Fundsters interested in the 401(k) side of the business may want to take a look at today's news from BrightScope. This morning the San Diego, California-based data specialists revealed their list of the top 30 401(k) plans of 2010, according to the BrightScope Rating system.

BrightScope co-founders Ryan (left) and Mike Alfred

So how does BrightScope put together the list? They gather data from the Department of Labor and the SEC, and they also go directly to the 401(k) plan sponsors themselves. This means that, at least in the past, lists like this one have often compared plans with data available from slightly different times. And while BrightScope does rate smaller plans, for this list only jumbo plans (with at least $1 billion in assets) were eligible.

The BrightScope examines more than 200 pieces of data per plan and calculates an overall score based on factors like total fees, sponsor generosity (normally in the form of a match) and investment menu.

The top 30 plans are:

1)Saudi Arabian Oil Company
2) Southern California Permanente Medical Group
3) Southwest Airlines (pilots' plan)
4) Amgen
5) United Airlines (pilots' plan)
6) Credit Suisse
7) Bayer
8) BP
9) Nucor
10) Avaya
11) UBS
12) IBM
13) ExxonMobil
14) Sanofi-Aventis
15) Anadarko
16) Novartis
17) Bechtel
18) Chevron
19) Genentech
20) Altria
21) ConocoPhillips
22) American Airlines
23) FedEx (pilots' plan)
24) Shell Provident
25) Sun Microsystems
26) GlaxoSmithKline
27) Cisco
28) Goldman Sachs
29) AstraZeneca
30) Pfizer 

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