General Mills, Inc. 401(k) match: 6% max
General Mills 401(k) Plan · GIS · CIK 40704
Maximum employer match, as a share of pay
6%
General Mills, Inc. matches 100% (dollar-for-dollar) of the first 4% of pay, then 50% of the next 4% of pay, for a maximum employer match of 6% of pay.
From the Form 11-K filed June 10, 2026 ↗, covering the plan year ended December 31, 2025. Page data last updated July 28, 2026, when the Form 5500 bulk data was last refreshed. Why filings lag
On this page: what the employer actually paid in · the formula, word for word · when the money becomes yours · who can join · what the plan reports to the DOL · how it compares · what to do next
What General Mills puts in, and what the plan costs
What General Mills put into the plan, per active participant
$5,158
General Mills, Inc. put $5,158 into this plan for each of its 16,628 active participants in plan year 2024. This is the whole employer side of the plan: matching money, profit sharing, non-elective and safe-harbor contributions, and reallocated forfeitures. The Form 5500 does not separate them, so this is what the employer put in and not the match.
General Mills put in more per active participant than 75% of plans with 5,000+ participants in food, beverage and tobacco manufacturing. The middle plan in that group of 72 reported $2,804. Food, beverage and tobacco comes from business code 311900, which General Mills entered on its own Form 5500. Sponsors pick that code themselves, so a code that does not describe what the employer does ranks the plan against the wrong companies.
Matched to this employer by sponsor name, not by an identifier stated in the filing. This record could cover another plan of the same employer.
What this figure cannot separate: how much General Mills pays, and how much it puts in
This is dollars, not a rate. A Form 5500 carries no payroll, so the figure reflects both how much the employer puts in and how much the employer pays: two plans running the same formula report different amounts when one pays better. Crossing the peer group with industry holds most of that difference still, and none of it disappears.
This is one plan year, not an average. A true-up, a plan merger or a one-off contribution moves a single year on its own.
Source: DOL Form 5500 for the plan year ended December 31, 2024, EIN 410274440, plan 002 · DOL EFAST2 ↗
The $5,158 above is the Form 5500 figure for plan year 2024, and it counts every employer dollar on one line. General Mills, Inc. also files a Form 11-K, which states the match formula for plan year 2025: the card below reads $2,970 a year at a $49,500 salary, and the same filing states employer contributions made outside the match. That second figure is what the formula pays one worker on that salary, and not an amount either filing reports. The two figures cover different plan years and measure different things, so neither one is the other one corrected.
What General Mills puts in
$2,970
a year, at a $49,500 salary.
The match paragraph, word for word
“For non-union nonproduction employees hired on or before May 31, 2013 and for non-union production employees hired on or before December 31, 2017, the Company will match 50% of every dollar contributed up to 6% of eligible compensation. In addition, the Company may add up to another 50% of every dollar contributed up to 6% of eligible compensation after the close of each fiscal year, as an annual variable match. The amount of the variable match is based on the Company’s achievement of certain performance goals. The Company did not contribute any variable match during the Plan years ending December 31, 2025 or December 31, 2024. For non-union nonproduction employees hired on or after June 1, 2013, and for non-union production employees hired on and after January 1, 2018, the Company will match 100% of every dollar contributed up to 4% of eligible compensation and 50% of every dollar contributed for the next 4% of eligible compensation. In addition, each calendar year the Company will make a contribution based on an employee’s age, years of service, and prior year’s eligible compensation. For union employees, the Plan may provide for auto-enrollment, automatic increase, matching contributions and/or allocations by the Company based on the collective bargaining agreement.”
What you contribute to collect all of it
Contribute at least 8% of your pay to collect the full match.
That is $3,960 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%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, 100%, 100%. The score is the average of those 7 readings.
Vesting, word for word
“Participants are immediately vested in their contributions plus actual earnings thereon. The Company’s contributions vest in accordance with the following schedule: Employee’s eligibility service Vested percentage 1 year but less than 2 years 20 % 2 years but less than 3 years 40 % 3 years but less than 4 years 60 % 4 years but less than 5 years 80 % 5 years or more 100 %”
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
97th percentile
$195.78 per participant in plan-paid administrative cost, more expensive than 97% of plans with 5,000+ participants.
