Employer match curve you can drag
Drag the deferral along the curve. The match rises until the cap, then goes flat: a 50 percent match on the first 6 percent of pay is fully captured at 6 percent deferred and does not rise after that. The default salary is $80,000.
Employer match this year
$2,400
Left unclaimed
None
Drag the dot along the curve. The dashed line is the match cap. A 50 percent match on the first 6 percent of pay is the formula this picture starts on. Illustrative arithmetic, not advice.
- You put in this year
- $4,800.00
- Maximum match available
- $2,400.00
- Share of match captured
- 100%
- Combined this year
- $7,200.00
In short
- Drag the dot right to raise the deferral, left to lower it.
- The dashed line is the match cap. Left of it, extra deferral brings extra match. Right of it, it does not.
- Use the salary and cap sliders under the chart to change the formula; the match rate stays 50 percent so the kink stays readable.
The kink is the whole picture
Inside the cap, each extra point of deferral buys more match. At the cap, the match stops rising. That kink is the formula. A 3 percent deferral on the default leaves half the match unclaimed; a 6 percent deferral claims it all; a 10 percent deferral claims the same match and a larger employee contribution.
What is held still
The match rate is 50 percent so the picture has one kink rather than two tiers. Salary and the cap can move. For the same arithmetic as a table, including the 30-year future value of the match stream, use the employer match calculator.
What the leftover is
Match left unclaimed is not a fee. It is pay the plan had already offered. Whether a household should defer to the cap depends on cash, debt, and the rest of the tax-deferred picture, which this curve does not decide.
Common questions
Why is the match rate fixed at 50 percent?
So the picture has one kink. Plans that match 100 percent of the first 3 percent, or two tiers, are the same identity applied twice. The employer match calculator lets you type any rate.
Does this include vesting?
No. The curve counts the match as credited. Whether it would survive a job change is a plan-document question.
Is this advice to defer 6 percent?
No. It is the arithmetic of one match formula. Illustrative figures, educational material, not advice.
Keep reading
This page is educational material, not financial advice. The figures come from the formula shown and assume the inputs you enter hold for the whole term. Your own rate, fees, taxes and timing will differ, so treat the output as arithmetic to check a decision against, not as a recommendation.