How to Find Old 401(k) Accounts

Understanding the risk

You’re not required to roll an old retirement account into a new plan. If you choose to leave it, your money will continue to be invested, and you may even be able to update your investments or asset allocation, if your plan allows. However, you won’t be able to make new contributions or take advantage of a company match. Also, you may not be able to borrow from a 401(k) that’s left with a former employer. 

Leaving a plan behind can be costly in other ways. Some companies charge fees for managing the accounts of former employees. Over time, these fees can drain hundreds or even thousands of dollars from your retirement account. For example, a $4.55 monthly fee can cost more than $1,600 if a worker leaves a 401(k) account dormant for 30 years, PensionBee estimates. 

It can also make managing your money more complicated. With investments held in multiple retirement accounts and managed by different companies, you may not notice, for example, that you’re taking on more risk than you would like. 

“You might think you’re invested a certain way, but if a lot of your assets are in a different mix, you could be missing the full picture,” says Dan Doonan, executive director of the National Institute on Retirement Security. You also may find that you have more investment options by rolling over the money from the 401(k) account into an IRA.

If there’s less than $7,000 in the account, employers have the legal authority to roll it into what’s called a safe harbor IRA, regardless of what your investment preferences are. Funds in these IRAs are often put in cash-like investments by default, meaning the focus is more on preserving the account and keeping the investment safe rather than on growth.

As a result, balances could grow more slowly in a safe harbor IRA than if the money was managed by a portfolio manager whose goal is to choose investments that outperform the market. If your money ends up in a safe harbor IRA, you can roll it over into an IRA or a new employer’s 401(k) plan if the new employer’s plan allows.

While there’s no right or wrong answer about whether to leave your old 401(k) behind, you should stay on top of the performance of the investments either way, says Steven Conners, founder of Conners Wealth Management in Scottsdale, Arizona.

“No one should leave any asset where they don’t know what’s going on with [it],” he says.

Tracking your money down

These steps can help you uncover forgotten or lost retirement accounts.

Look at all of your previous jobs. Make a list of former employers and contact their benefits departments to see if you have an account there. You might also find that information on an old pay stub or W-2 tax form, an email that you received from the employer or plan administrator when you left the company, or a bank statement that you stuffed in a drawer.

Check online databases. In 2024, the DOL launched a lost-and-found database to help people locate pension plans and 401(k) retirement accounts linked to their Social Security numbers. The database covers plans offered by private companies or unions but not those of government agencies or some religious organizations.

If you worked for one of those entities, you might try the National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits, a database powered by the retirement plan distribution company PenChecks Trust. There’s also the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators, established by state treasurers’ offices, which tracks accounts from each state’s unclaimed property program.

If you were a federal employee, your old retirement account would be part of the Thrift Savings Plan, the federal government’s retirement savings vehicle. You can create an online login to see if there’s an account associated with your identifying information, or you can speak to a Thrift Savings Plan representative by calling 877-968-3778.

Checking multiple databases will increase your chances of finding a lost 401(k) account if you have one. 

Contact plan administrators. You can search the DOL website for your former employer’s Form 5500, which includes contact information for benefit plan administrators. Companies with 100 or more plan participants are required to file this form annually. Companies with fewer than 100 retirement plan participants may be able to file a simplified version, Form 5500-SF (Short Form).

Digging out the Form 5500 or 5500-SF can be especially helpful if your former employer has gone out of business.

Consider using 401(k) finder services. Some companies, such as PensionBee, Beagle and Capitalize, will help you track down old retirement accounts for free or for a nominal cost if you agree to roll over the money into an IRA managed by them or their partners or currently have money invested with them. 

Be prepared to prove your identity. Once you locate an old account, you’ll need to provide identifying information, such as your address, date of birth and Social Security number, to access it.

Whether you have a lot of money squirreled away with a former employer or just a little, you can improve your finances by taking a more active role in the account’s management.

“It’s your money that you worked for,” Savova says. “It really makes sense for you to be on top of it.”