• silverbax@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    The index fund options in many 401Ks underperform - this is just across the average, not all 401ks. Some 401Ks have general stock market index funds, some only offer index funds in specific sectors or target metrics.

    The analysis I ran started with the question: ‘given the average 401k, compare returns including average match against general stock market index funds’.

    My assumption going in was that 401Ks would return better results because of the employer match, but that’s not the case on average. The average investor would have significantly more money if they’d just invested in ‘market’ index funds, and it wasn’t even close.

    That being said, 401Ks or general ETF funds are still risky and inferior when compared to pensions and social security.