An employer-sponsored retirement savings plan that allows employees to defer pre-tax (or Roth post-tax) wages to a retirement account.
A 401(k) plan is an employer-sponsored, tax-advantaged retirement savings plan named after Section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code. Employees can elect to defer a portion of their wages into the plan on a pre-tax basis (reducing taxable income today, with taxes paid on withdrawal) or as Roth contributions (after-tax now, tax-free withdrawals later). Many employers match a percentage of employee contributions as an additional benefit.
For 2026, the elective deferral limit is $23,500 ($30,500 for employees age 50+ with the catch-up). The combined employee + employer limit is $69,000. Vesting of employer contributions can be immediate, cliff (e.g., 100% after 3 years), or graded (e.g., 20% per year over 5 years).
401(k) plans are subject to ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974) and require annual Form 5500 filing, fiduciary oversight by the plan sponsor, and non-discrimination testing (ADP/ACP) unless the plan adopts a Safe Harbor design. Common 401(k) administrators include Guideline, Human Interest, Vestwell, ADP Retirement Services, and Fidelity. Modern HR platforms integrate with these providers to sync contributions automatically each pay period.
Our 401(k) plan offers a 4% Safe Harbor match, fully vested immediately, integrated with Guideline and synced to payroll each cycle.
Peoplifi unifies HR, payroll, time tracking, and performance into one modern platform — so concepts like 401(k) stay handled, not stuck in spreadsheets.
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