ULIP offers a combination of life insurance and investments benefits.Some portion of the ULIP premium goes towards insurance and the remaining goes towards equity. Hence the return is not fixed and depends on the market. Whereas NSC is a fixed income saving allowed by the government for tax deduction. Both ULIP and NSC serve different purposes, for example if you are looking for a more secure low risk investment then NSC is a better option whereas if you are looking for higher return with moderately higher risk than ULIP would be a better investment.