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Provider comparison

My Solo 401k vs ROBSPRO: ROBS Provider Comparison

Direct answer: compare My Solo first if you want the clearer public low-cost schedule and first-10-participant pricing. Compare ROBSPRO first if direct lawyer access is central and you are prepared to get employee-census administration terms in writing. Do not treat either as a universal winner: IRS and DOL materials keep the owner’s plan, filing, valuation and fiduciary duties in view.[1][2]

By Dennis Shirshikov · Reviewed July 27, 2026 · Sources reopened July 27, 2026

What changes the answer?

  • Whether the plan will stay at 10 or fewer participants.
  • How ROBSPRO prices administration after employee census is known.
  • Whether valuation, correction, exit and audit support are included or separately billed.
  • Whether you want a direct-lawyer model or a published line-item service menu.

What this comparison is measuring

A ROBS transaction is not a loan. The retirement plan buys C corporation stock, the corporation receives operating capital, and the owner still has to operate both the business and the plan correctly.

The IRS describes ROBS as retirement funds rolled into a plan that buys stock of the new C corporation. That structure can avoid an immediate taxable distribution, but IRS also identifies filing, valuation, participant, discrimination, prohibited-transaction and business-failure risks.[1] DOL separately frames provider choice as an ongoing fiduciary monitoring job, not a one-time shopping decision.[2]

Public pricing math

These are reproducible base calculations from provider-controlled pricing pages. They are not quotes and they omit costs the providers do not price publicly.

My Solo 401k Financial

Setup
$3,000
Recurring annual
$899
First year
$3,000
Three years
$4,798

$3,000 first year; $3,000 + ($899 × 2) = $4,798 over three years

Assumes no more than 10 participants. My Solo publishes $75 per additional participant after the first 10, and that surcharge is not included in this base calculation.

ROBSPRO

Setup
$4,000
Recurring annual
$600
First year
$4,600
Three years
$5,800

$4,000 + ($50 × 12) = $4,600 first year; $4,000 + ($50 × 36) = $5,800 over three years

Uses ROBSPRO's published administration floor: starts off at $50 per month, billed quarterly. Employee-census adjustments, pass-through costs, outside adviser fees, valuation report costs, corrections and exit work are not included.

My Solo's base first year is $3,000 because the provider says the setup fee includes the first 12 months of ongoing compliance support. The three-year base adds only the second and third annual fees: $3,000 + ($899 × 2) = $4,798. The published $75 per additional participant is deliberately excluded because the base assumption is 10 or fewer participants.[3]

ROBSPRO's base first year is $4,600 because the provider publishes a $4,000 turnkey package and an administrative fee that starts at $50 per month: $4,000 + ($50 × 12). The three-year floor is $5,800: $4,000 + ($50 × 36). That is a floor because ROBSPRO says later monthly administration is discussed after the plan is installed and employee eligibility is clearer.[7]

Service-scope comparison

The cards below replace a score table with the actual decision questions: who does the work, what is included, and what still needs a written answer.

Setup and legal actor

My Solo: My Solo publishes a $3,000 setup fee and says its attorney and compliance officer are involved from beginning to launch. [3][4]

ROBSPRO: ROBSPRO publishes a $4,000 turnkey package and says the client works directly with a lawyer rather than clerks or salespersons. [7][9]

Unknown boundary: Neither public source replaces the signed engagement letter: confirm who signs legal documents, who is counsel to whom, and what legal advice is excluded.

Corporation, plan, rollover and accounts

My Solo: My Solo names C corporation formation, plan adoption, plan and corporation EINs, bank and brokerage accounts, retirement-account transfers, employer-stock purchase and stock certificates. [3][4]

ROBSPRO: ROBSPRO names corporation formation documents, plan design, plan documents, rollover consultations and plan custodial-account consultations. [8]

Unknown boundary: ROBSPRO does not publish EIN, bank-account or brokerage-account tasks in the reopened pages; My Solo's public account language still needs contract-level custody and signer detail.

