Betterment1 simplifies 401(k) plan administration, making it easy for employers to offer a better 401(k) quickly and easily—at one of the lowest costs in the industry. The fully-integrated 401(k) platform with Gusto takes the effort out of managing a 401(k) by automating data syncing, including new employee set up and contribution rate settings.
You’ll need to have admin permissions in both Gusto and Betterment before you connect your company’s accounts. If you’re setting up a 401(k) for the first time, get started with Betterment here. Once you've set up or transferred your 401(k) with Betterment, follow these steps to integrate the benefit with your Gusto payroll.
Once you click “Authorize,” your Gusto and Betterment accounts are connected.
Next steps
Company and employee contributions: you can view and manage all your plan settings throughout the year on Betterment's website. You can find high-level plan info in your Gusto Benefits section, but changes must be made directly with Betterment.
Employee data syncing
A sync runs between Gusto and Betterment multiple times per day. When you hire an employee or change someone's employment status in Gusto, admins will receive an email when it’s time to approve their Betterment eligibility. Follow the steps in the "Review new hire eligibility" section of this article to get your new hires started.
The first time you run payroll after setting up the integration, you’ll need to approve the payroll deductions in Betterment. Subsequent payrolls you run will be automatically approved.
In Betterment, payroll activity is logged on the Payroll section under “Activity.” Click the blue arrow next to a payroll to review employee and company contributions.
When an employee is about to become eligible to participate in the 401(k) plan, Betterment will email you to approve their eligibility and invite them to sign up. Click the prompt in the email or log in to your Betterment dashboard to begin.
Once you approve an employee's eligibility date, they’ll receive an email from Betterment inviting them to sign up and start contributing to their 401(k).
If contributions haven't started yet for a new hire, it's likely because they're not yet eligible to enroll per your company's plan settings. This could also be because the new hire enrolled after your payroll admin already ran payroll for the pay period.
When you want data about your company’s 401(k) plan and contributions, admins can download a few different kinds of reports from Betterment.
Missing payroll deductions
There are a few reasons why there may not be payroll deductions:
New hires
Whenever you hire someone in Gusto, their info automatically syncs to Betterment. Once they fulfill any eligibility requirements (such as a new hire waiting period), Betterment invites them to enroll and their deductions will be automatically added to payroll.
If contributions haven't started yet for a new hire, they may not yet be eligible to enroll per your company's plan settings. This could also be because the new hire enrolled after your payroll admin already ran payroll for the pay period.
Change contributions or policy settings
Reach out to Betterment to change any of your company's policy settings.
Changing the company match for a specific payroll: this is not supported per 401(k) plan policies. The company match must be applied to all payrolls that are subject to contributions.
Loans
If your plan allows participants to request loans, employees can reach out to Betterment to apply. Once the employee reaches the repayment stage of the loan, Betterment will notify them with instructions. If Betterment collects the repayment through payroll deductions, the employee can expect to see post-tax loan deductions on their paystubs. Refer to the terms of your loan or contact Betterment to confirm your repayment method.
Payroll data not syncing
In order for payroll data to sync, Gusto must be set as your payroll provider in Betterment. If you’ve changed your payroll provider since starting your 401(k), contact Betterment to update it.
If your plan allows participants to request loans or distributions, you may receive an email requiring you to approve them through the Betterment dashboard. Click the prompt in the email or log in to your Betterment dashboard to manage requests.
The employee will receive an update via email with next steps. Once the employee reaches the repayment stage of the loan, Betterment will notify them with instructions. If Betterment collects the repayment through payroll deductions, the employee can expect to see post-tax loan deductions on their paystubs.
Check out Betterment’s Help Center or contact Betterment directly at (855) 906-5280 or [email protected].
Some tasks will require you to contact the Betterment for assistance. This includes:
Employees can visit Betterment’s Help Center for 401(k) participants or contact Betterment directly at (855) 906-5281 or [email protected].
1. Paid non-client of Betterment. Views may not be representative; see more reviews at G2. Learn more about Gusto’s relationship with Betterment.