Login | October 02, 2026
Do 401(k) balances inspire or discourage you?
Julie Jason
Published: October 1, 2026
How significant is it to you to know that people can become millionaires just by participating in their 401(k)s?
One of the largest 401(k) vendors, Fidelity Investments, periodically releases information about 401(k) balances of their clients who sponsor 401(k) plans -- and those numbers can either be inspirational (401(k) millionaires) or discouraging (not at all close to that figure).
Inspirational: Would you believe that 769,000 401(k) participants have more than a million dollars in their 401(k)s? This is the figure reported by Fidelity at the end of June 2026, up nearly 30% from the second quarter in 2025 (tinyurl.com/2hbjtkmc).
If you compare millionaires to the person with $155,800, it's potentially discouraging. That's the average second-quarter account balance reported by Fidelity, based on more than 27,000 corporate defined contribution plans and 25.8 million participants as of June 30, 2026 (tinyurl.com/2928zuuw).
No matter where you fall right now, if you want to, you can make a difference by thinking like a millionaire.
Beyond the big numbers you might read about, if you are consistently making an effort to save for retirement, at whatever level, you are doing something to ensure a better future.
This is where to start. Look at the "Never Too Little, Never Too Late" theme for the 30th anniversary of National 401(k) Day, created by Plan Sponsor Council of America, a nonprofit trade association that supports employers who manage workplace retirement plans. National 401(k) Day is celebrated on the Friday of the week following Labor Day, but it was moved to Thursday, Sept. 10 this year due to the observance of the 25th anniversary of the events of Sept. 11.
The theme is designed "to push back against some of the often stated employee barriers to saving -- that they can't afford to save, or it is too late to save enough to make a difference," according to the PSCA (tinyurl.com/29k7ev9b).
Among the resources offered by the PSCA are three podcasts of approximately 10 minutes each. The topics are:
-- "Five Steps to Get Your Retirement Savings on Track": This includes a five-minute retirement "check-in" that focuses on the topics of accessing your account, checking your balance, reviewing your savings rate, reviewing your investments and confirming your beneficiaries.
-- "Making the Most of Every Dollar You Save": The concepts discussed include compounding, an employer match, pre-tax versus Roth accounts and catch-up contributions for those workers who are 50 and older There is also this advice: "Don't leave money on the table." (Fidelity's latest report indicated that 81% of 401(k) participants saved enough money to receive their employer's full match.)
-- "Choosing an Investment Approach That Works for You": The podcast hosts explain various funds (bonds, stocks, etc.), then compare three approaches -- set it and forget it, do it for me and do it myself. The right choice? The one that "fits your comfort level and how involved you want to be."
A special note for non-participants: Do you like to receive a tax refund every year? Does your 401(k) have a match? Do you think you can't afford to participate in your 401(k)? Great news: You win the giant retirement mistake award.
Why are you lending money to the U.S. Treasury when you could be taking advantage of that match? Go to HR and change your W-4 tax withholding so that the money that was going toward your refund goes into your 401(k). Simple. And smart.
(If you want more information on how to do this, write to me at readers@juliejason.com.)
If you are seeking more inspiration, next week I'll be sharing some stories from the finalists for this year's 401(k) Champion Competition -- as well as announcing the three winners for 2026. The 401(k) Champion Award, which is a pro bono project that I fund in my role as a proponent of financial literacy education, seeks to recognize workplace savers who "love" to talk about their successful experiences with their 401(k)s and help co-workers and others make sense of their plans. (See 401kchampion.com for more details about the competition.)
If you aren't saving for retirement, the 401(k) Champions' stories will be inspirational.
Seasoned investment counsel (tinyurl.com/52nus8hz) and award-winning columnist and author, Julie Jason, JD, LLM, promotes financial literacy and investor protection. Read her latest book, "The Discerning Investor: Personal Portfolio Management in Retirement for Lawyers (and Their Clients)" (tinyurl.com/4u7h9pjs), published by the American Bar Association. Write to Julie at readers@juliejason.com. While all questions cannot be answered, each email is read and reviewed and can lead to discussion in a future column.
COPYRIGHT 2026 Julie Jason, DISTRIBUTED BY ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106; 816-581-7500