how much can you contribute to a defined contribution plan 
plan participants under 50 can contribute up to 22 500 a year to a 401 k in 2023 and up to 7 500 in catch up contributions if they are over age 50 12the bottom linedefined contribution plans are retirement plans where the employer employee or both make regular contributions of specified amounts many popular plans are defined contribution plans such as the 401 k 457 and 403 b plans these plans generally require the employees to choose from investment options to fit their retirement goals such as portfolios with higher returns and risk or more conservative portfolios with lower risk and returns 