of New York.

    Annuities are long-term, tax-deferred vehicles designed for retirement. Variable annuities and registered index-linked annuities involve investment risks and may lose value. Earnings are taxable as ordinary income when distributed. Individuals may be subject to a 10% additional tax for withdrawals before age 59½ unless an exception to the tax is met.

     

    Before investing, investors should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of the variable annuity and its underlying investment options. The current contract prospectus and underlying fund prospectuses provide this and other important information. Please contact your financial professional or the Company to obtain the prospectuses. Please read the prospectuses carefully before investing or sending money.

    Jackson, its distributors, and their respective representatives do not provide tax, accounting, or legal advice. Any tax statements contained herein were not intended or written to be used and cannot be used for the purpose of avoiding U.S. federal, state, or local tax penalties. Tax laws are complicated and subject to change. Tax results may depend on each taxpayer’s individual set of facts and circumstances. Clients should rely on their own independent advisors as to any tax, accounting, or legal statements made herein.

    Guarantees are backed by the claims-paying ability of Jackson National Life Insurance Company or Jackson National Life Insurance Company of New York. For variable annuities, guarantees do not apply to the principal amount or investment performance of a variable annuity’s separate account or its underlying investments. They are not backed by the broker/dealer from which this annuity contract is purchased, by the insurance agency from which this annuity contract is purchased or any affiliates of those entities, and none makes any representations or guarantees regarding the claims-paying ability of Jackson National Life Insurance Company or Jackson National Life Insurance Company of New York.

    The latest maturity date or income date allowed under an annuity contract is age 95, which is the required age to annuitize or take a lump sum. Please see the prospectus for important information regarding the annuitization of a variable annuity contract.

    Annuities are issued by Jackson National Life Insurance Company (Home Office: Lansing, Michigan) and in New York, by Jackson National Life Insurance Company of New York (Home Office: Purchase, New York).  Annuities are distributed by Jackson National Life Distributors LLC, member FINRA. These contracts have limitations and restrictions. Jackson issues other annuities with similar features, benefits, limitations, and charges. Contact Jackson for more information.

    Jackson® is the marketing name for Jackson Financial Inc., Jackson National Life Insurance Company®, and Jackson National Life Insurance Company of New York®.