By Jozsef Huszar • Updated: October 25, 2026
Choosing where your 401(k) lives sounds simple until you learn that most of the price tag is set by your employer, not the provider. This 401(k) plan comparison looks at seven names you will meet: Fidelity, Vanguard, Empower, Charles Schwab, T. Rowe Price, Gusto and BlackRock. We read their own pages and fee disclosures on October 25, 2026, and where a number is plan-specific we say so instead of guessing. The figures that are public, such as fund costs and account fees, are compared below. New to the basics? Read our guide to how a 401(k) works first.
Quick comparison
The table keeps the research workbook’s wording, and each provider name links to the page we recorded for it. Notice the Plan Type column: Fidelity, Empower, Gusto and BlackRock describe employer plans, where your boss chooses the menu, while Schwab and T. Rowe Price sell Individual 401(k)s to self-employed owners. Vanguard’s row is about what to do with an old plan. Only a few rows give costs in numbers.
| Provider / Plan | Plan Type | Investment & Participant Features | Typical Cost Structure | FDIC Insured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fidelity – 401(k | Employer-sponsored defined-contribution retirement plan | Automatic payroll contributions, potential employer matching, and tax-deferred investment growth. Investment options depend on the employer’s plan and may include mutual funds and target-date funds. 2026 employee contribution limit: $24,500, with additional catch-up contributions potentially available based on age and eligibility. | Fees vary by employer plan and may include administrative, investment, and advisory expenses. Check the plan’s fee disclosures. | N/A |
| Vanguard – 401(k) Rollover / IRA | Employer-sponsored 401(k) rollover options and individual retirement accounts (IRAs) | Participants leaving an employer may keep eligible assets in the former plan, roll them into a new employer’s plan, roll them into a Traditional or Roth IRA, or cash out. Vanguard IRAs offer a broader range of investment choices, including mutual funds and ETFs, plus optional personalized financial advice. Rollover eligibility and tax treatment depend on the account and transaction. | Costs vary by account, investments, and advice service. Vanguard’s average mutual fund and ETF expense ratio is 0.07%, compared with a 0.44% industry average as of December 31, 2025. Advisory and other account fees may apply. | N/A |
| Empower – 401(k) | Employer-sponsored defined-contribution retirement plan | Traditional pretax and Roth after-tax contributions; potential employer matching; investment options selected by the employer, such as mutual funds, collective investment trusts, stable value funds, and target-date funds. The 2026 employee contribution limit is $24,500, with additional catch-up contributions available for eligible participants. Withdrawal restrictions, taxes, and potential early-withdrawal penalties apply. | Fees vary by employer plan and may include administrative, investment, and advisory fees. Compare the plan’s specific fee disclosures. | N/A |
| Charles Schwab – Individual 401(k) | Self-employed retirement plan for business owners with no employees other than a spouse; Traditional and Roth options | Allows eligible business owners to contribute as both employee and employer, including salary deferrals and profit-sharing contributions. Flexible annual contributions, retirement-planning tools, and one-on-one investment guidance. Traditional contributions are generally tax-deductible with tax-deferred growth; qualified Roth withdrawals are tax-free. | $0 account opening and maintenance fees; $0 minimum opening deposit. Fund expenses, brokerage commissions, and other account fees may apply. | N/A |
| T. Rowe Price – Individual 401(k) | Self-employed retirement plan for business owners with no eligible employees other than a working spouse; Traditional and Roth contribution options | Allows salary-deferral and discretionary employer profit-sharing contributions, with flexible annual contributions. Offers more than 100 mutual funds, including target-date funds and diversified retirement portfolios. Traditional contributions may reduce current taxable income; qualified Roth distributions are tax-free. The plan sponsor is responsible for plan administration and investment decisions. | No plan setup costs or sales loads. A $20 annual account service fee applies to each mutual fund account with a balance below $10,000, but may be waived for eligible paperless accounts, customers with at least $50,000 in qualifying T. Rowe Price assets, and certain program participants. A $20 account closeout fee may apply. Fund expenses and other retirement-account costs may apply. | N/A |
