How this number is made
An employer match is free pay you only receive if you defer enough of your own salary. The usual formula is a percent of each dollar you contribute, stopping once your deferral reaches a percent of pay. Contribute less than that cap and the unpaid match is gone for the year.
- Read the plan’s formula. “50% up to 6%” is not the same as “100% up to 3%,” even though both can equal 3% of pay when you contribute enough.
- Enter your deferral as a percent of salary, not a dollar guess, unless you convert it first.
- Look at the left-on-the-table row. Zero means you have reached the match cap.
Formula
You = salary × your percent. Employer = salary × (the smaller of your percent and the cap) × match percent. Unclaimed = salary × (cap − your percent) × match percent, when you are under the cap.
Worked example
On an $80,000 salary you defer 6%. The plan matches 50% of deferrals up to 6% of pay. You put in $4,800. The employer puts in $2,400. Nothing is left on the table. Defer 3% instead and the match falls to $1,200.
Questions
Does the match count toward the $24,500 limit?
No. That limit is your elective deferral. Employer contributions have a higher combined ceiling. This page does not apply the combined ceiling.
What if the match is a flat dollar amount?
This form is a percent-of-pay formula. If the plan simply deposits $1,000, type that conclusion down yourself. Do not force it through a percent.