Washington, D.C. – May 12, 2015 – ALM’s 401(k) intelligence provider Judy Diamond Associates has completed a comparative analysis of 401(k) plan contributions among both employers and employees in 2012 and 2013, the most recent year for which data is available. This research shows that together, employers and employees contributed a total of $13 billion more in 2013 than in 2012, a 5 percent year-over-year increase. Larger contributions from both employees and employers will positively impact employee’s goals to reach their target savings rates.
In 2012, employer contributions were at about $96 billion and employee contributions reached about $174 billion. By 2013, employer contributions were up to over $101 billion and employee contributions raised to about $182 billion. Overall, employers contributed $5 billion more in 2013 than in 2012 and employees contributed an additional $8 billion.
“This could indicate that both companies and the people who work there are feeling better about the economy overall,” says Eric Ryles, managing director of ALM’s Financial Intelligence division. “They feel they have more to invest in their futures.”
This research validates the continuing positive trend of employers increasing their match rate, which had bottomed out during the financial crisis and has been slowly recovering since about 2011.
Top 5 States for Most Generous Employers
| State | Avg Employer Contribution per employee in 2013 |
| DE | $3,114 |
| DC | $2,888 |
| WY | $2,595 |
| NM | $2,525 |
| NJ | $2,428 |
Top 5 States Where Employees are Saving
| State | Avg Employee Contribution in 2013 |
| NJ | $4,536 |
| CA | $4,511 |
| MA | $4,258 |
| WA | $4,252 |
| DE | $4,239 |
This 401(k) plan data and further analysis are available in Judy Diamond Associates’ Retirement Plan Prospector database. Retirement Plan Prospector is an online sales prospecting and market analysis tool used by financial advisors and asset managers across the industry.
For more information about this research, please contact us at judydiamond.com/about/contact or follow us on Twitter @401kFacts.
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