| Gusto (formerly Guideline) – 401(k) | Employer-sponsored retirement plan for small businesses, integrated with Gusto payroll or available through a self-service portal | Payroll-synced automatic deductions and contributions, automated administration, compliance support, and guided investment options. Investment advisory services are available when the plan appoints Gusto Investment Services for 3(38) fiduciary services. Administrative, recordkeeping, and optional plan-administration services are provided by Gusto Retirement Services. | Fees depend on the plan and selected services. Investment advisory fees and fund expense ratios may apply; custom portfolio expenses vary. See Gusto’s current pricing and advisory disclosures for specific costs. | N/A |
| BlackRock – 401(k) Education & Investment Solutions | Employer-sponsored defined-contribution retirement plan; BlackRock provides retirement investment solutions and educational resources rather than a universal individual 401(k) account | Traditional pretax and Roth after-tax contributions; employer matching and vesting rules depend on the plan. Investment options may include mutual funds and LifePath® target-date funds. The 2025 employee contribution limit is $23,500, plus a $7,500 catch-up contribution for eligible participants age 50 or older. | Costs depend on the employer’s plan and selected investments. Fund expense ratios and plan administrative or other fees may apply. | N/A |
Notes:
¹ A 401(k) is an employer-sponsored retirement plan; investment options, employer matching, vesting schedules, and administrative fees are set by the plan sponsor.
² FDIC / regulator status: 401(k) accounts are not FDIC-insured bank deposits. Securities and fund investments can lose value.
³ Links: add the provider’s current employer-plan or disclosure page to the first column before publishing.
⁴ Fees, fund menus, and plan features vary substantially by employer; use the plan’s Summary Plan Description for the applicable terms.
Three rows publish hard numbers: Vanguard’s 0.07% average fund cost against a 0.44% industry average, Schwab’s $0 account opening and maintenance fees, and T. Rowe Price’s $20 annual fee on fund accounts under $10,000. Everything else depends on your employer’s plan. Two rows quote the $24,500 limit for 2026, while BlackRock’s row still lists the 2025 figures of $23,500 plus a $7,500 catch-up.
How we chose and what protection applies
We kept the workbook’s seven providers and added none. Because plan details differ so much, we compare what providers publish, not what they might charge you. They fall into three groups: employer-plan providers where the employer picks the menu and pays the bills (Fidelity, Empower, BlackRock), a small-business platform (Gusto), and individual or rollover options (Schwab, T. Rowe Price, Vanguard). BlackRock is not an account you can open on your own; it provides investment solutions and education to employer plans.
Two caveats apply. The research workbook is a snapshot dated October 25, 2026, and its BlackRock row quotes 2025 contribution limits. We use the IRS’s 2026 figures wherever we discuss limits and leave the workbook row as recorded.
A 401(k) is not an FDIC-insured bank deposit, and the funds inside it can lose value. Investment options, employer matching and vesting are set by the plan sponsor, which is why your Summary Plan Description matters more than any provider’s homepage. For the basics of how retirement assets are protected, see our guide to retirement account protection.
What a typical saver looks like
To show what fees do, we use one saver: $50,000 already in the plan, adding $12,000 a year ($1,000 a month), earning a hypothetical 6% a year before costs. The return is an assumption, not a forecast. Change it and every dollar figure moves, but the gap between a cheap fund and an expensive one stays visible. We compare 10, 20 and 30 years because a 401(k) is a decades-long account. The method is compound growth with contributions added at year end and fund costs subtracted from the return.
For limits, we use the IRS’s 2026 numbers: $24,500 in employee contributions, plus an $8,000 catch-up from age 50, or $32,500 in total. Our saver’s $12,000 is well under the cap.
