When was the last time you really looked at your 401(k)?
And by “looked,” we don’t mean checking the balance.
A 401(k) can become one of your largest financial assets, yet it’s surprisingly easy to put it on autopilot. You choose a contribution percentage, select some investments, name a beneficiary, and then go about your life.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, constantly tinkering with your investments can create its own problems. But there’s a difference between leaving a long-term strategy alone and never checking that it still makes sense.
With year-end approaching, now is a good time to take a closer look. While we refer primarily to 401(k) plans throughout this article, many of these same considerations also apply to 403(b) plans.
Here are seven things worth reviewing.
- Are You Contributing as Much as You Intended?
Think back to when you chose your current contribution rate. Has your salary increased since then? Have your expenses changed? Could you comfortably save a little more?
For 2026, employees can contribute up to $24,500 to a 401(k). Those age 50 and older may be eligible to contribute an additional $8,000, while employees ages 60 through 63 may qualify for a higher catch-up contribution of $11,250, if their plan allows it.
That doesn’t mean everyone needs to contribute the maximum. The right amount depends on your income, cash flow, other savings, and, most importantly, what you need to reach your retirement goals.
One 2026 change to know: Some higher-earning employees who are eligible for catch-up contributions must now make those contributions on a Roth basis. We discussed this change earlier this year in Seven Small Updates That Could Make a Big Difference. If this applies to you, check with your plan administrator or financial advisor to understand how the new rule affects your contributions.
If you haven’t revisited your contribution rate in a while, this is a good place to start. If your plan allows you to contribute either a flat dollar amount or a percentage of pay, consider whether a percentage makes more sense. That way, when your salary increases, your retirement contribution increases along with it.
- Are You Getting the Full Employer Match?
If your employer offers matching contributions, make sure you understand how the match works and whether you’re contributing enough to take full advantage of it.
It’s also worth understanding your employer’s vesting schedule. Your own contributions are yours, but employer contributions may become fully yours over time, depending on the terms of your plan.
These details are easy to overlook, especially if you’ve been in the same plan for years.
- Do Your Investments Still Make Sense?
Maybe you chose your investments when you enrolled in the plan five or ten years ago. Are they still appropriate today?
Your time horizon or comfort with investment risk may have changed. Even if they haven’t, market performance can cause your investment mix to drift away from your intended allocation.
That’s where rebalancing comes in. The goal isn’t to chase whichever investments have performed best recently. It’s to bring your portfolio back in line with an asset allocation that’s appropriate for your goals and risk tolerance.
And don’t look at your 401(k) in isolation. If you also have IRAs, brokerage accounts, or other investments, consider how all those assets work together.
- Traditional or Roth: Does Your Choice Still Make Sense?
If your employer offers both traditional and Roth 401(k) contributions, it’s another decision worth revisiting.
With a traditional 401(k), contributions are generally made pre-tax, reducing your taxable income today, while withdrawals in retirement are generally taxable. Roth 401(k) contributions are made with after-tax dollars, but qualified withdrawals in retirement are tax-free.
Which is better? Once again, it depends.
Your current income and tax bracket, what you expect your tax situation to look like in retirement, and the other types of accounts you own can all factor into the decision. It’s not only about the tax break you may receive today; it’s also about how that money will be taxed when you eventually withdraw it. The choice you made several years ago may not necessarily be the choice you’d make today.
Consider it as part of your overall tax and retirement strategy rather than simply sticking with your original selection.
- Who Is Listed as Your Beneficiary?
Who would receive your 401(k) if something happened to you?
Marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, a death in the family, or other life changes can leave an old beneficiary designation out of step with your wishes.
We made the same point recently when discussing life insurance. Beneficiary designations are easy to forget, but they can have significant consequences. Retirement accounts are generally distributed according to the beneficiary designation associated with the account, so it’s worth reviewing yours periodically.
- What About the 401(k)s You Left Behind?
If you’ve changed jobs during your career, you may have one or more old 401(k)s with former employers.
There’s nothing inherently wrong with leaving money in a former employer’s plan if the plan allows it and it still makes sense for you. But it should be a conscious decision, not something that happened because you never got around to dealing with the account.
Depending on your circumstances and the rules of the plans involved, you may be able to leave the money where it is, roll it into a new employer’s plan, roll it into an IRA, or take a distribution.
Each option can have different investment choices, fees, tax consequences, and other considerations, so don’t assume a rollover is automatically the best choice.
If you’ve completely lost track of an old retirement account, you’re not alone. There are resources available to help you locate retirement savings left behind with former employers. Each state maintains an unclaimed property database where you can search for assets that may belong to you. Visit the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators website to access your state’s database and begin your search.
- Are You Looking at the Bigger Retirement Picture?
Your 401(k) is not your retirement plan. It’s one piece of it.
Your retirement picture may also include IRAs, taxable investments, Social Security, a pension, cash savings, and other income sources. Just as important are how much you expect to spend, when you hope to retire, and what you want retirement to look like.
A healthy 401(k) balance is certainly good news. But the number by itself doesn’t tell you whether you’re on track. There’s no universal “magic number.” What matters is whether your savings, income, and overall financial plan can support the retirement you envision.
Don’t Just Check the Balance
Reviewing your 401(k) doesn’t mean you need to make changes every year.
Sometimes a review confirms that everything is working exactly as intended. Other times, you may discover an outdated beneficiary, an investment allocation that has drifted, a contribution rate you meant to increase, or an old account you’ve nearly forgotten about.
Either way, look beyond the balance and make sure the decisions behind that number still work toward the future you have in mind.
