Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. 401(k) Review & Grade
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. and Affiliates Employee Savings Plan
Lebanon, TNAccommodation & Food Services56,118 active participantsPlan year 2024
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$100Employer $ per active participant
$310Employee $ saved per active participant
0.22%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$225.3MNet plan assets, end of year
–Average balance per account (account count looks misreported)
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity6.3 / 5012th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost3.9 / 2516th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving0.8 / 155th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features3 / 10Default investment
- Red-flag deductions-3 pts1 issue reported on the filing
Total score11 / 100 · Grade F
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Accommodation & Food Services plans with 10,000+ active participants (41 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 12th |
| Lower admin cost | 16th |
| Employee saving | 5th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 24% |
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Red flags from the filing
Corrective distributions: the plan refunded $2,624 in contributions, which usually means it failed annual nondiscrimination testing.
What to do if you're in this plan
- Cracker Barrel Old Country Store put in about $100 per active participant, below the typical peer ($393). 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.
- Direct plan expenses (0.22% of assets) are well above similar-size plans (0.09%). Check your annual fee disclosure, choose low-cost index funds if you can, and think about whether savings beyond the match belong in an IRA.
- 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 | $5,609,915 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $17,406,597 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $1,309,828 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $462,332 |
| Investment advisory & management fees | $92,525 |
| Other admin expenses | $286 |
| Benefits paid out | $24,555,459 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $202.4M / $225.3M |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 56,261 / 55,974 |
| Participants with account balances | 7,686 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Not reported |
| Auditor | Lbmc PC |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner and S | $369,521 reported compensation |
| Capfinancial Partners, LLC. | $92,500 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20251010084819NAL0004438419001, received 2025-10-10, EIN 62-0812904, plan #001, plan year 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.