Payroll & Benefits
The Best 401(k) Providers of 2026
A shortlist of 401(k) providers for employers ranked from verified product data, so you can compare plan types, payroll integration, fiduciary support, compliance testing and fees instead of vendor claims. Every score traces back to a fact we checked against vendor documentation and public sources.
- products compared
- 7
- with a published score
- 3
- per employee per month
- $5–$6
- last updated
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Our top picks
- Best overall
Human Interest
by Human Interest Inc.
Highest LeadChange Score here (9.4/10), with 8 of 10 core 401(k) capabilities verified.
From $80/mo + $5/employee/mo1
- Best for small businesses
Betterment at Work
by Betterment Holdings Inc.
Highest score among products that list small businesses as a target segment, with pricing and fit weighted more.
From $100/mo + $5/employee/mo2
LeadChange Score: editorial assessment based on public information.
401(k) Providers ranked by LeadChange Score
Ranked by LeadChange Score from verified facts; products with too few verified facts are not scored yet and come last. Prices are list prices as published by each vendor.
Filter by verified facts
Human Interest
Best for Small and mid-sized employers that want published 401(k) pricing
Human Interest is a 401(k) and 403(b) provider for small and medium-sized businesses, based in San Francisco, with three plans priced as a monthly base fee plus a fee per eligible employee.
Betterment at Work
Best for Small and mid-market employers that want a published 401(k) price
Betterment at Work is the 401(k) for small and mid-market businesses from Betterment, based in New York, with 3(16) and 3(38) fiduciary services, compliance testing and 350+ payroll integrations. Essential costs $100 a month billed annually plus $5 per participant and a 0.25% advisory fee; Flagship is quoted.
Fidelity Workplace Investing
Best for Small businesses starting a 401(k) for the first time
Fidelity Workplace Investing sells Fidelity Advantage 401(k), a Safe Harbor plan for businesses with 2 to 1,000 employees starting their first 401(k), from privately held Fidelity, founded in 1946 in Boston.
- Pricing model
- Base fee + per employee5
Paychex Retirement Services
Best for Businesses that already run payroll on Paychex Flex
Paychex Retirement Services is the 401(k) business of Paychex, a public company founded in 1971 with headquarters in Rochester, New York and Cincinnati, Ohio; it offers pooled employer, traditional, solo and SIMPLE/SEP plans. Pricing is quoted; Paychex states SOC 2 Type 2 reports and ISO 27001 certification.
Not scored yetPaychex Retirement Services pricing
Principal Financial Group
Best for Small businesses that want published 401(k) pricing through Simply Retirement
Principal offers 401(k), 403(b), 401(a) and pooled employer plans from start-up to large institutions, plus Simply Retirement by Principal for businesses with fewer than 100 employees; the company was founded in 1879 and is based in Des Moines, Iowa.
- Pricing model
- Base fee + per employee8
Show all 7 products
- EmpowerNot scored yet (9 of 24 facts verified)Empower plans and prices
- Vanguard Workplace SolutionsNot scored yet (9 of 24 facts verified)Vanguard Workplace Solutions pricing
LeadChange Score: editorial assessment based on public information.
Find your fit
Compare the top 7 side by side
| Product | Score | Starting base fee | Pricing model | SOC 2 Type II | Mobile apps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Human Interest1,3 | 9.4 | $80/mo | Base fee + per employee | Not disclosed | |
| Betterment at Work2,4,9 | 7.9 | $100/mo | Base fee + per employee | ||
| Fidelity Workplace Investing5,10 | 7.7 | $100/mo | Base fee + per employee | Not disclosed | NetBenefits (web and mobile app) |
| Paychex Retirement Services6,7,11 | Not scored | Not disclosed | Quote only | ||
| Principal Financial Group8,12 | Not scored | $145/mo | Base fee + per employee | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
 Empower13,14 | Not scored | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | ||
| Vanguard Workplace Solutions15 | Not scored | Not disclosed | Base fee + per employee | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
Not disclosed = the vendor doesn’t publish it.
