Mark Cuban’s Hard Truth About 401(k)s for People in Their 50s

Mark Cuban has called anyone who skips an available 401(k) match “an idiot,” making his view clear: you are walking away from employer money. But taking the match does not automatically mean the rest of your retirement plan is in good shape. His focus on emergency savings and credit card debt leads to a bigger question: are you putting enough aside in a way you can realistically keep invested?

For workers in their 50s, there is still time to boost savings and address costly mistakes, but there are fewer years left to recover from them. If retirement savings feel tight, it helps to examine your contribution rate, your investment choices, and your costs. Several areas deserve a closer look.

Make sure you are getting the full employer match

Your own contribution rate and your employer’s matching formula are not always the same thing. For example, if you earn $80,000 and your employer matches 50% of contributions on the first 6% of pay, contributing 6% — or $4,800 — would get you the full $2,400 match.

If you contribute only 3%, you would receive just $1,200 under that formula. It is also important to check when employer contributions actually vest. In this example, contributing 3% instead of 6% means leaving $1,200 in employer money on the table over the course of a year. Review the matching rules and vesting schedule before assuming you are getting everything offered.

Review the contribution rate you set years ago

A payroll deduction makes saving automatic, but it does not tell you whether you are saving enough to retire at 65, pay your mortgage, or support two people from one account.

Compare your contribution rate with your expected retirement expenses and other income, including Social Security. A percentage you chose when your children were young may need an update now. If your income, bills, or retirement timeline has changed, the amount coming out of each paycheck may need to change too.

Learn what your default fund really contains

Your employer may have automatically enrolled you in a target-date fund. These funds usually become more conservative as the retirement year gets closer, which makes them convenient.

Even so, the SEC warns that funds with the same target year can have different investment mixes, risk levels, and fees. Check the stock-and-bond allocation and see whether it matches your expected retirement date. The fund may be suitable, but it is still worth confirming that its holdings and risk level fit your goals.

Find out what your 401(k) actually costs

Fee information is easy to miss in the paperwork your plan sends. For participant-directed plans covered by federal disclosure rules, the Labor Department says investment and fee details generally must be provided each year, and certain account-level charges must be reported at least quarterly.

Ask for the investment comparison chart. Look up each fund’s expense ratio, then check for separate administrative or advisory fees. Your quarterly statement may not show every cost that is reducing your returns.

A 1% fee can add up fast

An expense ratio is an annual operating cost expressed as a percentage of assets. On a hypothetical $300,000 balance, a 1% fee would equal about $3,000 a year, compared with roughly $300 at 0.10%, assuming the balance stayed the same.

That is a $2,700 difference before accounting for lost growth. Still, compare funds with similar goals and holdings. Switching from a diversified retirement fund to a stock-only fund changes your risk as well as your costs.

Keep emergency savings in the picture

In his Vanity Fair money guide, Cuban recommended setting aside six months of income to deal with job loss, a move, or other disruptions. He specifically used income, which could mean a larger target than six months of essential expenses.

Before increasing contributions beyond the match, think about what you would live on if your paycheck stopped. At 55, a broken furnace should not force you to sell retirement investments during a market slump.

Do not assume investments will beat credit card debt

Cuban has repeatedly stressed paying off high-interest credit cards. The logic is simple: interest keeps piling up whether markets rise or fall.

A card charging 24% creates a steep hurdle. Paying down that balance avoids interest on the amount repaid, while a 24% investment return is not something most people can plan on. Treat the employer match separately, but weigh any extra unmatched investing against expensive debt instead of assuming more investing should always come first.

Use the extra contribution room available in your 50s

For 2026, the regular employee 401(k) contribution limit is $24,500. Workers ages 50 through 59 can contribute an additional $8,000 if their plan allows catch-up contributions, bringing the total to $32,500.

You do not need to hit the maximum to make progress. An extra $250 a month adds up to $30,000 over 10 years before any investment gains or losses. If the full limit is not realistic, begin with whatever your budget can handle.

Do not take bigger risks just because you are behind

Someone who is 52 and hopes to retire at 67 still has 15 years to contribute. That leaves room for meaningful change, but less room for a risky bet that goes wrong.

Review your overall mix before chasing the fund that recently performed best. If you are behind, raising contributions or adjusting your retirement date may make more sense than taking far more risk. A retirement shortfall is stressful enough without tying the outcome to one stock.

The bottom line

This month, check three things: your contribution rate, whether you are getting the full employer match, and the expense ratios on your investments. Those are smart checks for older workers, but they are just as important in your 50s, while you still have time to make adjustments.

If you are married, review your accounts together. Different fund names can hide similar holdings, so look at what is underneath them. The key question is how your combined savings line up with your retirement plans.