Why it earned this rating
Our assessment
Certainty Select 10 earns a middle-of-the-pack rating for the 8-10 year MYGA peer group. The 5.30% guaranteed rate for a full decade is respectable but not chart-topping, and EquiTrust's B++ A.M. Best rating sits a notch below the A- rating many shoppers treat as a floor for a decade-long commitment. What keeps this from rating lower is genuinely useful design: an unusually low $10,000 minimum premium, no annual contract fees, and a set of no-cost riders -- flexible interest withdrawal, a nursing home waiver, a terminal illness waiver -- that most peers charge extra for.
The short version
This is a 10-year guaranteed-rate annuity for someone who wants a CD-like commitment but is comfortable extending the horizon well past a typical 5-7 year MYGA. The rate is locked for the whole term, so there's no reinvestment risk along the way. What it isn't is the highest-yielding MYGA available at this duration, and EquiTrust's B++ rating means the promise behind that rate carries somewhat more credit risk than a top-rated carrier would. Buyers who value the low minimum premium and the no-cost riders will find real value here; buyers focused purely on maximizing yield from an investment-grade-plus carrier should keep shopping.
Key facts
The full review
Is EquiTrust Certainty Select 10 a Good Annuity?
Depends on the buyer. For someone with true 10-year money who wants a fixed, predictable rate and doesn't need the absolute top rate in the market, yes — this is a clean, low-friction product with a genuinely low minimum premium. For someone prioritizing carrier financial strength above A- or chasing the highest posted MYGA rate at this duration, this isn't the strongest fit; both are available elsewhere.
Why Someone Would Buy This Annuity
The core appeal is a full decade of rate certainty at 5.30%, with no market exposure and no ongoing fees eating into that number. For a buyer who believes rates are more likely to fall than rise over the next 10 years, locking in today's number removes reinvestment risk for the whole period. The $10,000 minimum premium is also meaningfully lower than the $25,000-plus many MYGA peers require, which opens this product to buyers with smaller allocations.
Who This Annuity Is Best For
I think this fits a buyer in their 50s through mid-70s with a genuine 10-year horizon — meaning capital they are confident they will not need for daily living expenses during that window — who wants a fixed, guaranteed return and values the no-cost nursing home and terminal illness waivers as a hedge against unexpected health events. It's a reasonable fit for both qualified and non-qualified money, though the long lock makes it a poor match for anyone who anticipates needing access before the free-withdrawal or end-of-term provisions apply.
What You're Really Buying Here
Strip away the branding and this is a 10-year fixed-rate deposit wrapped in an insurance contract. You're not buying market participation or index-linked upside — the crediting method is Fixed, full stop. What you're buying is a guaranteed 5.30% rate for 10 years, tax deferral on the growth, a minimum guaranteed floor if credited rates ever reset lower, and a handful of no-cost riders that soften the edges of a long surrender period.
How the Core Feature Works
The rate is simple: 5.30% is guaranteed for the entire 10-year term as of the brochure date, with no index component, cap, participation rate, or spread to track. At the end of the 10 years, the contract renews into a new guarantee period at a rate EquiTrust declares at that time, subject to the contract's Minimum Guaranteed Interest Rate. That renewal rate isn't known today, so buyers are locking in certainty for the first decade only — what happens after that depends on future market conditions and EquiTrust's declared rates.
Why the Secondary Feature Matters
The more distinctive feature here is the free-withdrawal design. Most MYGAs cap penalty-free withdrawals at 10% of account value per year. Certainty Select 10 instead allows the owner to withdraw all cumulative interest earned, in any contract year, without surrender charge or MVA — with no percentage cap on the base contract. That's a genuinely more generous liquidity feature than the peer norm, and it matters for a buyer who wants to spend interest income along the way — to supplement cash flow, for example — without disturbing principal or triggering penalties.
