401(k) providers · November 2026 Edition
Human Interest vs Guideline
Six of fourteen models named Human Interest first on the direct prompt; zero named Guideline. Human Interest was named by fourteen of the fourteen models and Guideline by twelve and Human Interest carries 41 labels and Guideline 25, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Named in one category this edition.
Named in two categories this edition.
First-choice share27%10%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate7%4%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#1#3A position in a field of 18; printed, not drawn.
Labels4125A 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.Empower Retirement was named alongside these two in nine of the fourteen direct answers. Human Interest vs Fidelity Workplace Investing · Human Interest vs ADP Retirement Services · Human Interest vs Empower Retirement
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 modelsGuideline
Direct601 against Human Interest
Paraphrase61
Comparative11
Budget-constrained241 against Human Interest
Scale-constrained00
Negative001 against Human Interest · 1 against Guideline
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 Guideline were named in the same answer forty-four times, of the 92 answers naming Human Interest and the 81 naming Guideline. In those answers Guideline took the first choice fourteen times and Human Interest five.
Every model, every framing
The eighty-four answers behind the chart above, one cell each: where Human Interest and Guideline stood in it.
| Model | Direct | Paraphrase | Comparative | Budget-constrained | Scale-constrained | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 Guideline first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Human Interest on the left and Guideline on the right.The direct prompt
The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where Human Interest and Guideline stood in it.
Human Interest first, Guideline an alternative
6 of 14 modelsGuideline 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
Neither was the first choice, one was named
4 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.GPT-5.4 miniEmpower Retirement alternatives: ADP Retirement Services, Guideline, Gusto Retirement, Human Interest
Perplexity SonarFidelity Workplace Investing alternatives: Betterment at Work, Human Interest
Mistral SmallADP Retirement Services, Empower Retirement, Fidelity Advantage 401, Vanguard Workplace Solutions alternatives: ForUsAll, Guideline, Human Interest, Paychex Retirement Services, Vestwell
Muse Glimmer 30BEmpower Retirement, Fidelity Workplace Investing alternatives: ADP Retirement Services, Betterment at Work, Human Interest, Paychex Retirement Services, Vanguard Workplace Solutions
Neither was named
4 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Claude Haiku 4.5no first choice
Gemini 3.5 FlashFidelity Investments alternatives: ADP Retirement Services, Empower Retirement, Principal Financial Group
Llama 4 Maverickno first choice
GPT-6 LunaEmpower Retirement, Fidelity Advantage 401 alternatives: ADP Retirement Services, Principal
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
Guideline leads by nine points.
Guideline25%#1 of 11Human Interest16%#2 of 11Mid-marketThe figures above
The order flips: Human Interest leads at mid-market.
Human Interest27%#1 of 18Guideline10%#3 of 18Enterprise
Human Interest leads by four points.
Human Interest6%#6 of 11Guideline2%#– of 11What 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 Guideline
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Four of five in this category shown.
“execution and service seem unreliable—avoid if you value responsive support.” Grok 4.20 · negative prompt · hard negative
“Guideline is frequently ranked first for cost/automation, with $89 base + $8/employee in current provider listings, and no setup fee.” Muse Glimmer 30B · budget prompt · first choice
“Choose a Tech-Forward Provider (Guideline, Human Interest, Betterment) if you have under 50 employees” Gemini 3.5 Flash · comparative prompt · first choice
“Guideline looks like the strongest low-budget option for many small businesses” GPT-5.4 mini · budget prompt · first choice
Also compared
Human Interest vs Fidelity Workplace InvestingHuman Interest vs ADP Retirement ServicesHuman Interest vs Empower RetirementHuman Interest vs Fidelity Advantage 401Human Interest vs Employee Fiduciary 401(k) PlanHuman Interest vs Fidelity InvestmentsFidelity Workplace Investing vs GuidelineGuideline vs ADP Retirement ServicesGuideline vs Empower RetirementGuideline vs Fidelity Advantage 401Guideline vs Employee Fiduciary 401(k) PlanGuideline vs Fidelity InvestmentsAll twenty-eight head-to-head pages and the full 401(k) providers standing
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.