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K usually means 1,000 so 401k would be 401,000.

Generally, Americans speaking of a 401k, speak of a retirement plan.

Simply it is the tax code - think of it as an outline numbering - 401 is the 401st section and "k" is the subsection number/letter. The K doesn't stand for anything that starts with the letter K or 1000 increments. It stands for the (k) section of the 401st tax code section that lets employees contribute to a retirement plan and not be taxed on what they contribute.

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15y ago

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