Going mobile: The 10 best (worst) retirement plan apps

Fears about a coming recession may have abated a bit, as Moody's predicts a 33% chance of any economic slump, down from 50% earlier in the year. Nevertheless, inflation has taken its toll on retirement readiness, with just under half of respondents to HSA Bank's Health and Wealth Index reporting that their ability to save for retirement has been compromised by the financial instability of recent years. Although employers have a significant role to play in helping employees manage these rough waters, many Americans are taking matters into their own hands by using mobile apps to keep close and consistent watch on their accounts. According to a recent study from J.D. Power, customer satisfaction with the digital experience is up, but that doesn't mean there isn't still work to be done. "Consistently, we're finding that improved digital experiences are critical to strong financial performance," says Craig Martin, managing director and global head of wealth and lending intelligence at J.D. Power. "Participants who have a great digital experience vote with their dollars, with roughly double the amount of participants rolling in assets from other plans and more than triple the amount saying they will keep their money with their current provider if their job situation were to change." Courtesy of J.D. Power. The study shows that downloads and usage of mobile retirement apps have increased substantially over just the past couple years. Nearly half (47%) of participants reported downloading their retirement plan's mobile app, up from 35% in 2021, while 38% have used the mobile app in the past 30 days, up from 27% in 2021. However, even though overall satisfaction with retirement plan digital experiences has increased from 663 in 2022 to 682 in 2023, only 38% of retirement plan participants give their plans high marks for digital capabilities. Moreover, other industries have achieved higher levels of overall satisfaction with their digital experiences, including wealth management and property and casualty insurance.

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Improving these digital offerings is vital, whatever the vicissitudes of the market may be, Martin says. "The effects of the digital experience to the business are impossible to ignore and will only become more important when an inevitable market downturn occurs and satisfaction is affected." The study's results bear this out: More than one third (34%) of retirement plan participants who give their provider the highest marks for digital experience have rolled over money from other retirement accounts, compared with the 20% who give their experiences a poor rating. Additionally, 48% of those participants giving their plans the highest marks for digital said they "definitely will" keep assets with their current provider even if they change their job. Only 15% of those with low digital satisfaction reported staying with their providers. See our slideshow above for the mobile apps with the highest overall satisfaction ratings.