Mid-size companies — those with 100 to 499 employees — are in a pivotal stage: scaling up, building out teams, and trying to stay competitive in the talent market. Benefits play a big role in attracting talent and keeping people engaged, which is why it’s important to know how your program compares to those at similar companies.   

The Mid-Size Edition of Sequoia’s 2025 Benefits Benchmarking Report details how companies are approaching healthcare, wellbeing, leave, and retirement programs this year. Read on to learn some of the key insights from the report to help you evaluate your current offerings and plan for what’s next.  

Healthcare Benefits: Cost-Containment Leads Priorities 

Like larger enterprise companies, mid-size employers are focused on controlling healthcare costs through targeted plan adjustments and increased cost sharing. 

Here’s what that looks like in practice:

  • 53% of companies are taking direct action to reduce healthcare costs, while cost-sharing adjustments (23%) and sunsetting low-value programs (30%) signal a shift toward tightening plan designs. 
  • Employers are balancing cost-cutting with targeted investments. While some plan reductions are happening, many are expanding access where it counts — 32% are increasing access to mental health services and 26% are doing the same for family-forming benefits. 
  • Employers are more focused on fine-tuning existing plans than making major changes to access and availability. While 33% of companies increased employee contributions, only 9% eliminated plans. 

Wellbeing Benefits: More Thoughtful Offerings 

Companies are still prioritizing wellbeing benefits but are more thoughtful about their offerings, choosing targeted enhancements over broad expansion. 

Here’s what that looks like in practice: 

  • Most companies are holding steady or expanding their wellbeing programs – 94% plan to maintain or add benefits, while only 5%–9% are scaling back. It’s a clear signal that wellbeing remains a core priority, even as cost pressures grow. 
  • More companies are formalizing their investment in wellbeing, with dedicated budgets rising to 31%, up 5% from 2024. 
  • Lifestyle spending accounts (LSAs) are gaining traction, with adoption more than doubling – from 8% in 2024 to 19% in 2025 – as companies embrace category-specific options that align with evolving employee needs. 

Leave Policies: Keeping Things Simple 

Companies are focused on simplifying leave programs and managing compliance, with modest expansion. 

Here’s what that looks like in practice: 

  • Most companies aren’t making major changes to their leave policies. Only 14% plan to add or enhance their leave programs, while 47% plan to maintain what they already offer.  
  • Complexity is shaping strategy, with regulatory demands (51%) and managing policies across multiple states (46%) among the top challenges. As a result, many companies are focusing on simplification and program redesign to improve efficiency.  
  • Employee expectations are driving leave strategies, with 45% of companies citing employee feedback as the top driver of changes. 

Retirement Plans: Employer Matches Becoming More Common 

More companies are offering employer matches on retirement contributions, with match adoption signaling a more mature benefits strategy. 

Here’s what that looks like in practice: 

  • The number of companies matching employee contributions continues to grow— up 17% since 2023.  
  • More employers are enhancing existing matches — 6% increased their existing matches in the past 12 months — reflecting a steady, measured shift toward improving retirement support. 
  • New match offerings continue to rise, with 5% of employers planning to introduce a matching contribution in the next 12 months. 

Want More Insights From the Report? 

The full benchmarking report is only available to survey participants and those who meet with us for a complimentary benefits benchmarking exercise, but you can see even more data from the report by downloading the Sneak Peek version.

Complimentary Benefits Benchmarking 

Get an experienced Sequoia advisor to benchmark your benefits against the data in the full benefits benchmarking report at no cost. Reach out to an advisor to get started.  

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2025 Benefits Benchmarking Report: Highlights for Enterprise Companies

2025 Benefits Benchmarking Report: Highlights for Small Companies

Dylan Hughes — Dylan has more than 7 years of experience delivering market insights on compensation and benefits with a primary focus on benchmarking. He leads the market insights program at Sequoia, which provides the latest analytics, market trends, and benchmarking data.