<100 participants · 403(b) Retirement Plan Benchmarks

Plan-size benchmark across all industries and states. Sourced from 7,922 Form 5500 filings for plan year 2024.

Headline numbers (2024)

Plans: 7,922
Total assets: $23.7B
Total participants: 217,101
Median expense ratio: 0.18%
Median employer contribution per active participant: $2,227
Median account balance: $49,986
3-year asset growth (2022–2024): +56.9%

Expense ratio distribution

25th percentile: 0.05%
Median: 0.18%
75th percentile: 0.68%

Where the fees go (average mix)

Admin / Recordkeeping: 51.0%
Investment Management: 8.1%
Audit: 2.4%
Legal: 0.0%

Employer contribution generosity

Median per active participant: $2,227
Plans with $0 employer match: 2,291 (28.9%)

3-year trend

Year	Plans	Assets	Participants	Median fee	Median employer $
2022	6,515	$15.1B	154,069	0.24%	$2,234
2023	8,254	$22.1B	220,022	0.16%	$2,141
2024	7,922	$23.7B	217,101	0.18%	$2,227

Methodology

All metrics are calculated from U.S. Department of Labor Form 5500 annual filings. The slice "<100 participants · 403(b)" includes 7,922 plans for plan year 2024. Medians use percentile_cont over reported values; zero/null values are excluded from rate-style metrics.

Citation: PlanProvider.Pro, Form 5500 Benchmarks 2024. Free for editorial use with attribution + link to https://planprovider.pro/benchmarks/cohort/lt_100-403b.