Administration, employees and filings

My Solo: My Solo's $899 annual fee starts after the first 12 months and covers Form 5500, adding eligible participants, 1099-R reporting, statements, contributions, vesting and nondiscrimination/top-heavy/additions/coverage testing for the first 10 participants. [1][3]

ROBSPRO: ROBSPRO's administration fee starts at $50 per month, billed quarterly, and covers first-year administration help including Form 5500. It says employee participation can change the later monthly administration fee. [7][8]

Unknown boundary: Ask both providers for participant-notice timing, employee census deadlines, payroll data requirements, who files each form, who signs, and what happens if employees become eligible midyear.

Valuation

My Solo: My Solo names annual routine corporation valuation for Form 5500 and a separate valuation report service at $495, free for new clients. [1][3][5]

ROBSPRO: ROBSPRO names consultations about initial capital structure and special valuation requirements related to initial stock issuance and periodically thereafter. [8]

Unknown boundary: ROBSPRO does not publish a valuation report price; My Solo's public valuation language does not prove independence, valuation standard, reliance limits or exit valuation support.

Audit, inquiries, corrections and exits

My Solo: My Solo publishes audit-response assistance and conditional reasonable Tax Court counsel if the initial employer-stock investment is alleged to be a prohibited transaction, subject to procedures, requirements and terms available on request. [1][2][6]

ROBSPRO: ROBSPRO publishes first accounting-year consultation on plan operations and IRS or DOL plan-related inquiries. [8]

Unknown boundary: Neither provider's reopened pages publish audit defense without limits, penalty coverage, correction-program filings, refund rights, data-export terms or a complete exit/termination workflow.

When each provider may be easier to diligence

A lower public price is useful, but it does not prove better compliance. Direct lawyer access is useful, but it does not prove legal representation without limits.

My Solo may be easier to compare when

  • You want a published $3,000 setup fee and $899 annual fee after 12 months.
  • You expect 10 or fewer participants at first and want the $75 additional-participant boundary visible.
  • You want published language for EINs, bank and brokerage setup, Form 5500, 1099-R, testing, amendments and annual routine valuation.
  • You want to review a conditional audit guarantee before signing.

ROBSPRO may be easier to compare when

  • You value direct lawyer involvement enough to ask detailed engagement-scope questions.
  • You can model from a $4,000 setup fee plus $50/month administration floor.
  • You want the provider to discuss capital structure, plan design, rollover and IRS/DOL inquiries during the first plan accounting year.
  • You will insist on census-based recurring fees before relying on the public floor.

Questions to ask before signing

Use the same written questions for both providers so price differences do not hide scope differences.

  1. Which entity documents, plan documents, EINs, accounts, transfer forms, subscription agreements, stock certificates and resolutions are included?
  2. Who is the lawyer, if any, who represents the client, and what legal or tax advice is excluded?
  3. What is the recurring administration fee after employees become eligible, and what participant data must the employer provide?
  4. Who prepares, reviews, signs and files Form 5500, Form 1099-R, Form 945, Form 1120 and any related schedules?
  5. What valuation is included at setup, annually and at stock redemption, sale, failure or distribution?
  6. What audit, inquiry, correction, refund, data-export and exit services are included, optional or excluded?

Exact unknown boundaries

Unknown means the reopened public source did not publish enough detail. It is not a criticism and not a zero-dollar assumption.

Unknown for My Solo public pages

Full engagement terms, cancellation/refund rights, data-export terms, correction-program filing scope, plan termination or sale workflow, fiduciary allocation, and the complete conditions behind the guarantee beyond terms available on request.

Unknown for ROBSPRO public pages

EIN and bank/brokerage task detail, post-installation census fee schedule, valuation report pricing, amendment/restatement pricing, correction scope, refund rights, data-export terms, exit workflow, and whether any audit or legal representation extends beyond consultation.

Frequently asked questions

Short answers for the questions that usually cause mistaken comparisons.