What is General Mills' 401(k) match formula?
General Mills' 401(k) employer match tops out at 6% of pay. 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 | 100% (dollar-for-dollar) of the first 4% of pay |
|---|---|
| then | 50% of the next 4% of pay |
| Maximum employer match | 6% of compensation |
| Conditions | The 100%/50% tiered formula applies to non-union nonproduction employees hired on or after June 1, 2013 and non-union production employees hired on or after January 1, 2018. Non-union nonproduction employees hired on or before May 31, 2013 and non-union production employees hired on or before December 31, 2017 instead receive a match of 50% of every dollar contributed up to 6% of eligible compensation, plus a possible annual variable match of up to another 50% up to 6% based on Company performance goals (no variable match was contributed for 2025 or 2024). For union employees, matching and allocations are based on the collective bargaining agreement. |
| Other employer contribution | Annual Company contribution each calendar year for non-union nonproduction employees hired on or after June 1, 2013 and non-union production employees hired on or after January 1, 2018, based on the employee's age, years of service, and prior year's eligible compensation |
| Other employer contribution | Discretionary annual variable match of up to another 50% of every dollar contributed up to 6% of eligible compensation for the pre-2013/2018 hire cohorts, based on the Company's achievement of certain performance goals; no variable match was contributed for the plan years ending December 31, 2025 or December 31, 2024 |
At a $45,000 salary, contributing 8% ($3,600) earns the full employer match of $2,700 for the year.
What the filing says, word for word
“For non-union nonproduction employees hired on or before May 31, 2013 and for non-union production employees hired on or before December 31, 2017, the Company will match 50% of every dollar contributed up to 6% of eligible compensation. In addition, the Company may add up to another 50% of every dollar contributed up to 6% of eligible compensation after the close of each fiscal year, as an annual variable match. The amount of the variable match is based on the Company’s achievement of certain performance goals. The Company did not contribute any variable match during the Plan years ending December 31, 2025 or December 31, 2024. For non-union nonproduction employees hired on or after June 1, 2013, and for non-union production employees hired on and after January 1, 2018, the Company will match 100% of every dollar contributed up to 4% of eligible compensation and 50% of every dollar contributed for the next 4% of eligible compensation. In addition, each calendar year the Company will make a contribution based on an employee’s age, years of service, and prior year’s eligible compensation. For union employees, the Plan may provide for auto-enrollment, automatic increase, matching contributions and/or allocations by the Company based on the collective bargaining agreement.”
Source: Form 11-K filed June 10, 2026, SEC EDGAR · SEC ↗
What is General Mills' 401(k) vesting schedule?
General Mills vests the employer match on a graded schedule: 20% after one year, rising to 100% after five. Each step is money that leaves with you that year, which is how a graded schedule differs from a cliff.
| Employer match vesting | Graded: 20% at 1 yr, 40% at 2 yr, 60% at 3 yr, 80% at 4 yr, 100% at 5 yr |
|---|---|
| Your own contributions | Immediate: always 100% yours |
| Accelerated vesting | 100% vesting in Company matching contributions and the annual Company allocation upon retirement, death while an active employee, disability, involuntary termination, or termination of the Plan by the Company |
| Other employer contributions | The annual Company allocation vests under the same graded schedule as Company contributions (20%/40%/60%/80%/100% at 1/2/3/4/5 years of eligibility service) |
Vesting, word for word
“Participants are immediately vested in their contributions plus actual earnings thereon. The Company’s contributions vest in accordance with the following schedule: Employee’s eligibility service Vested percentage 1 year but less than 2 years 20 % 2 years but less than 3 years 40 % 3 years but less than 4 years 60 % 4 years but less than 5 years 80 % 5 years or more 100 %”
Source: Form 11-K filed June 10, 2026, SEC EDGAR · SEC ↗
Who can join General Mills' 401(k), and is enrollment automatic?
