LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP 401(k) match: 6% max
LNC Employees' 401(k) Savings Plan · LNC · CIK 59558
Maximum employer match, as a share of pay
6%
LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP matches 100% (dollar-for-dollar) of the first 6% of pay.
LINCOLN NATIONAL's Form 11-K filings for plan year 2025 describe two separate 401(k) plans. The terms on this page are read from the LNC Employees' 401(k) Savings Plan. Both state the same maximum match.
From the Form 11-K filed June 25, 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: which plan you are in · 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
Which LINCOLN NATIONAL 401(k) plan are you in?
LINCOLN NATIONAL's Form 11-K filings for this plan year describe two plans and all of them state the same maximum employer match. The group each plan covers still differs, and so can the vesting and enrollment terms further down this page, which are read from the LNC Employees' 401(k) Savings Plan.
LNC Employees' 401(k) Savings Plan (the plan this page answers for)
The filing states no limit on who this plan covers · Form 11-K ↗
6% of pay, at most
LNL Agents' 401(k) Savings Plan
Agents · Form 11-K ↗
6% of pay, at most
One row per plan, taken from the two Form 11-K reports this site has read for the plan year ended December 31, 2025. Each maximum comes from that plan’s own filing and describes only that plan.
What LINCOLN NATIONAL puts in, and what the plan costs
What LINCOLN NATIONAL put into the plan, per active participant
$10,931
LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP put $10,931 into this plan for each of its 9,981 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.
LINCOLN NATIONAL put in more per active participant than 97% of plans with 5,000+ participants at holding companies. The middle plan in that group of 62 reported $4,209. Holding companies comes from business code 551112, which LINCOLN NATIONAL 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.
What this figure cannot separate: how much LINCOLN NATIONAL 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 351140070, plan 009 · DOL EFAST2 ↗
The $10,931 above is the Form 5500 figure for plan year 2024, and it counts every employer dollar on one line. LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP 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 LINCOLN NATIONAL puts in
$2,970
a year, at a $49,500 salary.
The match paragraph, word for word
“Employer contributions are made to the Plan. The basic Employer match is $1.00 for each $1.00 that a participant contributes each pay period, up to 6% of eligible earnings. The Employer “Core” contribution is 4% of eligible earnings and is contributed to each eligible employee regardless of whether the employee elects to defer earnings into the Plan. The Employer Core contribution is applied to eligible earnings on an annual basis. Participants receive the Employer Core contribution the following year based on prior year eligible earnings. In order to be eligible for the Employer Core contribution, participants must be actively employed as of the last day of the last pay period of the Plan year. In the event of termination due to death, disability, job elimination, retirement or transfer to full-time agent status, the Employer Core contribution will be based on eligible earnings up to the termination date.”
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
100 out of 100
How fast the employer’s money becomes yours. Higher than 48% 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: 100%, 100%, 100%, 100%, 100%, 100%, 100%. The score is the average of those 7 readings.
Vesting, word for word
“Participants’ pre-tax contributions, Roth 401(k) contributions, Employer match contributions and earnings thereon are fully vested at all times. Participants eligible for the Employer Core contributions are fully vested in such contributions after two years of service. Regardless of years of service, a participant’s unvested interest in their Employer Core contributions shall become fully vested if employment terminates due to death, disability, involuntary termination other than for cause, or on or after attainment of normal retirement age, which is 55.”
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
7th percentile
$10.57 per participant in plan-paid administrative cost, cheaper than 93% of plans with 5,000+ participants.
What is LINCOLN NATIONAL's 401(k) match formula?
LINCOLN NATIONAL's 401(k) employer match tops out at 6% of pay. The match is deposited each payroll. One rate up to one limit is the commonest of the four shapes a match formula takes.
| Match formula | 100% (dollar-for-dollar) of the first 6% of pay |
|---|---|
| Maximum employer match | 6% of compensation |
| Deposited | Each payroll |
| Other employer contribution | Employer Core contribution of 4% of eligible earnings, contributed to each eligible employee regardless of deferrals, applied to eligible earnings on an annual basis and paid the following year; requires active employment as of the last day of the last pay period of the Plan year, with exceptions for death, disability, job elimination, retirement or transfer to full-time agent status |
At a $75,000 salary, contributing 6% ($4,500) earns the full employer match of $4,500 for the year.
