[mox1]

Can a small business just walk up to Vanguard and say, please give me an end 2 end 401(k) solution? With compliance, record keeping, etc?

It was my understanding that they could not, but I could be wrong.

[latortuga]

Yes[0] they do that and it is a bit pricey if you are quite small. We investigated them when setting up our 401k and found the fees to be a bit difficult to swallow for a 3 person company.

[0] https://institutional.vanguard.com/VGApp/iip/site/institutio...

[Hannan]

Any chance you can give a rough number on the costs you were quoted? The linked pages don't mention it at all, as far as I can see.

[ac29]

Our small company has a SIMPLE IRA through Vanguard. It costs $25/year (waived if you have $50k managed with them across any type of accounts) plus the mutual fund costs, which are very low. Almost no paperwork to get it started.

Definitely worth looking into for small businesses.

[loeg]

SIMPLE IRAs have lower employee and much lower employer contribution limits than 401(k)s.