What Is Employer Match?
Money an employer contributes to your retirement account based on your own contributions.
The Full Definition
An employer match is money your company adds to your 401(k) based on how much you contribute yourself — commonly structured as matching 50% to 100% of your contributions up to a set percentage of salary. It's effectively free money: failing to contribute enough to capture the full match means leaving guaranteed compensation on the table. Because the match is typically capped at a percentage of pay, contributing below that threshold is one of the most common, avoidable mistakes in retirement planning.
Real-World Example
If your employer matches 100% of contributions up to 4% of a $70,000 salary, contributing at least 4% ($2,800) earns you another $2,800 from your employer — an instant 100% return before the market does anything at all.