Deere & Company 401(k) match: 10% max
John Deere Savings and Investment Plan · DE · CIK 315189
Maximum employer match, as a share of pay
10%
Deere & Company matches 300% of the first 2% of pay, then 100% (dollar-for-dollar) of the next 4% of pay, for a maximum employer match of 10% of pay.
John Deere filed two Form 11-K reports for plan year 2025, of which one has been read. The other report has not, so this page cannot say what the plan it covers pays.
From the Form 11-K filed March 31, 2026 ↗, covering the plan year ended October 31, 2025. Why filings lag
On this page: the formula, word for word · when the money becomes yours · who can join · what else the 11-K reports · how it compares · what to do next
What John Deere puts in, and what the plan costs
What John Deere puts in
$4,950
a year, at a $49,500 salary.
The match paragraph, word for word
“The Company provides matching contributions to employees participating in the Plan up to a maximum of six percent of the employee’s earnings, as limited by the IRC. The matching contributions are 300 percent for the first two percent and 100 percent for the next four percent contributed by the employee. The matching contributions are 90 percent up to the maximum six percent of the employee’s earnings for Greeneville wage employees and 240 percent for the first two percent and 80 percent for the next four percent contributed by the employee for Sunbelt/A&I wage employees. The matching contributions are 60 percent up to the maximum of 6 percent of the employee’s earnings for Monosem employees.”
What you contribute to collect all of it
Contribute at least 6% of your pay to collect the full match.
That is $2,970 a year at a $49,500 salary, and it scales with your own.
Vesting score
57.14 out of 100
How fast the employer’s money becomes yours. Higher than 4% of the 253 schedules we have scored.
It measures vesting speed and nothing else. It says nothing about the size of the match, what the plan charges, or the funds inside it.
Share of the employer's money that is the worker's at hire and at each of the first 6 anniversaries: 0%, 0%, 0%, 100%, 100%, 100%, 100%. The score is the average of those 7 readings.
Vesting, word for word
“● Traditional - covers employees with hire dates before November 1, 1996 except for employees who opted into the Contemporary option described below. Under this option, participants are fully vested in their account balance at all times. ● Contemporary - generally covers employees with hire dates on or after November 1, 1996 and prior to January 1, 2023 and existing employees at January 1, 1997 that selected this option. In the Contemporary option, the Company matching contribution vests after the participant has completed their third year of service. ● Grow Together – generally covers employees with hire dates on or after January 1, 2023, and employees with hire dates on or after November 1, 2014 that elected participation in this option. These employees are provided with a noncontributory employer contribution of four percent, in addition to the Company matching contribution described above, that is fully vested and non-forfeitable. The Company matching contribution vests after the participant has completed their third year of service.”
The wait before the match starts and the year-end true-up appear above when the filing states them. Neither is part of the score, and a filing that is silent on one of them is not a plan without it.
What the plan costs, against plans of its size
Not reported
No Form 5500 record is joined to this employer, so there is no plan-paid cost to show.
What is John Deere's 401(k) match formula?
John Deere's 401(k) employer match tops out at 10% of pay. The match is deposited each payroll. A tiered formula pays its best rate on the first slice of pay and less on the next, which is how the rate steps down.
| Match formula | 300% of the first 2% of pay |
|---|---|
| then | 100% (dollar-for-dollar) of the next 4% of pay |
| Maximum employer match | 10% of compensation |
| Deposited | Each payroll |
| Paid in company stock | No, paid in cash or per your investment elections |
| Conditions | Matched deferrals are capped at 6% of the employee's earnings. The formula varies by employee group: Greeneville wage employees receive 90% up to the maximum 6% of earnings; Sunbelt/A&I wage employees receive 240% of the first 2% and 80% of the next 4% contributed; Monosem employees receive 60% up to the maximum of 6% of earnings |
| Other employer contribution | Grow Together option (generally employees hired on or after January 1, 2023, and certain electing employees hired on or after November 1, 2014): noncontributory employer contribution of 4 percent, in addition to the Company matching contribution, fully vested and non-forfeitable |
At a $60,000 salary, contributing 6% ($3,600) earns the full employer match of $6,000 for the year.
What the filing says, word for word
“The Company provides matching contributions to employees participating in the Plan up to a maximum of six percent of the employee’s earnings, as limited by the IRC. The matching contributions are 300 percent for the first two percent and 100 percent for the next four percent contributed by the employee. The matching contributions are 90 percent up to the maximum six percent of the employee’s earnings for Greeneville wage employees and 240 percent for the first two percent and 80 percent for the next four percent contributed by the employee for Sunbelt/A&I wage employees. The matching contributions are 60 percent up to the maximum of 6 percent of the employee’s earnings for Monosem employees.”
Source: Form 11-K filed March 31, 2026, SEC EDGAR, corroborated by the filing's inline-XBRL facts · SEC ↗
What is John Deere's 401(k) vesting schedule?