You can adjust the example. At a 4% return, the 30-year gap between the two fund costs is $55,705; at 8%, it is $135,967, so a pricier fund costs more when markets do well. Contribute $6,000 a year instead of $12,000 and the 30-year gap falls to $57,425.
What it costs in real life
Table 2 puts the one fund-cost comparison the workbook supports into dollars: Vanguard’s average mutual fund and ETF expense ratio of 0.07% against the 0.44% industry average cited in the same row. It uses the saver above and shows the balance after 10, 20 and 30 years. Look at the 30-year column first, because that is where small percentages turn into real money.
| Provider / product | Annual fund cost | After 10 years | After 20 years | After 30 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vanguard – 401(k) Rollover / IRA | 0.07% | $246,603 | $596,372 | $1,218,630 |
| Industry average fund, as cited in Vanguard’s row | 0.44% | $240,833 | $568,662 | $1,131,835 |
The 0.37-point difference looks tiny, yet it costs $5,770 after 10 years, $27,709 after 20 and $86,795 after 30, which is 7.1% of the cheaper-fund balance. On $50,000, the yearly bill is $35 at 0.07% and $220 at 0.44%. These are averages across Vanguard’s fund lineup and the industry, not a promise for the funds in your plan. Your employer’s menu and the plan’s administrative fees decide your real cost, so read both in the fee disclosure.
The other providers show no figure because employer plans price themselves. Ask HR for the plan’s investment menu with expense ratios and its recordkeeping fee. If the cheapest broad index fund on that menu charges close to Vanguard’s 0.07% average, you are near the best case in this table.
Schwab lists $0 account opening and maintenance fees, but fund expenses and commissions still apply, and the other providers publish no number at all. Fund costs are the quiet drain; the next table covers the louder ones.
What happens if you miss the conditions
Table 3 prices four situations: a small balance at T. Rowe Price, skipping your employer match, taking money out before age 59½, and moving an old plan into an IRA. Each row states its own assumption, and costs are shown per year or per $10,000 withdrawn. They are examples, not quotes.
| Provider / product | What triggers the cost | Cost on our assumption |
|---|---|---|
| T. Rowe Price – Individual 401(k) | Fund account balance below $10,000, no waiver | $20 a year per fund account: 0.40% on $5,000; three funds of $3,000 each cost $60 a year (0.67%) |
| Fidelity – 401(k | Contributing too little to earn the full employer match | Up to $3,525 a year at the 4.7% average match on a $75,000 salary; $3,000 at the 4.0% median |
| Empower – 401(k) | Withdrawal before age 59½ | 10% additional tax: $1,000 on a $10,000 taxable withdrawal, plus ordinary income tax |
| Vanguard – 401(k) Rollover / IRA | Rolling a plan into an IRA, then withdrawing at age 55–59½ | $1,000 additional tax on $10,000 from an IRA; $0 additional tax from the old plan if you left that employer at 55 or later |
| Charles Schwab – Individual 401(k) | Small or idle balance | $0 account fees; fund expenses and commissions N/A |
The costliest mistake is skipping the match: $3,525 a year is more than three times the $1,000 early-withdrawal tax on $10,000, and you lose it every year. T. Rowe Price’s $20 fee is small in dollars but heavy in percent: 0.40% on $5,000, more than five times Vanguard’s 0.07% average fund cost. The match figures come from Vanguard’s June 2026 benchmark data and are averages, not your plan’s formula. Plans also set vesting schedules, so employer money can be forfeited if you leave early. The IRS lists exceptions to the 10% tax, including leaving an employer at 55 or later, which applies to plan distributions but not to IRAs.
Those numbers point to different choices for different people, which is what the next section sorts out.