What the filing says, word for word
“Employer contributions are made to the Plan. The basic Employer match is $1.00 for each $1.00 that a participant contributes each pay period, up to 6% of eligible earnings. The Employer “Core” contribution is 4% of eligible earnings and is contributed to each eligible employee regardless of whether the employee elects to defer earnings into the Plan. The Employer Core contribution is applied to eligible earnings on an annual basis. Participants receive the Employer Core contribution the following year based on prior year eligible earnings. In order to be eligible for the Employer Core contribution, participants must be actively employed as of the last day of the last pay period of the Plan year. In the event of termination due to death, disability, job elimination, retirement or transfer to full-time agent status, the Employer Core contribution will be based on eligible earnings up to the termination date.”
Source: Form 11-K filed June 25, 2026, SEC EDGAR, corroborated by the filing's inline-XBRL facts · SEC ↗
What is LINCOLN NATIONAL's 401(k) vesting schedule?
LINCOLN NATIONAL vests the employer match immediately: 100% is yours as soon as it is paid in. Nothing is forfeited when you leave, which is not true of the two schedules that vest over time.
| Employer match vesting | Immediate: employer match is 100% vested when contributed |
|---|---|
| Your own contributions | Immediate: always 100% yours |
| Other employer contributions | Employer Core contributions are fully vested after two years of service; fully vested regardless of service upon death, disability, involuntary termination other than for cause, or attainment of normal retirement age (55) |
Vesting, word for word
“Participants’ pre-tax contributions, Roth 401(k) contributions, Employer match contributions and earnings thereon are fully vested at all times. Participants eligible for the Employer Core contributions are fully vested in such contributions after two years of service. Regardless of years of service, a participant’s unvested interest in their Employer Core contributions shall become fully vested if employment terminates due to death, disability, involuntary termination other than for cause, or on or after attainment of normal retirement age, which is 55.”
Source: Form 11-K filed June 25, 2026, SEC EDGAR · SEC ↗
Who can join LINCOLN NATIONAL's 401(k), and is enrollment automatic?
LINCOLN NATIONAL enrolls new hires automatically at 6% of pay.
| Plan entry | Covers substantially all employees of the Employer and certain of its subsidiaries who meet the conditions of eligibility to participate as defined by the Plan document |
|---|---|
| Automatic enrollment | Yes: default deferral 6% of pay |
Eligibility, word for word
“The Plan is a contributory, defined contribution plan that covers substantially all employees of the Employer and certain of its subsidiaries who meet the conditions of eligibility to participate as defined by the Plan document.”
Automatic enrollment, word for word
“Participants may contribute up to 75% of their pre-tax annual eligible compensation, as defined by the Plan, subject to annual individual deferral limitations as determined by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”). All newly hired or rehired employees are automatically enrolled in the Plan with pre-tax contributions being made at the rate of 6% of eligible earnings. A participant may elect to not participate in the Plan or change the pre-tax contribution rate from 6%. A participant may also elect to make Roth 401(k) contributions to the Plan. Roth 401(k) contributions are includable in the participant’s gross income at the time of deferral and must be irrevocably designated as Roth 401(k) contributions. Participants who have attained age 50 before the end of the Plan year are eligible to make catch-up contributions, as determined by the IRS and ERISA. Participants may also contribute amounts representing distributions from other qualified defined benefit or defined contribution plans (“rollover”).”
Source: Form 11-K filed June 25, 2026, SEC EDGAR · SEC ↗
What does the LINCOLN NATIONAL plan report on Form 5500?
The LINCOLN NATIONAL plan reported $3.5B in assets and 17,268 participants for plan year 2024.
| Total plan assets | $3,515,209,675 |
|---|---|
| Participants | 17,268 |
| Recordkeeper | Lincoln Financial Group Trust Company, Inc. (Trustee); Lincoln Retirement Services Company, LLC (Recordkeeper) |
| Plan-paid admin cost per participant | $10.57 |
How that cost compares
This plan pays $10.57 per participant. The median across plans at holding companies is $106.24, from the 612 of 643 whose Form 5500 yields a per-participant cost.
