NAICS 523 Retirement Plan Benchmarks

Industry benchmarks aggregated by NAICS classification. Sourced from 20,953 Form 5500 filings for plan year 2024.

Headline numbers (2024)

Plans: 20,953
Total assets: $365.6B
Total participants: 205,675
Median expense ratio: 0.40%
Median employer contribution per active participant: $6,367
Median account balance: $137,368
3-year asset growth (2022–2024): +39.0%

Expense ratio distribution

25th percentile: 0.05%
Median: 0.40%
75th percentile: 3.35%

Where the fees go (average mix)

Admin / Recordkeeping: 21.1%
Investment Management: 11.8%
Audit: 1.2%
Legal: 0.2%

Employer contribution generosity

Median per active participant: $6,367
Plans with $0 employer match: 3,310 (15.8%)

3-year trend

Year	Plans	Assets	Participants	Median fee	Median employer $
2022	18,975	$263.0B	183,891	0.46%	$6,515
2023	20,321	$319.7B	197,010	0.35%	$6,275
2024	20,953	$365.6B	205,675	0.40%	$6,367

Methodology

All metrics are calculated from U.S. Department of Labor Form 5500 annual filings. The slice "NAICS 523" includes 20,953 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/industry/523.