Employer matching can add to your retirement contributions. Estimate what you may capture and model the long-term cost of contributing below the match.
Example “50% up to 6%” → Match 50, Cap 6.
Enter your salary and plan formula to size your match.
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An employer match is free compensation: your company contributes a percentage of your salary to your 401(k) based on what you contribute. Common formulas include 50% of contributions up to 6% of pay, or 100% up to 4%. This calculator computes your yearly match, projects its compounded value, and exposes any match you are currently forfeiting. See the long-run effect with our compound interest calculator.
Every employee enrolled (or eligible) in a workplace plan: new hires setting their default contribution, anyone contributing below their match cap, job changers comparing benefits packages, and couples planning household savings rates alongside our retirement calculator.
Example Input
Salary: $85,000. You contribute 4%. Match: 50% of contributions up to 6% of salary. Return: 7%. Horizon: 30 years.
Sample Output
You contribute $3,400/yr but only earn $2,550/yr of match (capped inside 4%). Raising to 6% captures the full $2,550 match every year, adding roughly $245,000+ to your final balance over 30 years.
Example Input
Salary: $60,000, contributing 6% of a dollar-for-dollar match capped at 5%.
Sample Output
Employer adds $3,000/yr, an instant 100% return on that slice before any market growth. Over 25 years at 7%, match dollars alone compound past $190,000.
Verifying you capture 100% of available match; calculating the raise-equivalent value of a job offer's match formula; modeling the cost of pausing contributions during a tough year; and checking whether hitting the IRS employee deferral ceiling changes your match timing (per-payroll true-up rules vary by employer).
Copy the match formula verbatim from your Summary Plan Description (e.g., '100% of the first 5%'). Note whether matches vest immediately or on a cliff/graded schedule. Use conservative 6-8% return assumptions for stock-heavy funds and revisit annually after raises, since match dollars scale with salary.
Contributing 4% when the cap is 6% is the classic error, leaving thousands per year unclaimed. Others: assuming match dollars count toward the IRS $23,500-style employee limit (they do not; a separate employer limit applies), ignoring vesting schedules when job-hopping, and forgetting that Highly Compensated Employees may face additional limits.
Vanguard and Fidelity data put the most common formula near 50 cents per dollar on the first 6% of pay (a 3% max match), followed by dollar-for-dollar up to 4-5%. Anything above 6% total is considered generous.
No. Your elective deferrals have their own IRS limit (around $23,500 in 2026, higher for ages 50+/60-63 catch-up), while combined employer+employee totals face a separate larger overall limit. You can always contribute enough to capture the full match first.
Matched dollars follow your plan's vesting schedule: immediate, cliff (e.g., 3 years), or graded (20%/year). Unvested amounts are forfeited at departure; your own contributions are always 100% yours. Check vesting before accepting a new offer mid-cliff.
The calculator runs in your browser in modern Chrome, Safari, Edge, and Firefox. No sign-up is required. Adjust the assumptions to compare how a payroll-percentage change could compound, then confirm match rules and vesting details with your plan administrator.
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