I'm in the same boat here — very concerned about high expense ratios at JH. I'm currently getting an employer match of 100% up to 4%, but due to very high JH plan fees I think I'm actually losing money compared to a Roth IRA. During the last quarter, my plan charges totaled 30% of my return at JH. I think the high expense ratios were already factored in, since my ROR was only 2.2%.
I did some compariosn using Bankrate's 401k and Roth IRA calculators. I inputted the same contribution amount for both — 4% of my annual income for the 401k plus 4% employer match, and 8% after tax income in the Roth IRA. I'm 24 years old and my salary is 70k, so the comparative after tax contribution for the Roth is $4200 (70k * 8% contribution * 75% for taxes). On the Roth, I assumed 7% ROR (the default) and for the 401k, I subtracted 30% from the ROR for plan fees, totaling 5.09%. I did not assume any increase in contribution for either, nor did I add any pre-existing balance.
Comparing the two results until I'm 59, I would make about $90k more on the Roth IRA when I'm 59. It's true that I'm contributing more money since I'm giving up the employer match, but I calculated that it's only $50k more expensive (assuming annual contributions for 35 years of $2800 for the 401k and $4200 for the Roth). So I'm net ahead $40k if I forego the employer match and get hit with 25% taxes upfront for the Roth IRA. Does this make sense? Does my math add up? Should I cancel my 401k contributions and go for a Roth IRA until I have access to a better 401k plan?