Pure Benchmarks · Guide

How Does My 401(k) Compare to Other People’s?

Short answer

Vanguard’s How America Saves 2026, covering nearly 5 million participants in Vanguard-administered plans, put the average 401(k) balance at $167,970 and the median at $44,115 at the end of 2025. The median is the better comparison for most people, because a small number of large accounts pull the average up. Balance alone says little, though: age, income, years of saving and contribution rate explain most of the gap between two accounts. The fairer benchmarks are your savings rate and your investment return compared with people taking similar risk.

Comparing a 401(k) with other people’s usually starts with an average balance from a news headline and ends with either relief or worry. Neither tells you much. This page sets out the most widely used published benchmarks, explains why the median matters more than the average, separates the three things a comparison can measure, which are balance, savings rate and return, and shows how to benchmark the part that reflects your own decisions.

The published benchmarks

Vanguard’s How America Saves 2026 reported an average 401(k) balance of $167,970 and a median of $44,115 at year-end 2025, up 13% and 16% from the year before. The report also found that 69% of participants were invested in a professionally managed allocation, such as a target-date fund or managed account, and that 45% increased their deferral rate during the year, either voluntarily or through automatic escalation.

Why the median matters more than the average

A small number of large balances raise the average well above what a typical participant holds. The median, the balance in the middle when every account is lined up, is closer to the typical experience. Comparing yourself with the average can make an ordinary balance look behind; comparing with the median, ideally for your own age group, is the fairer starting point.

Balance, savings rate and return measure different things

Balance mostly reflects age, income, years of saving and how much you contribute. Savings rate reflects a choice you control directly: the share of pay going in, including any employer match. Return reflects how the money has been invested. Two people with the same balance can be in very different positions, so it helps to compare each measure separately rather than treating balance as a score.

Comparing returns fairly

A 401(k) in a target-date fund near retirement should not be compared with an all-equity account, and a balance that rose because of contributions should not be read as investment growth. A fair return comparison removes deposits and matches on risk. Comparing against a single index tells you whether you beat the market; comparing against investors holding similar risk tells you whether your choices were better or worse than theirs.

Benchmarking your own 401(k)

Pure Benchmarks, our own product, connects 401(k) and other retirement accounts alongside brokerage accounts, separates contributions from returns, and ranks your portfolio against verified investors in the same risk category. Its Decision Benchmark scores any fund changes you make inside the plan against the do-nothing baseline, so you can see whether switching funds helped.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the average 401(k) balance?

Vanguard’s How America Saves 2026 reported an average balance of $167,970 at year-end 2025 across Vanguard-administered plans. The median was $44,115.

Should I compare my 401(k) to the average or the median?

The median is usually the fairer comparison, because a small number of very large accounts pull the average up. Comparing within your own age group is better still.

Is my 401(k) balance good for my age?

Balance depends heavily on income, years of saving and contribution rate. Savings rate and risk-matched return are better guides to whether your own decisions are on track. This page is information for comparison and not a recommendation about any holding.

How do I compare my 401(k) returns to other people’s?

Remove the effect of contributions and compare against investors holding similar risk. Pure Benchmarks, our own product, does this from connected retirement accounts.

Where do 401(k) benchmarks come from?

The most cited source is Vanguard’s annual How America Saves report, which covers participants in plans Vanguard administers. Other recordkeepers publish their own figures, which can differ because their plans and participants differ.

Keep exploring

See how retirement portfolios at a specific firm rank against real peers:

New here? Read the portfolio benchmarking FAQ or the Pure Benchmarks blog.

This page is an information baseline for comparison only. It is not investment advice and not a recommendation to buy, sell, replace, or transfer any specific asset, account, or firm. Past performance does not guarantee future results. All figures shown are illustrative.