Who is better, My Solo 401k Financial or ROBSPRO?

Neither is the universal better provider. My Solo is easier to model when the buyer wants a published low setup fee, published annual renewal, first-10-participant boundary and published valuation-report price. ROBSPRO is easier to diligence when the buyer wants a direct-lawyer model and is comfortable getting census-based administration terms in writing before relying on the public floor.

Why is ROBSPRO shown as $4,600 in year one if its fee starts at $50 per month?

The $4,600 figure is a floor calculation from public text: $4,000 setup plus $50 per month for 12 months. ROBSPRO says the monthly administrative fee starts at that amount and is billed quarterly, then later may be discussed based on eligible employees. Employee-census changes and pass-through costs are not included.

Does either provider eliminate owner fiduciary responsibility?

No. DOL guidance says plan fiduciaries must prudently select and monitor service providers and understand total services and compensation. Provider support does not by itself transfer fiduciary responsibility or make a ROBS transaction suitable.

Sources and source findings

Provider pages support provider claims only. IRS and DOL sources define official risk and fiduciary boundaries.

  1. [1] IRS ROBS compliance project

    Reopened July 27, 2026. IRS describes ROBS as retirement assets rolled into a qualified plan that buys new C corporation stock, and flags Form 5500/5500-EZ, Form 1120, participant information, valuation, stock purchases, discrimination and prohibited-transaction risks.

  2. [2] DOL retirement plan fees

    Reopened July 27, 2026. DOL says fiduciaries must prudently select and monitor plan service providers, understand total services and compensation, compare providers from complete information, and keep monitoring fees and cybersecurity practices.

  3. [3] My Solo 401k pricing

    Reopened July 27, 2026. My Solo publishes $3,000 setup including first-year annual support, $899 per year starting 12 months later for the first 10 participants, and $75 per additional participant. The same page lists corporation, plan, EIN, bank, brokerage, transfer, audit guarantee, Form 5500, 1099-R, valuation, amendments, statements, contribution, vesting and testing items.

  4. [4] My Solo 401k process

    Reopened July 27, 2026. My Solo says its Harvard Law-trained attorney and compliance officer are involved from beginning to launch and lists C corporation formation, plan adoption, EINs, bank and brokerage accounts, retirement-account transfer, employer-stock purchase and stock certificates.

  5. [5] My Solo 401k valuations

    Reopened July 27, 2026. My Solo says an existing-business recapitalization needs an initial valuation, annual value is disclosed on Form 5500, one-time valuations may be needed for additional investment, stock buyback and RMD distributions, and a valuation report costs $495, free for new clients.

  6. [6] My Solo 401k guarantee

    Reopened July 27, 2026. My Solo's guarantee is conditioned on following procedures and requirements. It includes audit-response assistance and reasonable legal counsel in Tax Court only if IRS or DOL alleges the initial employer-stock investment is a prohibited transaction; terms and conditions are available upon request.

  7. [7] ROBSPRO fees

    Reopened July 27, 2026. ROBSPRO publishes a $4,000 turnkey ROBS package, half due in advance and the balance when delivered. Its monthly administrative fee starts off at 50.00 per month, billed quarterly, for first-year administration help, Form 5500, and telephone conferences on installation and capitalization. Later monthly administration is discussed after installation based on eligible employees.

  8. [8] ROBSPRO turnkey package

    Reopened July 27, 2026. ROBSPRO lists corporation formation documents, retirement-plan design consultations under the Internal Revenue Code and ERISA, valuation-requirement consultations, plan documents and disclosure forms, rollover/custodial-account consultations, first accounting-year consultation on plan operations and IRS/DOL inquiries, and Form 5500 series preparation with an additional census-based quarterly fee.

  9. [9] ROBSPRO home

    Reopened July 27, 2026. ROBSPRO says clients work directly with a lawyer, no clerks or salespersons, and Mike Hughes creates the ROBS program from scratch based on 40-plus years of experience.