How to find forgotten 401(k) accounts

Americans change jobs an average of every four years. Onboarding with your new employer provides a lot of opportunity to forget about an old retirement account from your old company.

While 401(k)s have become the default for retirement savings, many workers are confused about how to transfer them when they change jobs. According to fintech firm Capitalize, there were almost 32 million abandoned 401(k) accounts in 2025, holding roughly $2.1 trillion in total assets.

That's a 20% spike from 2023 and nearly twice as many since 2015, according to Capitalize's report, "driven by ongoing job switching and layoffs."

Do you think you have a phantom 401(k) floating out there? Here's how you can track it down and what to to do with it when you find it.

Start by scouring your personal email for any old statements that you may have saved.

"Your statement will provide your account number and plan administrator's contact information," said Corina Cavazos, managing director for advice and planning at Wells Fargo Wealth and Investment Management. "Your former coworkers may have old statements that you can reference, too."

If you don't have any luck, Cavazos says to contact your former employer's HR or accounting department. Give them your full name, Social Security number and dates of employment and they should be able to check records to see if you were once a participant in the company 401(k) plan.

If that doesn't bear fruit, you may be able to find old retirement account funds on the National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits. Updated weekly, the secure website lets you search a free database to see if there are any unpaid retirement benefits in your name.

Another option is the FreeERISA website, which indicates if your former employer rolled your 401(k) funds into a default IRA account on your behalf. You have to register on the site, but the service is free.

The U.S. Department of Labor also has a searchable database of former employers who have gotten rid of their retirement plans or are in the process of terminating.

There are also commercial services like Beagle and Capitalize, which will track down old 401(k)s for you.

Once you find forgotten retirement funds, you can simply roll over your old 401(k) account into an IRA.

"It's beneficial to consolidate your accounts to reduce oversight obligations," Cavazos says. "Having all of your funds consolidated in one account allows you to keep track of your balance and account performance."

If you already have an existing IRA, you can roll your 401(k) balance into that account. Otherwise, it's easy to open a new IRA at a brokerage like Charles Schwab, Fidelity, Vanguard, Betterment or Robinhood*.

Since you won't be limited to the options offered by your former employer, rolling over your 401(k) also gives you more control over how you invest. Larger brokerages give you thousands of investment options, including mutual funds, index funds and individual stocks.

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*(Review Robinhood disclosures here.)