Pricing at a glance
Monthly list cost from each vendor’s published base and per-employee prices, before discounts.
10 employees
$100–$205/mo
Median $140/mo
Published list prices of 4 products at 10 employees
50 employees
$100–$445/mo
Median $340/mo
Published list prices of 4 products at 50 employees
200 employees
$100–$1,345/mo
Median $1,090/mo
Published list prices of 4 products at 200 employees
How the 5 pricing models work
- Flat fee
- A fixed monthly or yearly base fee paid by the company for plan administration, common with providers aimed at small businesses.
- Per participant
- A monthly or yearly charge for each participant or active employee, often added on top of a base fee.
- Percentage of assets
- Investment management, and sometimes recordkeeping, charged as a share of plan assets and usually deducted from participant accounts.
- Tiered plans
- Editions that add services such as fiduciary support, safe harbor design, advisor access or additional plan features at higher tiers.
- Custom quote1 of 7 products
- Larger plans or plan conversions are priced after the provider reviews assets, headcount and plan design.
How to choose 401(k) providers
6 criteria · Requirements by company size · 6 red flags
Choose a 401(k) provider on three things: which duties it takes on in writing, how cleanly contributions flow from payroll, and the total cost to the company and to participants. Plan features matter, but most problems come from gaps between payroll, recordkeeping and compliance.
The Department of Labor suggests surveying several providers and asking each for the same information. Bring your payroll system, headcount, employee turnover and the plan design you want to every demo, and ask for a written fee disclosure up front.
Plan types and design options
The IRS describes traditional, safe harbor and SIMPLE 401(k) plans, each with different contribution and testing rules, so the provider must support the design that fits your workforce.
Fiduciary roles in writing
The Department of Labor says hiring an investment manager relieves the employer of liability for that manager's individual investment decisions, but the employer must still select and monitor the manager.
Payroll integration and deposit timing
Employee deferrals must reach the plan on time, and for plans with fewer than 100 participants the Department of Labor treats deposits made by the 7th business day after withholding as compliant.
Compliance testing and corrections
Traditional plans must pass annual ADP and ACP tests, and failed tests or operational mistakes need prompt, documented correction.
Form 5500 and government reporting
The IRS says Form 5500 is due by the last day of the seventh month after the plan year ends and must be filed electronically through EFAST2.
Fee transparency
The Department of Labor groups plan fees into administration, investment and individual service fees, and says service providers must disclose their services and all compensation they expect to receive.
Requirements by company size
Small businesses
- Direct sync with your payroll system for deferrals and new hires
- Plan document, testing and Form 5500 preparation included
- Clear written statement of any fiduciary roles the provider takes on
Watch out for
- Asset-based fees that are hard to see on participant statements
- Fiduciary support described in marketing but missing from the agreement
- Setup and termination fees disclosed only in the fine print
Mid-sized companies
- Testing support with options for safe harbor or plan design changes
- Investment menu review and documented fiduciary process
- Controlling-group and multi-entity payroll handling
Watch out for
- Revenue sharing that hides the real cost of recordkeeping
- Integrations that cover deferrals but not hours or compensation
- Service teams that rotate without knowledge of your plan
Enterprises
- Recordkeeping at scale with data feeds from several payroll systems
- Support for plan audits and committee reporting
- Negotiated, itemized fees with benchmarking
Watch out for
- Bundled pricing that blocks you from changing funds or advisors
- Long conversion timelines and extended blackout periods
- Weak controls over participant data and distributions
Red flags
- The provider cannot give you a written fee disclosure before you sign
- Fiduciary roles are promised in sales materials but not named in the service agreement
- Contributions must be uploaded by hand after every payroll with no error checks
- No clear owner for nondiscrimination testing or Form 5500 preparation
- High surrender charges or exit fees on the investment products
- Claims that using the provider removes all of the employer's fiduciary responsibility
Popular comparisons in this category
Popular alternatives
Integrations for 401(k) providers
Apps with documented integrations across the products ranked on this page.