Which one fits you
You have an employer plan
If your employer offers a plan at Fidelity, Empower or BlackRock, the provider is not your decision; the plan’s menu and fees are. Contribute at least enough to earn the full match, which averages 4.7% of pay in Vanguard’s benchmark and is worth $3,525 a year on a $75,000 salary. Then request your plan’s Summary Plan Description and fee disclosure before raising your rate, because fees, fund menus and features vary substantially by employer. The 2026 limit is $24,500, or $32,500 if you are 50 or older.
You are self-employed with no employees
Schwab and T. Rowe Price both sell Individual 401(k)s to owners with no employees other than a spouse. Schwab lists $0 account opening and maintenance fees and a $0 minimum deposit. T. Rowe Price has no setup cost or sales loads but charges $20 a year per fund account under $10,000 unless waived, and it offers more than 100 mutual funds. If you plan to hold several small fund positions, Schwab’s lack of an account-level fee is the cleaner fit. Remember that the plan sponsor, which means you, is responsible for plan administration and investment decisions, according to T. Rowe Price’s materials.
You run a small business with employees
Gusto (formerly Guideline) syncs deductions with payroll and offers optional 3(38) fiduciary investment services. Its fees depend on the plan and the services you select, so request its current pricing before comparing it with anyone else. Until you have that quote, its cost row stays N/A.
You just left a job
Vanguard’s row lays out four choices: keep the old plan, roll into your new employer’s plan, roll into an IRA, or cash out. Its IRAs offer a wider fund menu, and a 0.07% average fund cost makes the IRA route cheap to hold. A cash-out can cost $1,000 per $10,000 in additional tax before income tax, and at 55 or older a rollover to an IRA gives up an exception the old plan keeps. Compare the old plan’s fees with the IRA before moving.
The bottom line: for most employees the best 401(k) is the one with the full employer match and the lowest-cost funds on the plan’s menu. Business owners without staff should weigh Schwab’s $0 account fees against T. Rowe Price’s fund menu, and anyone changing jobs should avoid a cash-out. The numbers worth acting on are the ones you can verify in your own plan’s disclosure.
What we did not cover
We left out employer-specific items such as match formulas, vesting schedules and fund menus, because the plan sponsor sets them. We also skipped Roth conversions, loans, hardship rules, required minimum distributions, catch-up rules for high earners and promotional offers. BlackRock appears as an education and investment-solutions provider, so we did not model a BlackRock account. Providers outside the seven in our workbook are not covered.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I contribute to an IRA and a 401(k) in the same year?
Yes. The IRS lists a separate 2026 limit of $7,500 for IRAs, on top of the $24,500 limit for 401(k) plans. Whether a traditional IRA contribution is deductible can depend on your income and on whether a workplace plan covers you, so check the current IRS rules before you file.
Who chooses the investments in an Individual 401(k)?
You do. T. Rowe Price states that the plan sponsor, meaning the business owner, is responsible for plan administration and investment decisions. The provider supplies the menu, such as more than 100 mutual funds and target-date options. Schwab lists one-on-one investment guidance as a feature of its plan if you want help choosing.
Can my spouse join my Individual 401(k)?
Possibly. Schwab and T. Rowe Price both describe their Individual 401(k)s as plans for owners with no employees other than a spouse, and T. Rowe Price specifies a working spouse. A spouse who works in the business may be able to make their own deferrals, so confirm eligibility and contribution rules with the provider before opening the plan.
Is the T. Rowe Price $20 fee ever waived?
Yes. T. Rowe Price says the $20 annual account service fee may be waived for eligible paperless accounts, for customers with at least $50,000 in qualifying T. Rowe Price assets, and for certain program participants. A $20 account closeout fee may still apply when you close an account, so ask before you move money out.
Methodology and last update
We researched every figure on October 25, 2026, using the workbook’s provider pages, IRS announcements and Vanguard’s published benchmark data, and we recalculated all examples ourselves. We refresh this article monthly. This article is general information, not personalized financial advice; fees, limits and plan features change, so confirm every term with the provider and your plan documents.