Putnam VT Equity Income Fund

Fund summary

Goal

Putnam VT Equity Income Fund seeks capital growth and current income.

Fees and expenses

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the fund. The fees and expenses information does not reflect insurance-related charges or expenses borne by contract holders indirectly investing in the fund. If it did, expenses would be higher.

Annual fund operating expenses (expenses you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

Annual Fund Operating Expenses - Putnam VT Equity Income Fund	Class IA	Class IB
Management fees	0.47%	0.47%
Distribution and service (12b-1) fees		0.25%
Other expenses	0.11%	0.11%
Total annual fund operating expenses	0.58%	0.83%

Example

The following hypothetical example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The example does not reflect insurance-related charges or expenses. If it did, expenses would be higher. It assumes that you invest $10,000 in the fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem or hold all your shares at the end of those periods. It assumes a 5% return on your investment each year and that the fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Your actual costs may be higher or lower.

Expense Example - Putnam VT Equity Income Fund - USD ($)	Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year	Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years	Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years	Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years
Class IA	59	186	324	726
Class IB	85	265	460	1,025

Portfolio turnover

The fund pays transaction-related costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or the above example, affect fund performance. The fund’s turnover rate in the most recent fiscal year was 14%.

Investments, risks, and performance

Investments
We invest mainly in common stocks of midsize and large U.S. companies, with a focus on value stocks that offer the potential for capital growth, current income, or both. Under normal circumstances, we invest at least 80% of the fund’s net assets in common stocks and other equity investments that offer the potential for current income. This policy may be changed only after 60 days’ notice to shareholders. Value stocks are issued by companies that we believe are currently undervalued by the market. If we are correct and other investors ultimately recognize the value of the company, the price of its stock may rise. We may consider, among other factors, a company’s valuation, financial strength, growth potential, competitive position in its industry, projected future earnings, cash flows and dividends when deciding whether to buy or sell investments.

Risks

It is important to understand that you can lose money by investing in the fund.

The value of investments in the fund’s portfolio may fall or fail to rise over extended periods of time for a variety of reasons, including general economic, political or financial market conditions, investor sentiment and market perceptions, government actions, geopolitical events or changes, and factors related to a specific issuer, geography, industry or sector. These and other factors may lead to increased volatility and reduced liquidity in the fund’s portfolio holdings. Value stocks may fail to rebound, and the market may not favor value-style investing. Income provided by the fund may be reduced by changes in the dividend policies of, and the capital resources available at, the companies in which the fund invests.

The fund may not achieve its goal, and it is not intended to be a complete investment program. An investment in the fund is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.

Performance

The performance information below gives some indication of the risks associated with an investment in the fund by showing the fund’s performance year to year and over time. The performance information does not reflect insurance-related charges or expenses. If it did, performance would be lower. Please remember that past performance is not necessarily an indication of future results.

Annual total returns for class IA shares

Year-to-date performance
through 3/31/19  12.01%

Best calendar quarter
Q2 2009   18.31%

Worst calendar quarter
Q3 2011 −17.63%

Average annual total returns (for periods ended 12/31/18)

Average Annual Total Returns - Putnam VT Equity Income Fund		1 Year	5 Years	10 Years
Class IA		(8.27%)	6.45%	12.32%
Class IB		(8.49%)	6.17%	12.05%
Russell 1000 Value Index (no deduction for fees or expenses)	[1]	(8.27%)	5.95%	11.18%

[1] Frank Russell Company is the source and owner of the trademarks, service marks and copyrights related to the Russell Indexes. Russell(R) is a trademark of Frank Russell Company.