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Frequently asked questions
What does a 401(k) provider do for an employer?
A 401(k) provider sets up and runs the plan: it supplies the plan document, keeps records for each participant's account, offers the investment menu, takes contribution data from payroll and usually handles annual testing, participant notices and Form 5500 preparation. Some providers also take on defined fiduciary roles. The employer still decides on the plan and must select and monitor its providers.
Is there a tax credit for starting a 401(k) plan?
Yes, for eligible small employers. The IRS describes a credit for eligible startup costs that can be claimed for three years, and a separate credit, also for three years, when the plan adds automatic enrollment. Eligibility depends on the company's size and the pay of its employees, and the credit is claimed on Form 8881.
What is a safe harbor 401(k)?
The IRS describes a safe harbor 401(k) as a plan that must provide employer contributions that are fully vested when made, in exchange for not being subject to the annual nondiscrimination tests that apply to traditional 401(k) plans. Employers must give employees a safe harbor notice at least 30 days and not more than 90 days before the start of each plan year.
Does hiring a 401(k) provider remove my fiduciary responsibility?
No. The Department of Labor says fiduciary status depends on the functions performed, and an employer keeps responsibility for selecting and monitoring its service providers. Hiring a qualified investment manager means the employer is not liable for that manager's individual investment decisions, but it must still monitor the manager. Check which roles a provider accepts in writing.
What is the difference between a 401(k) provider and benefits administration software?
A 401(k) provider runs the retirement plan itself: recordkeeping, investments, testing and reporting. Benefits administration software manages enrollment and eligibility across many benefits, such as health, dental and vision, and may pass retirement deferral elections to payroll. Most employers with a 401(k) need a plan provider even if they also use benefits administration software.
Can an employer switch 401(k) providers?
Yes. Employers can move a plan to a new provider, usually through a conversion that transfers assets and participant records and includes a blackout period. Because selecting and keeping a service provider is a fiduciary decision, the Department of Labor recommends reviewing providers at reasonable intervals. Compare exit fees, conversion timelines and the new provider's fee disclosure before you decide.
What is the best 401(k) providers provider?
Human Interest has the highest LeadChange Score of the 7 products in our ranking, 9.4 out of 10, ahead of Betterment at Work (7.9) and Fidelity Workplace Investing (7.7). Human Interest's score rests on 17 of 24 checks verified from public sources. 4 more products are listed without a score until enough of their data is public.
Which 401(k) providers in our ranking integrate with Gusto?
Gusto, listed by 3 of the 7 401(k) providers in our ranking: Betterment at Work, Fidelity Workplace Investing, and Human Interest.
Which 401(k) providers in our ranking are built for enterprises?
Empower, Paychex Retirement Services, and Principal Financial Group list enterprises among the company sizes they serve.
How we research
Ranked by the LeadChange Score, computed only from verified facts: capability coverage (30%), pricing and value (20%), integrations and API (15%), security (15%), fit and support (10%) and data confidence (10%), times a category fit. Products with too few verified facts are not scored yet and come last. Payment never changes a score or a position.
Facts, not impressions · Missing data is never assumed · Independent of revenue
Facts, not impressions
Every input is a fact verified against vendors’ official documentation, with the date we last checked it.
Missing data is never assumed
Unverified items are left out of the score and lower its coverage; below 60% coverage a product is not scored yet.
Independent of revenue
Rankings never depend on whether a vendor pays us.
How this page was made
What it is built from
27 verified facts, each checked against the vendor's own pages or another primary source, most recently on Oct 25, 2026.
Method
Scored and compared with the LeadChange methodology, version 1.3. Read the methodology
Independent review
Not reviewed yet by our independent reviewer. How we review
Hands-on testing
We have not tested these products hands-on: this page uses public information only.
Who made it
The LeadChange Research Team, following a written research process. No named expert has reviewed this page. About us
Independence and errors
Who pays us never changes a score or a rank. If something here is wrong, tell us and we correct it publicly. Request a correction
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Sources
The 22 pages this page's facts come from, with the day we last checked each one. The numbers beside the figures above link here.
