<100 participants · Defined Contribution Retirement Plan Benchmarks

Plan-size benchmark across all industries and states. Sourced from 192,961 Form 5500 filings for plan year 2024.

Headline numbers (2024)

Plans: 192,961
Total assets: $365.2B
Total participants: 2,339,661
Median expense ratio: 2.01%
Median employer contribution per active participant: $4,000
Median account balance: $76,158
3-year asset growth (2022–2024): +31.5%

Expense ratio distribution

25th percentile: 0.35%
Median: 2.01%
75th percentile: 6.79%

Where the fees go (average mix)

Admin / Recordkeeping: 18.3%
Investment Management: 2.5%
Audit: 0.4%
Legal: 0.1%

Employer contribution generosity

Median per active participant: $4,000
Plans with $0 employer match: 73,506 (38.1%)

3-year trend

Year	Plans	Assets	Participants	Median fee	Median employer $
2022	173,865	$277.6B	1,983,044	2.07%	$4,253
2023	189,148	$337.3B	2,257,765	1.68%	$4,152
2024	192,961	$365.2B	2,339,661	2.01%	$4,000

Methodology

All metrics are calculated from U.S. Department of Labor Form 5500 annual filings. The slice "<100 participants · Defined Contribution" includes 192,961 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-dc.