Retirement

The 5-Minute Check That Could Be Costing You Your Employer Match

The goal is not to max out. It is to replace a forgotten default with a conscious choice. Three numbers, five minutes, one decision.

By Tyre Richards, BSHA, MBA · Published

A woman in a burgundy sweater rests her chin on her hand and studies a printed statement at a wood desk with a laptop showing charts, a notebook, a pen, and a teacup beside her.

Retirement progress is often framed as a test of discipline: save more, spend less, try harder. A better year-end question is simpler: Is the system you already have doing what you intended?

The goal is not to max out. It is to replace a forgotten default with a conscious choice, and it takes about five minutes.

For 2026, the employee contribution limit for most 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457 plans, and the federal Thrift Savings Plan is $24,500. For people 50 and older, the general catch-up limit is $8,000, for a total of $32,500 if the plan permits it. People who turn 60, 61, 62, or 63 during 2026 may have a higher catch-up limit of $11,250.

Those are ceilings, not assignments. You do not need to reach the maximum for a review to be worthwhile.

Check these three numbers

Open your most recent pay statement or retirement-plan dashboard and find:

  1. Your contribution rate. Is it still the percentage you chose—or have raises and life changes made that choice outdated?
  2. Your employer match. Are you contributing enough to receive the full match available under your plan?
  3. Your year-to-date contribution. Is your current pace likely to produce the amount you meant to save this year?

If you can increase your contribution, choose a change you can keep. One percentage point is not dramatic, but consistency is allowed to do the dramatic work over time. If cash flow is tight, do not turn the review into a moral judgment. Record the current rate and choose a date to revisit it after a raise, debt payoff, or other known change.

If you changed employers or contributed to more than one workplace plan, pay particular attention: the employee deferral limit generally applies across your plans, not separately to each one.

Your FIERCE move

Set a five-minute timer. Check the three numbers. Then make one decision: increase the rate, leave it in place intentionally, or schedule the next review.

Sources

  • Internal Revenue Service: 401(k) limit increases for 2026, including catch-up contribution limits.

Financial note: Plan rules and personal tax situations differ. Confirm eligibility, matching rules, and contribution treatment with your plan administrator or qualified adviser. This is general education, not individualized investment or tax advice.