Quotes from the sources
- Human Interest · checked Oct 24, 2026 humaninterest.com/pricing“Per eligible employee $5 / mo” “$80 /mo base +$5/mo per eligible employee”
- Betterment · checked Oct 24, 2026 betterment.com/work/pricing“monthly record-keeping fee per participant” “monthly base fee, billed each calendar year annually ($1,200)”
- Human Interest · checked Oct 24, 2026 security.humaninterest.com“SOC 1 SOC 2 Type 1 SOC 2 Type 2”
- Betterment · checked Oct 24, 2026 betterment.com/hubfs/PDFs/b4b/employer-dashboard/Betterment%20at%20Work%20Security%20Brochure.pdf“Audit reports are made available to clients, including a SOC 2 Type II with coverage for the security program, as well as a SOC 1 Type II report with coverage for internal controls specifically relevant to us.”
- Fidelity Investments · checked Oct 24, 2026 fidelity.com/retirement-ira/small-business/401k-plans“$100 monthly fee”
- Paychex · checked Oct 24, 2026 paychex.com/retirement-services“The cost of a Paychex 401(k) plan depends on factors like your business size and the services you require.”
- Paychex · checked Oct 24, 2026 paychex.com/corporate/security“Paychex maintains SOC 1 Type 2 and SOC 2 Type 2 reports over various products and services.”
- Principal · checked Oct 24, 2026 simplyretirement.com/business-owners/why-simply-retirement“There’s a one-time startup fee of $500 for bundled plans, a monthly recordkeeping fee as low as $145 ($435 billed quarterly), and a $6 monthly fee per participating employee.”
- Betterment · checked Oct 25, 2026 betterment.com/work“Weighted avg. app store rating as of 9/3/25 (reviews since: 9/10/10 Apple, 10/30/13 Google).”
- Fidelity Investments · checked Oct 24, 2026 fidelityworkplace.com/s/401ksmallbusiness-details“Your employees will have access to NetBenefits®– Fidelity’s #1-rated web and mobile app¹”
- Paychex · checked Oct 24, 2026 paychex.com/apps/mobile-app“Access to payroll, time, HR, benefits, retirement, and scheduling”
- Principal · checked Oct 24, 2026 simplyretirement.com/business-owners“Pricing shown applies when working with a third party administrator (TPA).”
- Empower · checked Oct 24, 2026 empower.com/plan-sponsors/about-empower/cybersecurity“Unqualified SOC 2 Type 2 third-party attestation”
- Empower · checked Oct 24, 2026 empower.com/plan-sponsors/what-we-offer/small-to-mid“Participants can enroll, adjust contribution rates, track progress, and view their complete financial picture — all in one place, on web or mobile.”
- Vanguard · checked Oct 24, 2026 workplace.vanguard.com/content/dam/inst/iig-transformation/offers/vrpa/pdf/build-your-retirement-business-with-Vanguard-Retirement-Plan-Access-Advisor-pricing.pdf“Our bundled program includes both recordkeeping and certain plan administration services.”
- irs.gov · checked Oct 25, 2026 IRS: 401(k) Plan Overview
- irs.gov · checked Oct 25, 2026 IRS: Choosing a Retirement Plan: 401(k) Plan
- irs.gov · checked Oct 25, 2026 IRS: Form 5500 Corner
- irs.gov · checked Oct 25, 2026 IRS: Retirement Plans Startup Costs Tax Credit
- dol.gov · checked Oct 25, 2026 U.S. Department of Labor, EBSA: Meeting Your Fiduciary Responsibilities
- dol.gov · checked Oct 25, 2026 U.S. Department of Labor, EBSA: Understanding Retirement Plan Fees and Expenses
- irs.gov · checked Oct 25, 2026 DOL and IRS: Automatic Enrollment 401(k) Plans for Small Businesses