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Data & Research June 1, 2026
DC Plan Roth Contributions, by the Numbers
Defined contribution plan sponsors share whether they offer Roth contributions and in-plan Roth conversions.
Reported by
Edward Rueda
Who has access to Roth accounts through a defined contribution plan? Overall, 79.8% of plan sponsors surveyed in sister publication PLANSPONSOR’s 2026 Defined Contribution Plan Benchmarking Report said their DC plans allow for Roth contributions.
Tallying responses of 4,387 plan sponsors from a wide variety of U.S. industries, 63.2% said they offered catch-up contributions and 25.5% said they offered after-tax contributions.
Access to Roth contributions via employer plans increased with plan size, with those having more than $50 million in assets reporting higher-than-average access. At the other end of the spectrum, a portion of sponsors of micro plans were uncertain about which kinds of employee contributions they offered. The “uncertain” category included 11.2% of plan sponsors administering less than $1 million in assets and 2.5% of sponsors administering between $1 million and $5 million in assets.
Does Your DC Plan Allow Roth Contributions?
Plan Size | Roth Contributions |
Overall | 79.8% |
< $1M | 53.9% |
$1M-$5M | 68.6% |
> $5M-$10M | 81.9% |
> $10M-$25M | 79.3% |
> $25M-$50M | 79.5% |
> $50M-$100M | 85% |
> $100M-$200M | 91.7% |
> $200M-$500M | 90.8% |
> $500M-$1B | 98.3% |
> $1B | 96.6% |
Source: 2026 PLANSPONSOR Plan Benchmarking Report
Does Your DC Plan Allow for In-Plan Roth Conversions?
- Yes
- No
- Unsure
Source: 2026 PLANSPONSOR Plan Benchmarking Report
Are Loans Taken from Roth Contributions Not Allowed in Your DC Plan?
Plan Size | Loans Not Allowed |
Overall | 12.9% |
< $1M | 5% |
$1M-$5M | 7.7% |
> $5M-$10M | 17.5% |
> $10M-$25M | 13.3% |
> $25M-$50M | 22.6% |
> $50M-$100M | 18.9% |
> $100M-$200M | 7.4% |
> $200M-$500M | 15% |
> $500M-$1B | 8.7% |
> $1B | 11% |
