Fidelity Investments is the largest US retirement plan recordkeeper by a wide margin, holding more than $4 trillion in defined contribution assets. Empower and Vanguard rank next, followed by Alight, TIAA, Principal, Voya, and Charles Schwab. Recordkeepers run your plan's administration; separate asset managers run the funds inside it.
Key takeaways
- Fidelity is the clear number one. The 2025 PLANSPONSOR Recordkeeping Survey (data as of December 31, 2024) puts Fidelity, Vanguard, and Empower as the three largest recordkeepers, together holding more than $5 trillion in retirement assets.
- The whole US defined contribution (DC) market is approaching $13 trillion across nearly 140 million participants, spread among fewer than 40 major recordkeepers.
- A recordkeeper is not the same as an asset manager. The recordkeeper tracks your account and administers the plan; the asset manager runs the mutual funds and target-date funds you actually invest in.
- The industry has consolidated hard. Empower alone absorbed the retirement units of Great-West, JPMorgan, Putnam, MassMutual, and Prudential, while Principal bought Wells Fargo's institutional retirement business.
- To find out who runs your 401(k), look at the login portal and statements for your plan. The brand on the website is usually the recordkeeper, which may differ from the fund company managing your money.
The largest US retirement plan providers
The standard industry source for these rankings is the annual PLANSPONSOR Recordkeeping Survey, which measures providers by total DC recordkeeping assets, participants, and plan count. The figures below reflect the 2025 survey, reported as of December 31, 2024. Rankings shift depending on the metric, since some providers lead on assets while others lead on participant or plan counts.
| Provider | DC recordkeeping rank | Reported assets | Participants | Source (as of Dec 31, 2024) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fidelity Investments | 1 | Over $4 trillion in DC assets | Tens of millions | 2025 PLANSPONSOR Recordkeeping Survey |
| Empower | 2 | ~$1.8 trillion administered (workplace + wealth) for 19M+ individuals | 19M+ individuals | Empower 2024 results / PLANSPONSOR |
| Vanguard | 3 | Among the three largest; ~5M DC participants | ~5 million | 2025 PLANSPONSOR Survey / Vanguard How America Saves 2025 |
| Alight Solutions | Large-market leader | $1.548 trillion in DC assets | ~12 million | 2025 PLANSPONSOR Recordkeeping Survey |
| TIAA | Top 10 | $785.3 billion in DC assets | 6.62 million | 2025 PLANSPONSOR Recordkeeping Survey |
| Principal Financial Group | Top 10 | $520.9 billion in DC assets | 11.61 million | 2025 PLANSPONSOR Recordkeeping Survey |
| Voya Financial | Top 10 | Top-10 recordkeeper by assets and participants | Millions | 2025 PLANSPONSOR Recordkeeping Survey |
| Charles Schwab | Top 10 | Top-10 recordkeeper | Millions | 2025 PLANSPONSOR Recordkeeping Survey |
A note on the numbers: providers report different metrics, and totals are not always apples to apples. Empower's roughly $1.8 trillion figure covers its combined workplace and wealth business rather than DC recordkeeping alone, which is why it sits below Fidelity but above most rivals on any measure. Alight's asset total is large because it concentrates on very large employer plans, so it serves many participants across relatively few plan sponsors. For a broader view of how these firms stack up on service and cost, see our guide to the best retirement planning companies.
Recordkeeper vs asset manager: what the difference actually means
This is the distinction most people miss, and it matters for your fees and your choices.
A recordkeeper is the administrative engine of your plan. It tracks how much you have contributed, keeps a running tally of each investment you own, processes your paycheck deferrals, handles loans and withdrawals, sends statements, and files the compliance paperwork your employer's plan requires. When you log in to check your 401(k) balance, you are almost always logging in to your recordkeeper's system.
An asset manager runs the actual investment products. Vanguard's index funds, Fidelity's target-date funds, and American Funds' actively managed portfolios are asset management. The manager decides what the fund holds and charges an expense ratio for running it.
