Bnsf Railway Company 401(k) Review & Grade
Bnsf Railway Company Non-Salaried Employees 401(k) Retirement Plan
Fort Worth, TXTransportation & Warehousing27,217 active participantsPlan year 2024
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$459Employer $ per active participant
$7,436Employee $ saved per active participant
0.00%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$4.8BNet plan assets, end of year
$151,629Average balance per account
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity10.0 / 5020th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost25.0 / 25100th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving13.0 / 1587th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features3 / 10Default investment
- Red-flag deductions-3 pts1 issue reported on the filing
Total score48 / 100 · Grade C
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Transportation & Warehousing plans with 10,000+ active participants (46 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 20th |
| Lower admin cost | 100th |
| Employee saving | 87th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 30% |
Red flags from the filing
Corrective distributions: the plan refunded $616 in contributions, which usually means it failed annual nondiscrimination testing.
What to do if you're in this plan
- Bnsf Railway put in about $459 per active participant, below the typical peer ($1,415). Any match is still an instant return, so contribute enough to get all of it.
- The filing shows total dollars, not the match formula. Ask HR for the Summary Plan Description so you know the exact match and vesting schedule.
- Fund expense ratios aren't in the filing. Look them up in your 404(a)(5) fee disclosure and favor low-cost index or target-date funds.
- Changing jobs? You can usually leave the money in the plan, move it to your new employer's plan, or roll it into an IRA. Don't cash out: you'd owe taxes and possibly a 10% penalty.
The raw numbers from the filing
| Employer contributions | $12,485,759 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $202,389,892 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $99,053,323 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $37,500 |
| Other admin expenses | $37,500 |
| Benefits paid out | $312,363,373 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $4.1B / $4.8B |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 27,055 / 27,379 |
| Participants with account balances | 31,563 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Not reported |
| Auditor | Whitley Penn LLP |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| The Vanguard Group, Inc. | $294,050 reported compensation |
| Qdro Consultants Company | $37,500 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20251013105410NAL0002497570001, received 2025-10-13, EIN 41-6034000, plan #006, plan year 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.
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