Putnam VT Multi-Asset Absolute Return Fund*

*Prior to April 30, 2018, the fund was known as Putnam VT Absolute Return 500 Fund.

Fund Summary

Goal

Putnam VT Multi-Asset Absolute Return Fund seeks positive total return.

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 Multi-Asset Absolute Return Fund		Class IA	Class IB
Management fees		0.72%	0.72%
Distribution and service (12b-1) fees			0.25%
Other expenses		0.63%	0.63%
Acquired fund fees and expenses		0.04%	0.04%
Total annual fund operating expenses		1.39%	1.64%
Expense reimbursement	[1]	(0.45%)	(0.45%)
Total annual fund operating expenses after expense reimbursement		0.94%	1.19%

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. Only the first year of each period in the example takes into account the expense reimbursement described above. Your actual costs may be higher or lower.

Expense Example - Putnam VT Multi-Asset Absolute Return 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	96	396	718	1,630
Class IB	121	473	849	1,906

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 576%.

Investments, risks, and performance

Investments

The fund is designed to pursue a consistent absolute return by combining two independent investment strategies — a beta strategy, which provides broad exposure to investment markets, and an alpha strategy, which seeks returns from active trading. The beta strategy seeks to balance risk and to provide positive total return by investing, without limit, in many different asset classes, including U.S., international, and emerging markets equity securities (growth or value stocks or both) and fixed-income securities; mortgage- and asset-backed securities; below-investment-grade securities (sometimes referred to as “junk bonds”); inflation-protected securities; commodities; and real estate investment trusts (REITs). The alpha strategy involves the potential use of active trading strategies designed to provide additional total return through active security selection, tactical asset allocation, currency transactions and options transactions. In pursuing a consistent absolute return, the fund’s strategies are also generally intended to produce lower volatility over a reasonable period of time than has been historically associated with traditional asset classes that have earned similar levels of return over long historical periods. These traditional asset classes might include, for example, equities or equity-like investments.

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 equity investments, and, among other factors, credit, interest rate and prepayment risks when deciding whether to buy or sell fixed-income investments. We may also take into account general market conditions when making investment decisions. We typically use derivatives, such as futures, options, certain foreign currency transactions, warrants and swap contracts, to a significant extent for hedging purposes and to increase the fund’s exposure to the asset classes and strategies mentioned above, which may create investment leverage.

Risks

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

Our allocation of assets among asset classes may hurt performance. The value of stocks and bonds in the fund’s portfolio may fall or fail to rise over extended periods of time for a variety of reasons, including general financial market conditions, changing market perceptions (including, in the case of bonds, perceptions about the risk of default and expectations about monetary policy or interest rates), changes in government intervention in the financial markets, and factors related to a specific issuer or industry. These and other factors may lead to increased volatility and reduced liquidity in the fund’s portfolio holdings. Growth stocks may be more susceptible to earnings disappointments, and value stocks may fail to rebound.

Bond investments are subject to interest rate risk, which means the value of the fund’s bond investments is likely to fall if interest rates rise. Bond investments also are subject to credit risk, which is the risk that the issuer of the bond may default on payment of interest or principal. Interest rate risk is generally greater for longer-term bonds, and credit risk is generally greater for below-investment-grade bonds, which may be considered speculative. Mortgage-backed investments, unlike traditional debt investments, are also subject to prepayment risk, which means that they may increase in value less than other bonds when interest rates decline and decline in value more than other bonds when interest rates rise. We may have to invest the proceeds from prepaid investments, including mortgage- and asset-backed investments, in other investments with less attractive terms and yields.

The value of international investments traded in foreign currencies may be adversely impacted by fluctuations in exchange rates. International investments, particularly investments in emerging markets, may carry risks associated with potentially less stable economies or governments (such as the risk of seizure by a foreign government, the imposition of currency or other restrictions, or high levels of inflation), and may be or become illiquid. Our alpha strategy may lose money or not earn a return sufficient to cover associated trading and other costs. Our use of leverage obtained through derivatives increases the risk of investing in the fund by increasing investment exposure. Derivatives also involve the risk, in the case of many over-the-counter instruments, of the potential inability to terminate or sell derivatives positions and the potential failure of the other party to the instrument to meet its obligations.

The fund may not achieve its goal, and it is not intended to be a complete investment program. The fund’s efforts to produce lower volatility returns may not be successful. 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. Before April 30, 2018, the fund was managed with a materially different investment strategy and may have achieved materially different performance results under its current strategy from that shown for periods before this date. 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 3/31/18   −2.28%

Best calendar quarter
Q1 2012  4.57%

Worst calendar quarter
Q2 2013 −1.55%

Average annual total returns
(for periods ending 12/31/17)

Average Annual Total Returns - Putnam VT Multi-Asset Absolute Return Fund	1 Year	5 Years	Since Inception	Inception Date
Class IA	7.19%	3.26%	2.54%	May 02, 2011
Class IB	6.98%	2.98%	2.27%	May 02, 2011
S&P 500 Index (no deduction for fees or expenses)	21.83%	15.79%	13.00%	May 02, 2011
Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index (no deduction for fees or expenses)	3.54%	2.10%	3.10%	May 02, 2011
ICE BofAML U.S. Treasury Bill Index (no deduction for fees or expenses)	0.81%	0.28%	0.24%	May 02, 2011
ICE BofAML U.S. Treasury Bill Index plus 500 basis points (no deduction for fees or expenses)	5.81%	5.28%	5.24%	May 02, 2011

The Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index and the S&P 500 Index are broad measures of market performance. Securities in the fund do not match those in the indexes and the performance of the fund will differ.

ICE BofAML Indexes: ICE Data Indices, LLC (“ICE BofAML”), used with permission. ICE BofAML permits use of the ICE BofAML indices and related data on an “as is” basis; makes no warranties regarding same; does not guarantee the suitability, quality, accuracy, timeliness, and/or completeness of the ICE BofAML indices or any data included in, related to, or derived therefrom; assumes no liability in connection with the use of the foregoing; and does not sponsor, endorse, or recommend Putnam Investments, or any of its products or services.

ICE BofAML U.S. Treasury Bill Index tracks the performance of U.S. dollar denominated U.S. Treasury bills, which represent obligations of the U.S. Government having a maturity of one year or less, and is intended as an approximate measure of the rate of inflation.

[1] Reflects Putnam Investment Management, LLC's contractual obligation to limit certain fund expenses through 4/30/19. This obligation may be modified or discontinued only with approval of the fund's Board of Trustees.