Comparison

Top ERISA data tools for 2026: a buyer's guide.

ERISA data tools serve four distinct buyer segments — advisors prospecting takeovers, asset managers researching plans, recordkeepers tracking competitors, and attorneys handling litigation. The right tool depends almost entirely on which segment you're in. Here are the top picks for each.

#1401kHunter — best for advisor prospecting

$25 entry / $100/mo Pro

Pay-as-you-go ERISA prospecting with the deepest Schedule C provider compensation surface — including indirect-comp formula text — and built-in Apollo decision-maker enrichment.

Pros

✓Pay-as-you-go pricing ($25 entry, $100/mo Pro)
✓Full Schedule C P1I2 + P1I3 ingestion with formula text
✓Decision-maker enrichment with verified email and direct phone
✓Fee Grade A–D + basis-point badge on every plan

Cons

✕No CRM bundled (export to HubSpot/Salesforce)
✕Newer brand

Best for: Independent financial advisors, small RIA teams, fee-only fiduciaries hunting Grade D plan takeovers.

#2Larkspur Data — best for enterprise back-office

Enterprise (not published)

Enterprise ERISA platform with advisor-to-plan mapping and litigation signals. Used by recordkeepers, TPAs, and large broker-dealers for back-office prospecting.

Pros

✓Advisor-firm relationship history
✓ERISA litigation data + migration signals
✓Designed for enterprise data integration workflows

Cons

✕Enterprise pricing only
✕Not built for solo advisors

Best for: Recordkeepers, TPAs, and enterprise broker-dealers needing relationship data layered on plan filings.

#3BrightScope — best for asset managers

Free consumer; B2B is enterprise contract

ERISA data with proprietary plan ratings and Beacon API access. Owned by ISS Market Intelligence; primarily used by asset managers for marketing collateral and institutional research.

Pros

✓BrightScope Ratings carry market recognition
✓Beacon API for institutional integrations
✓Free consumer-facing plan search at brightscope.com

Cons

✕Schedule C detail aggregated, not exposed provider-by-provider
✕Built for asset managers, not advisors

Best for: Asset managers and large wealth firms wanting plan ratings for marketing or institutional research.

#4fi360 — best for fiduciary process documentation

$2k–$8k/seat/year (estimated)

Investment-monitoring + fiduciary-rating toolkit, owned by Broadridge. Different category than the others — used to DOCUMENT fiduciary process on plans you advise, not to FIND new plans to pitch.

Pros

✓Industry-standard Fiduciary Score
✓IPS templates, quarterly review reports
✓Strong fit for ERISA 404(a)/(c) documentation

Cons

✕Not a plan prospecting tool
✕Annual subscription, sales-led

Best for: RIAs running 3(21) or 3(38) fiduciary services who need formal investment-monitoring documentation.

#5Judy Diamond Associates — best for legacy enterprise prospecting

$2,400–$7,000+/seat/year (estimated)

Longstanding incumbent with deep historical coverage and CRM features. Premium seat-based pricing makes it a fit for enterprise teams already on multi-year contracts.

Pros

✓Decades of historical Form 5500 coverage
✓CRM features built in

Cons

✕Premium pricing
✕Enterprise onboarding

Best for: Large national broker-dealers and recordkeepers with multi-seat enterprise contracts.

Conclusion

There is no single "best" ERISA data tool — the right choice depends on what you do with the data. Independent advisors prospecting takeovers should start with 401kHunter for the pricing and Schedule C depth. Enterprise back-office teams need Larkspur. Asset managers building marketing collateral need BrightScope. Anyone documenting fiduciary process for existing client plans needs fi360. Most advisors stick with one primary tool plus an enrichment provider (Apollo) for decision-maker data — though the better prospecting tools have enrichment built in.

Frequently asked

Are these tools regulated under ERISA?

No. ERISA regulates retirement plans and their fiduciaries, not the data vendors that aggregate publicly filed information. The vendors are commercial software companies — buyer beware on data quality and refresh cadence.

Which tool is cheapest?

FreeERISA (free single-plan lookup) and 401kHunter (free filtered search; $25 minimum for decision-maker unlocks) are the entry-level options. Most other tools in this list start at $2k+/year/seat.

Do I need a separate decision-maker enrichment tool?

Only if your primary tool doesn't have it built in. 401kHunter has Apollo-resolved decision-maker contacts integrated. Larkspur, BrightScope, and Judy Diamond surface filing-listed contacts (Plan Administrator, Sponsor Signer) but typically don't resolve the actual buying committee — you'll layer Apollo or ZoomInfo on top.

How do these tools refresh data?

DOL refreshes the bulk Form 5500 dataset weekly as new filings arrive. Most tools re-ingest monthly. 401kHunter is moving toward weekly re-ingestion to keep latency tighter.

Try the top advisor pick

401kHunter — free filtered search, full Schedule C, decision-maker enrichment, $25 to start unlocking contacts.

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