# Ascensus: how AI models rank it, November 2026

Gane Index, November 2026 Edition. Named in 3 judge labels across 1 category by 3 of 14 models. Page: https://www.gane.ai/index/hr/vendors/ascensus

## Standing by category

| Category | Share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [401(k) providers](https://www.gane.ai/index/hr/rewards/401k-providers/index.md) | 0% | 75 | 67% | 3 |

## And against it

- "Ascensus has handled Vanguard transfers of 401(k)s so badly that a class action lawsuit may have been in the works, so you may want to avoid them." (Claude Haiku 4.5, 401(k) providers)
- "Ascensus and Principal are the most consistently criticized in recent years" (DeepSeek V4 Flash, 401(k) providers)

## By model

| Model | First choice | Alternative | Mention | Warning | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| GPT-5.4 mini | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Perplexity Sonar | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Grok 4.20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mistral Small | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Llama 4 Maverick | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kimi K2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MiniMax M2.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GPT-6 Luna | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Muse Glimmer 30B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

## Sources returned with these answers

The sites and pages cited by the answers that named Ascensus, from 15 of the 15 answers that named it (only the models that return a source list).

### Domains cited

- bogleheads.org: 8
- reddit.com: 8
- leadchangegroup.com: 7
- adp.com: 6
- employeefiduciary.com: 6
- trustpilot.com: 5
- 401kspecialistmag.com: 4
- bbb.org: 4
- betterment.com: 4
- dol.gov: 4

### Pages cited

- https://bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php: 8
- https://reddit.com/r/Bogleheads/comments/1i304qu/ascensus_is_the_worst_company_ive_ever_had_the: 7
- https://leadchangegroup.com/401k-providers: 4
- https://adp.com/what-we-offer/benefits/retirement/401k.aspx: 3
- https://leadchangegroup.com/401k-providers/enterprise: 3
- https://reddit.com/r/personalfinance/comments/3qagup/i_am_an_hr_director_at_a_small_tech_company_which: 3
- https://401kspecialistmag.com/the-worst-401k-plan-in-america: 2
- https://adp.com/what-we-offer/benefits/retirement.aspx: 2

## In its own words

What Ascensus's own pages state, read 2026-10-06. Stated by the vendor, not checked by the index.

- Positioning: Retirement Plan and Savings Solutions (https://ascensus.com/)
- For: Individuals, advisors, institutions, employers, TPAs, banks, credit unions, financial institutions, and state governments (https://ascensus.com/)
- Customers named: Control Instruments Corporation

## What it publishes

Every page ascensus.com exposes, read 2026-10-05: 2441 addresses. By kind, pages and the last 90 days:

- blog: 1510 pages, 8 in the last 90 days, latest 2026-09-17
- case study: 6 pages, 0 in the last 90 days, latest 2021-12-01
- webinar or virtual event: 38 pages, 0 in the last 90 days, latest 2022-01-13
- conference or event: 8 pages, 0 in the last 90 days, latest 2022-06-02
- report or ebook: 1 pages, 0 in the last 90 days, latest undated
- comparison: 24 pages, 0 in the last 90 days, latest 2025-10-01
- template or tool: 6 pages, 0 in the last 90 days, latest undated
- glossary or explainer: 9 pages, 2 in the last 90 days, latest 2026-09-17
- news or press: 102 pages, 0 in the last 90 days, latest undated
- Recent: 2026-09-17 blog: Whoor whatcan inherit an ira https://thelink.ascensus.com/articles/2026/9/14/whoor-whatcan-inherit-an-ira
- Recent: 2026-09-17 blog: Things to consider as simple ira deadline looms https://thelink.ascensus.com/articles/2026/9/14/things-to-consider-as-simple-ira-deadline-looms
- Recent: 2026-09-17 glossary or explainer: What is the secure 20 long term care provision https://thelink.ascensus.com/articles/2026/9/14/what-is-the-secure-20-long-term-care-provision
- Recent: 2026-09-17 glossary or explainer: What is the consequence of taking a coverdell esa nonqualified distribution https://thelink.ascensus.com/articles/2026/9/14/what-is-the-consequence-of-taking-a-coverdell-esa-nonqualified-distribution
- Recent: 2026-09-17 blog: Adopting a safe harbor 401k plan https://thelink.ascensus.com/articles/2026/9/14/adopting-a-safe-harbor-401k-plan
- Recent: 2026-07-16 blog: Forms 1099 r and 5498 small changes big implications for 2026 reporting https://thelink.ascensus.com/articles/2026/7/13/forms-1099-r-and-5498-small-changes-big-implications-for-2026-reporting

## Record

- Method: https://www.gane.ai/index/hr/methodology
- License: CC BY 4.0. Cite as Gane Index, November 2026 Edition, www.gane.ai/index/hr.