Look ahead with Gusto small business retirement plans.

You can start helping your team build a strong financial foundation for the future. Gusto partners with Guideline, Betterment at Work, and Human Interest to make choosing and setting up a small business retirement plan or 401(k) easier—with automated services, automatic integrations with payroll, and customer support.

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Invest in your team–for less.

Gusto’s all-in-one platform integrates with Guideline, Betterment at Work, and Human Interest’s 401(k) services to provide flexible, low-cost plans for small businesses like yours.

Streamline your benefits.

Gusto’s all-in-one platform integrates with Guideline’s payroll services so you can manage financial and health benefits, payroll, and more without shifting gears.

Designed with compliance in mind.

Guideline continually performs checks to help identify issues, and handles most compliance obligations, such as nondiscrimination testing. So you can rest easy.

of customers feel confident that Gusto has the benefits and HR tools they need to run their business.*

of customers feel Gusto helps them stay on top of compliance and changing tax requirements.*

Gusto research finds that offering a 401k benefit reduces the chance that employees will quit within their first year by 40%.**

* Techvalidate. Based on over 700 Gusto businesses surveyed August 2022
** One secret to retaining top talent

Low-cost investment

Raise your value, lower your costs.

Guideline offers three types of 401(k) plans, so you can choose the right one for your business. There are no setup fees and no transaction fees. So you have more money in your pocket for the things your business needs to grow. You can see an expanded checklist of Guideline 401(k) services that come at no extra charge.

Benefits integration

Sync up and save.

Our 401(k) partner, Guideline, seamlessly integrates with Gusto. They use technology and automation to avoid transaction fees and keep monthly prices low. There are no setup fees, no minimum number of participants, and employee contributions are automatically kept in sync and deducted every pay period. Syncing financial benefits with payroll saves you time, money, and the stress of tedious paperwork.

Compliance support

Stay ahead of the IRS.

Gusto works with Guideline to streamline compliance support by performing regular, automated compliance checks. Guideline even goes the extra mile to offer nondiscrimination testing before the IRS does, to help identify potential issues. Read more about nondiscrimination testing and Safe Harbor plans here.

Employee accessibility

The power-to-the-people platform.

Gusto’s accessible platform empowers your employees to manage their own accounts. They can set up their new 401(k) themselves, view their plan info and receive guided portfolio recommendations. As their needs change, they can quickly adjust their contributions, which will automatically sync to Gusto and your payroll. That leaves you with less on your plate, and helps make your business that much more efficient.

Investment guidance

Guideline can light the way.

Guideline, Betterment at Work, and Human Interest make 401(k) investment simple by providing professionally managed portfolios to choose from, based on your individual investment goals. When you start setting up your 401(k) you’ll answer a questionnaire that will help Guideline generate a Managed Portfolio where the percentages are preset based on your preferences. And for the savvy investors out there, Guideline lets you create your own Custom Portfolio from their list of investment options.

How hands-on should I be with my business’s 401(k)?

Gusto and Guideline work to make 401(k) management easy by handling tasks such as IRS non-discrimination testing, deductions, and record keeping. But we also encourage you to do your own routine inspections to ensure everything is up to your standards.

What is the process of setting up a 401(k) in Gusto with Guideline?

Setting up a 401(k) with Gusto is easy and can be done either on the Gusto site (in the Benefits tab) or we can connect you with a member of Guideline’s team. Learn more about setting up a 401(k).

Can business owners also participate in their business’s 401(k)?

Business owners can participate and max out the same 401(k) plan they offer their employees. If the business owner intends to participate, it’s best if the 401(k) is a Safe Harbor plan, which protects businesses from failing IRS nondiscrimination testing. Read more about nondiscrimination testing and Safe Harbor plans here.

Do I have to manage my employees’ contributions manually each paycheck?

Nope. Gusto automatically applies the deductions for you and your employees each pay cycle, according to the rules of your 401(k) plan. This is just one of the many employee management features Gusto offers.

What if I have financial benefits with another institution?

Right now Gusto only fully integrates with Guideline. If you use another platform, Gusto can help manage your payroll deductions but you would still be responsible for admin tasks such as managing enrollment, updating contribution values, and transferring funds. That said, we’re actively working on new platform integrations, so stay tuned!