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401(k) providers · November 2026 Edition

Human Interest vs Empower Retirement

Six of fourteen models named Human Interest first on the direct prompt; four named Empower Retirement. Human Interest was named by fourteen of the fourteen models and Empower Retirement by thirteen and Human Interest carries 41 labels and Empower Retirement 37, so the shares are not directly comparable.

Human Interest

accepted challenger

Named in one category this edition.

Empower Retirement

accepted challenger

Named in one category this edition.

First-choice share27%8%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate7%14%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#1#5A position in a field of 18; printed, not drawn.
Labels4137A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, Human Interest reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.Human Interest vs Fidelity Workplace Investing · Human Interest vs Guideline · Human Interest vs ADP Retirement Services

Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the 401(k) providers page.

By framing

How many of the fourteen models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
Human InterestFirst choices, of fourteen modelsEmpower Retirement
Direct641 against Human Interest · 1 against Empower Retirement
Paraphrase60
Comparative10
Budget-constrained201 against Human Interest
Scale-constrained00
Negative001 against Human Interest · 4 against Empower Retirement
Bars are first choices, 0 to 14 each sideModels that argued againstA model can name both, so the two sides of a row do not sum to fourteen.

Across every category in the November 2026 Edition, Human Interest and Empower Retirement were named in the same answer thirty-two times, of the 92 answers naming Human Interest and the 100 naming Empower Retirement. In those answers Empower Retirement took the first choice three times and Human Interest nine.

Every model, every framing

The eighty-four answers behind the chart above, one cell each: where Human Interest and Empower Retirement stood in it.
ModelDirectParaphraseComparativeBudget-constrainedScale-constrainedNegative
Claude Haiku 4.5
GPT-5.4 mini
Gemini 3.5 Flash
Perplexity Sonar
Grok 4.20
Mistral Small
DeepSeek V4 Flash
Llama 4 Maverick
Qwen 3.7 Flash
Kimi K2
GLM 4.7 FlashX
MiniMax M2.5
GPT-6 Luna
Muse Glimmer 30B
Human Interest Empower Retirement first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Human Interest on the left and Empower Retirement on the right.

The direct prompt

The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where Human Interest and Empower Retirement stood in it.

Human Interest first, Empower Retirement an alternative

6 of 14 modelsEmpower Retirement was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.
Grok 4.20Human Interest alternatives: ADP Retirement Services, Betterment at Work, Fidelity Workplace Investing, Guideline, Vestwell
DeepSeek V4 FlashHuman Interest alternatives: Empower Retirement, Fidelity Advantage 401
Qwen 3.7 FlashFidelity Workplace Investing, Human Interest alternatives: Empower Retirement, Vanguard Workplace Solutions
Kimi K2Fidelity Workplace Investing, Human Interest alternatives: Betterment at Work, Empower Retirement, ForUsAll, Vanguard Workplace Solutions, Vestwell
GLM 4.7 FlashXBetterment for Business, Human Interest alternatives: ADP Retirement Services, Empower Retirement, Fidelity Workplace Investing, Vanguard Workplace Solutions
MiniMax M2.5Human Interest alternatives: Betterment at Work, Fidelity Workplace Investing

Empower Retirement first, Human Interest an alternative

4 of 14 modelsHuman Interest was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.
GPT-5.4 miniEmpower Retirement alternatives: ADP Retirement Services, Guideline, Gusto Retirement, Human Interest
Mistral SmallADP Retirement Services, Empower Retirement, Fidelity Advantage 401, Vanguard Workplace Solutions alternatives: ForUsAll, Guideline, Human Interest, Paychex Retirement Services, Vestwell
GPT-6 LunaEmpower Retirement, Fidelity Advantage 401 alternatives: ADP Retirement Services, Principal
Muse Glimmer 30BEmpower Retirement, Fidelity Workplace Investing alternatives: ADP Retirement Services, Betterment at Work, Human Interest, Paychex Retirement Services, Vanguard Workplace Solutions

Neither was the first choice, one was named

2 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.
Gemini 3.5 FlashFidelity Investments alternatives: ADP Retirement Services, Empower Retirement, Principal Financial Group
Perplexity SonarFidelity Workplace Investing alternatives: Betterment at Work, Human Interest

Neither was named

2 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.
Claude Haiku 4.5no first choice
Llama 4 Maverickno first choice

Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.

By buyer segment

The same question asked on behalf of a different buyer. Each standing is computed within its segment and they are never added together. The figures above are the mid-market standing, which is the one the category orders by.
Small business
Human Interest leads by sixteen points.
Human Interest16%#2 of 11
Empower Retirement0%#– of 11
The full small business standing →
Mid-marketThe figures above
Human Interest leads by twenty points.
Human Interest27%#1 of 18
Empower Retirement8%#5 of 18
The full mid-market standing →
Enterprise
The order flips: Empower Retirement leads at enterprise.
Empower Retirement7%#4 of 11
Human Interest6%#6 of 11
The full enterprise standing →

What the models said about Human Interest

Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of seven in this category shown.

“pricing surfaced in my search was $120 + $5 per eligible employee per month, which is typically higher than Guideline for small teams” GPT-5.4 mini · budget prompt · soft negative
“As plans grow past $20M–$30M in assets or 500+ employees, traditional recordkeepers like Fidelity or Empower often provide better scale” Gemini 3.5 Flash · direct prompt · soft negative
“though Human Interest had some service hiccups during rapid growth” DeepSeek V4 Flash · negative prompt · soft negative
“If you want a modern, all‑in experience with automated compliance: Go with Human Interest or Betterment for Business.” GLM 4.7 FlashX · direct prompt · first choice
“I'd generally recommend Human Interest if your priority is a modern 401(k) platform that's easy to administer and scale” GPT-5.4 mini · paraphrase prompt · first choice
“Human Interest is a strong alternative if you prioritize a modern, low-friction experience and high satisfaction scores” Muse Glimmer 30B · paraphrase prompt · first choice

What the models said about Empower Retirement

Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of eight in this category shown.

“Be most cautious with: Empower (service meltdowns)” Kimi K2 · negative prompt · hard negative
“the SEC found that Empower entities inadequately disclosed conflicts and financial incentives tied to recommendations to enroll participants in that service” GPT-6 Luna · negative prompt · soft negative
“remains a mid-tier provider where plan design (chosen by your employer) determines whether you get good or bad options” DeepSeek V4 Flash · negative prompt · soft negative
“Scale / investment choice + fiduciary support: Fidelity Workplace Investing, Empower Retirement” Muse Glimmer 30B · direct prompt · first choice
“Empower, Vanguard, Fidelity, and ADP are frequently cited as top choices” Mistral Small · direct prompt · first choice
“Why I'd lean Empower for a true mid-market B2B company” GPT-5.4 mini · direct prompt · first choice
Also compared

Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.