State Treasurer Riley Moore today announced West Virginia’s SMART529 plans have been named ‘Top of the Class’ in Saving For College’s latest 2024 ratings – their highest honor for 529 plans nationwide.

 “We’re proud that West Virginia’s SMART529 plans continue to be recognized among the top college savings plans in the country,” Treasurer Moore said. “We strive to make SMART529 the premier college savings option for our families and children and this new ranking demonstrates that.”

 Saving For College is a national informational service that specializes in providing unbiased data on 529 savings plans. It has provided ratings on plans since 1999, frequently giving SMART529 plans high marks.

 This year, the organization unveiled a new “Top of the Class” category to identify “the very best of the best 529 plans,” which outscore more than 80 percent of peers in their category. Plans were evaluated based on four categories: Performance, Ease of Use, Savings Success and Program Delivery.

 Nine plans out of 54 that are directly sold to consumers, and four plans out of 31 that are sold through financial advisors received the Top of the Class ratings, and all three of West Virginia’s SMART529 plans received top honors.

 The SMART529 WV Direct Plan, which is available exclusively to West Virginia residents, and the SMART529 Select Plan, which is available to families nationwide, were two of the nine direct-sold plans receiving Top of the Class honors. The Hartford SMART529, which is sold through financial investment professionals, was one of the four advisor-sold plans to receive the honor.

 A comparison of each of the three West Virginia SMART529 plans is available here: https://www.smart529.com/invest/smart529-plan-comparison-chart.html.

 SMART529 is a qualified tuition program issued by the Board of Trustees of the West Virginia College and Jumpstart Savings Programs and administered by Hartford Funds. Complete information about SMART529 is available at www.SMART529.com.