The confusion comes from firms that do both. Fidelity and Vanguard are giant recordkeepers and giant asset managers, so their name can appear on both sides. But the two roles are separate. Your plan might be administered by Empower while your money sits in Vanguard and BlackRock funds. Your recordkeeper can charge an administrative fee on top of the fund expense ratios, so knowing which firm plays which role tells you where each cost comes from.
Why the provider list keeps shrinking
Recordkeeping is a scale business. Margins are thin, technology is expensive, and profitability depends on spreading fixed costs across as many participants as possible. That math has driven a decade of consolidation, and the buyers keep getting bigger.
Empower is the clearest example. It was formed in 2014 by combining the retirement units of Great-West, JPMorgan, and Putnam. It then acquired MassMutual's retirement plan business (closed December 2020) and Prudential's retirement business (closed April 2022 for $3.55 billion), along with smaller books from Truist, Fifth Third, and others. Those deals lifted Empower to the number two spot behind Fidelity.
Principal did the same at smaller scale, buying Wells Fargo's Institutional Retirement and Trust business for $1.2 billion in cash plus an earnout. That deal closed July 1, 2019 and roughly doubled the size of Principal's recordkeeping operation.
The practical effect for savers: your plan's provider may change without you switching anything. If your employer's recordkeeper gets acquired, your account migrates to the buyer's platform, usually with a new login, a new statement design, and sometimes a new fee schedule. It is worth reading the transition notices when they arrive.
How to tell who runs your 401(k)
Three quick checks:
- Look at your login portal and statements. The brand at the top of your account website is almost always your recordkeeper. Common names include Fidelity NetBenefits, Empower, Vanguard, Voya, Principal, and Schwab.
- Check the fund lineup separately. Open your investment menu and read the fund names. Those companies are your asset managers, and they may be completely different from your recordkeeper. A plan run by Empower can hold nothing but Vanguard funds.
- Ask your HR or benefits contact if it is unclear. They can name the recordkeeper, the plan's investment advisor, and where to find the fee disclosure, which lists administrative costs separately from fund expenses.
If you are comparing providers because you are choosing an IRA or evaluating a workplace plan, our Vanguard hub and our Voya vs Vanguard breakdown walk through cost and fund differences in more detail. For the bigger picture on building your plan, start with the retirement planning hub.
The bottom line
Fidelity is the largest US retirement plan provider, and Empower and Vanguard round out the top three, with Alight, TIAA, Principal, Voya, and Schwab close behind. But size is only part of the story. What matters for your outcome is knowing whether a firm is administering your plan, managing your funds, or both, and what each layer charges. Once you can separate the recordkeeper from the asset manager, the fees and the choices in your account start to make sense.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the largest retirement plan provider in the US?
Fidelity Investments is the largest US retirement plan recordkeeper by a wide margin, holding more than $4 trillion in defined contribution assets. The 2025 PLANSPONSOR Recordkeeping Survey, with data as of December 31, 2024, ranks Fidelity, Vanguard, and Empower as the three largest recordkeepers, together holding more than $5 trillion in retirement assets.
What is the difference between a recordkeeper and an asset manager?
A recordkeeper is the administrative engine of your plan, tracking contributions, processing deferrals, handling loans and withdrawals, and filing compliance paperwork. An asset manager runs the actual investment products, like Vanguard's index funds or Fidelity's target-date funds, and charges an expense ratio. Your plan might be administered by Empower while your money sits in Vanguard and BlackRock funds.
Why does my 401(k) provider sometimes change without me switching anything?
Your provider can change because recordkeeping is a scale business with thin margins and expensive technology, driving heavy consolidation. Empower alone absorbed the retirement units of Great-West, JPMorgan, Putnam, MassMutual, and Prudential, while Principal bought Wells Fargo's institutional retirement business. If your employer's recordkeeper gets acquired, your account migrates to the buyer's platform, often with a new login, statement design, and sometimes a new fee schedule.
How can I tell which company runs my 401(k)?
Tell who runs your 401(k) with three checks: look at your login portal and statements, where the brand at the top is almost always your recordkeeper, such as Fidelity NetBenefits, Empower, or Voya. Then read your fund lineup separately, since those companies are your asset managers and may differ entirely. If it is unclear, ask your HR or benefits contact.