John Deere vests the employer match on a cliff schedule: nothing is yours until three years of service, then 100% at once. Leave a day early and the employer money goes back to the plan, the edge a three-year cliff creates.
| Employer match vesting | Cliff: 100% vested after 3 years of service |
|---|---|
| Your own contributions | Immediate: always 100% yours |
| Other employer contributions | Grow Together noncontributory employer contribution of four percent is fully vested and non-forfeitable; Traditional option participants (hire dates before November 1, 1996) are fully vested in their account balance at all times |
Vesting, word for word
“● Traditional - covers employees with hire dates before November 1, 1996 except for employees who opted into the Contemporary option described below. Under this option, participants are fully vested in their account balance at all times. ● Contemporary - generally covers employees with hire dates on or after November 1, 1996 and prior to January 1, 2023 and existing employees at January 1, 1997 that selected this option. In the Contemporary option, the Company matching contribution vests after the participant has completed their third year of service. ● Grow Together – generally covers employees with hire dates on or after January 1, 2023, and employees with hire dates on or after November 1, 2014 that elected participation in this option. These employees are provided with a noncontributory employer contribution of four percent, in addition to the Company matching contribution described above, that is fully vested and non-forfeitable. The Company matching contribution vests after the participant has completed their third year of service.”
Source: Form 11-K filed March 31, 2026, SEC EDGAR · SEC ↗
Who can join John Deere's 401(k), and is enrollment automatic?
John Deere enrolls new hires automatically at 6% of pay, rising 1% a year.
| Plan entry | Employees are eligible to participate immediately upon hire if they are salaried or certain non-bargained hourly employees on the U.S. payroll of the Company or its participating subsidiaries |
|---|---|
| Excluded groups | Only salaried and certain non-bargained hourly U.S.-payroll employees are eligible; wage employees are covered by the separate John Deere Tax Deferred Savings Plan for Wage Employees |
| Automatic enrollment | Yes: default deferral 6% of pay; auto-escalation +1%/yr; default investment: BlackRock Lifepath Index Fund closest to the employee's 65th birthday (the default investment option) |
Eligibility, word for word
“Employees are eligible to participate in the Plan immediately upon hire if they are salaried or certain non-bargained hourly employees on the U.S. payroll of the Company or its participating subsidiaries.”
Automatic enrollment, word for word
“The Plan provides for automatic enrollment of all eligible newly hired employees at a six percent deferral rate. The Plan has an Annual Increase Program whereby newly hired eligible employees will have their deferral rates automatically increased by one percent every March 1st until changed by the employee.”
Source: Form 11-K filed March 31, 2026, SEC EDGAR · SEC ↗
What else does John Deere's 11-K report?
The John Deere plan held $12.9B in net assets at the end of the plan year ended October 31, 2025.
| Net plan assets (end of plan year) | $12,930,747,000 |
|---|---|
| Trustee / recordkeeper | Fidelity Management Trust Company (trustee); Fidelity Investments Institutional Operations Company, Inc. (recordkeeper) |
| Plan auditor | Deloitte & Touche LLP |
| Notable events | The John Deere Kernersville, LLC Employees' Savings and Retirement Plan and the Bear Flag Robotics, Inc. 401(k) Plan were merged into the Plan in January 2025 ($57.6 million of participant balances transferred). Plan assets are commingled in the John Deere Savings Plans Master Trust with the John Deere Tax Deferred Savings Plan for Wage Employees. |
Source: Form 11-K filed March 31, 2026, SEC EDGAR · SEC ↗
How does John Deere's 401(k) match compare?
Deere & Company's maximum 401(k) match of 10% of pay compares with a median of 4.5% across the 181 companies in our data with a computable formula.
Employers worth reading next
Of the six employers below, five land near John Deere's maximum match and one vests on the same schedule.
Maximum match 9.3% of pay, 0.7 points below John Deere.
Maximum match 8% of pay, 2 points below John Deere.
Maximum match 8% of pay, 2 points below John Deere.
Maximum match 7.98% of pay, 2.02 points below John Deere.
Maximum match 7.5% of pay, 2.5 points below John Deere.
Maximum match 3% of pay. Same 3-year cliff as John Deere.
What can you do next?
Check your own balance and contribution rate at Fidelity NetBenefits ↗, the recordkeeper this plan reports.
- Read the Form 11-K on SEC EDGAR ↗
Form 11-K filed March 31, 2026, SEC EDGAR. Every match fact on this page comes from it.
- Changed jobs? Find an old 401(k) ↗
The Department of Labor's Retirement Savings Lost & Found, a free government database.
- This year's IRS contribution limits ↗
The official deferral and catch-up limits every formula operates under.
- Download this data (CSV)
Formula, vesting and source references for this company, one file.
Questions this filing answers
What is Deere & Company's 401(k) match?
Deere & Company matches 300% of the first 2% of pay, then 100% (dollar-for-dollar) of the next 4% of pay, for a maximum employer match of 10% of compensation (plan year ended October 31, 2025).
When does the Deere & Company 401(k) match vest?
Cliff: 100% vested after 3 years of service.
Does Deere & Company's 401(k) plan have automatic enrollment?
Yes: default deferral 6% of pay; auto-escalation +1%/yr; default investment: BlackRock Lifepath Index Fund closest to the employee's 65th birthday (the default investment option).
Cite: 401(k) Monitor, “Deere & Company 401(k) plan facts”, from SEC Form 11-K accession 0001104659-26-037640, plan year ended 2025-10-31.