Liquidity and Surrender Schedule
The 10-year surrender schedule starts at 10% in years one and two and steps down gradually to 5% by year 10 — 10, 10, 9, 9, 8, 8, 7, 7, 6, 5. Notably, it does not zero out by the end of the term the way some 10-year MYGA schedules do; a full surrender in contract year 10 itself would still carry a 5% charge unless the owner uses the built-in 30-day window immediately before the guarantee period ends, when the contract can be surrendered, partially withdrawn, or annuitized (for at least 10 years or life) free of surrender charge and MVA. Outside that window, the free-withdrawal provision for accumulated interest is available every year regardless. If the optional no-cost liquidity rider is elected, that free-withdrawal allowance expands to include up to 10% of account value annually — beyond just interest — starting in the second contract year. MVA — Market Value Adjustment, meaning the surrender penalty can move up or down with prevailing interest rates — applies to any withdrawal above the free amount for the life of the schedule, except in Vermont, where MVA is never applied, and except in Florida, Alaska, Alabama, South Carolina, and Texas, which use a different end-of-term auto-renewal structure with no surrender charge or MVA at that point.
Fees and Tradeoffs
There's no annual contract fee, no M&E charge, and no administration charge on the base contract, and the riders that do exist — the liquidity rider and the Nursing Home Waiver — are both no-cost additions rather than paid enhancements. That's a real advantage over MYGA designs that charge for similar flexibility. The tradeoff here isn't a fee; it's opportunity cost and credit risk. Locking a rate for 10 years means giving up the ability to reprice into a higher rate if market yields rise, and EquiTrust's B++ A.M. Best rating is a step below the A- rating many shoppers treat as a minimum bar for a decade-long insurance promise.
| Contract Year | Surrender Charge |
|---|---|
| 1 | 10% |
| 2 | 10% |
| 3 | 9% |
| 4 | 9% |
| 5 | 8% |
| 6 | 8% |
| 7 | 7% |
| 8 | 7% |
| 9 | 6% |
| 10 | 5% |
Product snapshot
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Product Type | Fixed Annuity |
| Surrender Period | 10 years |
| Issue Ages | 0-90 |
| Minimum Premium | $10,000 |
| Crediting Methods | Fixed |
| Free Withdrawal | Cumulative interest earned may be withdrawn at any time in every contract year without surrender charge or MVA, either as a single withdrawal (minimum $250) or systematically (monthly, quarterly, semiannually, or annually via EFT). If the optional liquidity rider is elected, free withdrawals of interest are allowed in year 1, and up to 10% of the Accumulation Value (as of the prior anniversary) may be withdrawn free of surrender charge or MVA each year thereafter. |
| MGSV | 87.5% of premium paid, less any partial withdrawals, plus interest at a rate no lower than 1% and no higher than 3% (varies by state) |
| Death Benefit | Base contract: Accumulation Value payable immediately to the beneficiary upon death of the first owner (before the end of the guarantee period), per the Certainty Select Agent Guide; the Wink product profile lists this as the Greater of Full Account Value or Minimum Guaranteed Surrender Value. Optional no-cost rider: beneficiary choice of Cash Surrender Value immediately, or Accumulation Value applied to a payment option for at least 5 years or life. |
| Income Rider | Not available |
| Premium Bonus | None |
| Availability | Not approved in New York. Variations approved in AK, AL, CA, CT, FL, ID, IN, MN, MT, NJ, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, TX, UT, VT, WA. The optional liquidity rider is not available in North Carolina, Ohio, or Texas. The Nursing Home Waiver is not available in Massachusetts. MVA is not applied in Vermont. Florida, Alaska, Alabama, South Carolina, and Texas have distinct end-of-guarantee-period renewal rules (automatic annual-reset default with no surrender charges or MVA). |
Carrier snapshot
Legal Entity: EquiTrust Life Insurance Company
Parent: Guggenheim Partners
A.M. Best Rating: B++
Final take
Certainty Select 10 is a clean, low-minimum, no-fee MYGA for a buyer who genuinely has 10 years to commit and wants a fixed rate without complexity. The unlimited free withdrawal of interest and the no-cost nursing home and terminal illness waivers are real value-adds that most peers don't offer for free. Where it falls short of a top-tier rating is the combination of a B++ carrier rating and a headline rate that, while solid, isn't the strongest available at this duration — plus a surrender schedule that technically never reaches zero without using the end-of-term access window. If the 10-year horizon and the carrier rating both work for you, this is a reasonable option. If you want the highest possible MYGA yield or a carrier rated A- or better, compare this against alternatives before committing.