General Mills enrolls new hires automatically at 8% of pay, rising 1% a year to 10% of pay.
| Plan entry | Newly eligible non-union employees are automatically enrolled unless they affirmatively elect not to participate; effective January 1, 2025 (SECURE 2.0), Seasonal, Temporary, or Intern employees age 21 or older with at least 500 hours of service in two consecutive years, or 1,000 hours in one year, are permitted to make elective 401(k) contributions |
|---|---|
| Match eligibility | Seasonal, Temporary, or Intern employees who qualify under SECURE 2.0 are eligible to receive employer matching contributions and any employer allocations under the Plan |
| Automatic enrollment | Yes: default deferral 8% of pay; auto-escalation +1%/yr to 10%; default investment: Designated target date fund until changed by the participant |
Eligibility, word for word
“In accordance with SECURE 2.0, effective January 1, 2025, employees classified as Seasonal, Temporary, or Intern, and are age 21 or older, and have completed at least 500 hours of service in two consecutive years, or 1,000 hours in one year, are permitted to make elective 401(k) contributions under the Plan. These participants are not automatically enrolled. They are eligible to receive employer matching contributions and any employer allocations under the Plan.”
Automatic enrollment, word for word
“The Plan includes an auto-enrollment provision, whereby all newly eligible non-union employees are automatically enrolled in the Plan unless they affirmatively elect not to participate in the Plan. Automatically enrolled non-union participants have their deferral rate set at 8% of eligible compensation and their contributions invested in a designated target date fund until changed by the participant. The Plan also includes an automatic annual increase, where the contribution rate will automatically increase by 1% each year until it reaches 10%. The employee will be given the opportunity to decline or make changes.”
Source: Form 11-K filed June 10, 2026, SEC EDGAR · SEC ↗
What does the General Mills plan report on Form 5500?
The General Mills plan reported $5.0B in assets and 23,525 participants for plan year 2024.
Matched to this employer by sponsor name, not by an identifier stated in the filing. This record could cover another plan of the same employer.
| Plan named in the DOL record | General Mills 401(k) Plan |
|---|---|
| Total plan assets | $5,041,221,350 |
| Participants | 23,525 |
| Recordkeeper | Alight Solutions |
| Plan-paid admin cost per participant | $195.78 |
How that cost compares
This plan pays $195.78 per participant. The median across plans in food, beverage and tobacco manufacturing is $108.05, from the 1,292 of 1,356 whose Form 5500 yields a per-participant cost.
General Mills 401(k) Plan on its Form 5500 filing: fees, providers and financials
How does General Mills' 401(k) match compare?
General Mills, Inc.'s maximum 401(k) match of 6% 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, three file in food, beverage and tobacco manufacturing, two land near General Mills' maximum match and one vests on the same schedule.
Maximum match 5% of pay. Also in food, beverage and tobacco manufacturing.
No employer match in the filing. Also in food, beverage and tobacco manufacturing.
Maximum match 4% of pay. Also in food, beverage and tobacco manufacturing.
Maximum match 6% of pay, level with General Mills.
Maximum match 6% of pay, level with General Mills.
Match vests in steps, 100% after 5 years. Also fully vested after 5 years, like General Mills.
What can you do next?
Check your own balance and contribution rate at Alight ↗, the recordkeeper this plan reports.
- Read the Form 11-K on SEC EDGAR ↗
Form 11-K filed June 10, 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 General Mills, Inc.'s 401(k) match?
General Mills, Inc. matches 100% (dollar-for-dollar) of the first 4% of pay, then 50% of the next 4% of pay, for a maximum employer match of 6% of compensation (plan year ended December 31, 2025).
When does the General Mills, Inc. 401(k) match vest?
Graded: 20% at 1 yr, 40% at 2 yr, 60% at 3 yr, 80% at 4 yr, 100% at 5 yr.
Does General Mills, Inc.'s 401(k) plan have automatic enrollment?
Yes: default deferral 8% of pay; auto-escalation +1%/yr to 10%; default investment: Designated target date fund until changed by the participant.
Cite: 401(k) Monitor, “General Mills, Inc. 401(k) plan facts”, from SEC Form 11-K accession 0001628280-26-042178, plan year ended 2025-12-31.