Retirement Accounts & the Employer Match
An employer match is the closest thing to free money you'll be offered — and starting early is everything.
A 401(k) is a retirement account offered through work. Many employers 'match' part of what you contribute — e.g. a 50% match on up to 6% of your pay means for every dollar you put in (up to that cap), your employer adds 50 cents.
Not contributing enough to capture the full match is leaving guaranteed money on the table. And because investments compound over decades, contributions you make in your late teens and twenties are worth dramatically more at retirement than the same dollars saved later.
Your employer offers a 50% match on up to 6% of your pay. What's the smallest contribution that still captures the FULL match?
Practice this in Game of Life
This concept shows up in 2 Game of Life moments:
- Your new job offers a 401(k) with a 50% employer match on up to 6% of your pay. How much d…
- You just got a raise. Do you bump up your 401(k) contribution, or take the extra as take-h…