Lnc Employees' 401(k) Savings Plan on its Form 5500 filing: fees, providers and financials
How does LINCOLN NATIONAL's 401(k) match compare?
LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP'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 at holding companies, two land near LINCOLN NATIONAL's maximum match and one vests on the same schedule.
Maximum match 5% of pay. Also at holding companies.
Maximum match 6% of pay. Also at holding companies.
Maximum match 5% of pay. Also at holding companies.
Maximum match 6% of pay, level with LINCOLN NATIONAL.
Maximum match 6% of pay, level with LINCOLN NATIONAL.
Maximum match 3% of pay. Vests immediately too, like LINCOLN NATIONAL.
Compare LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP with any company, side by side
What do LINCOLN NATIONAL's other 401(k) plans say?
LNL Agents' 401(k) Savings Plan
Agents
The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company matches 100% of employee contributions up to 6% of eligible pay (plan year ended December 31, 2025).
- Employer match vesting
- Immediate: employer match is 100% vested when contributed
- Automatic enrollment
- Not mentioned in the filing (not proof of absence)
What the filing says, word for word
“Effective January 1, 2025, the Plan was amended to transition to Safe Harbor status, and, accordingly, effective as of the same date the Plan Sponsor matching contribution for eligible participants is equal to 100% of each participant’s contributions, not to exceed 6% of eligible earnings. Plan Sponsor matching contributions also include catch-up contributions made by participants who have attained age 50 before the end of the Plan year. Each payroll period, the Plan Sponsor makes a non-elective contribution equal to any difference between (i) the matching contribution the Plan Sponsor would have made if a participant’s eligible earnings (net of other applicable deductions) were sufficient to make the full amount of the pre-tax and/or Roth 401(k) contributions elected by the participant for that payroll period and (ii) the actual matching contribution made by the Plan Sponsor to the participant’s Plan account based on the participant’s pre-tax and/or Roth 401(k) contributions made to the Plan for that payroll period. In addition, the Plan Sponsor makes a true-up contribution on behalf of any participant whose aggregate matching contributions and, if applicable, non-elective contributions made by the Plan Sponsor during the Plan year are less than 100% of that participant’s pre-tax and/or Roth 401(k) contributions for the Plan year not in excess of 6% of such participant’s eligible earnings for that Plan year (the “target amount”). The amount of the true-up contribution made by the Plan Sponsor is an amount which, when added to the matching and non-elective contributions made by the Plan Sponsor to the participant’s Plan account for the Plan year, will equal the target amount. An annual “Core” contribution equal to 2% of eligible earnings was contributed by the Plan Sponsor to each eligible agent account for Plan year 2025. Beginning with Plan year 2026, the Core contribution amount will increase to 4% of eligible earnings. The Plan Sponsor Core contribution is applied to eligible earnings on an annual basis, regardless of whether the agent elects to defer earnings into the Plan. Participants receive the Plan Sponsor Core contribution the following year based on prior year eligible earnings. In order to be eligible for the Core contribution, participants must be actively employed as of the last day of the last pay period of the Plan year. In the event of termination due to death, disability, retirement or transfer to full-time employee status, the Core contribution will be based on eligible earnings up to the termination date.”
What can you do next?
- Read the Form 11-K on SEC EDGAR ↗
Form 11-K filed June 25, 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 LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP's 401(k) match?
Lincoln National Corporation matches 100% of employee contributions up to 6% of eligible pay (plan year ended December 31, 2025).
When does the LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP 401(k) match vest?
Immediate: employer match is 100% vested when contributed.
Does LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP's 401(k) plan have automatic enrollment?
Yes: default deferral 6% of pay.
Cite: 401(k) Monitor, “LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP 401(k) plan facts”, from SEC Form 11-K accession 0000059558-26-000045, plan year ended 2025-12-31.