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If you've ever changed jobs, worked for a company that was acquired or went out of business, or simply lost track of an old 401(k) or pension plan, there may be retirement money with your name on it that you've forgotten about. It's more common than you'd think — estimates suggest there are tens of millions of forgotten retirement accounts in the United States, collectively holding hundreds of billions of dollars.

Finding these funds isn't always straightforward, but several free tools and databases can help you track them down.

Forgotten 401(k) and Retirement Accounts

When you leave a job, your 401(k) or other employer-sponsored retirement account doesn't automatically follow you. If you didn't roll it over into a new account, it may still be sitting with your former employer's plan administrator. If the balance was small (under $7,000 in many cases), the plan may have automatically rolled it into an IRA or, for very small balances, sent you a check that you may not have received.

The National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits at unclaimedretirementbenefits.com is a free tool that allows you to search for benefits from plans whose administrators have registered with the service. The Department of Labor also maintains an abandoned plan database where you can search for plans that have been terminated.

If you remember the name of your former employer, contact their human resources department or the plan administrator directly. Even if the company no longer exists, the retirement plan may still be administered by a financial institution. The Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration can help you locate a plan — call 1-866-444-3272.

Traditional Pensions

If you worked for a company that offered a traditional defined-benefit pension and the company later went bankrupt or terminated its pension plan, your benefits may be managed by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC). The PBGC is a federal agency that insures private-sector pension plans and takes over the responsibility of paying benefits when companies can't.

The PBGC maintains a searchable database of people who are owed pension benefits but haven't claimed them. Visit pbgc.gov/search and search by your name. If you find a match, the PBGC will guide you through the claims process. The agency is currently holding unclaimed benefits for tens of thousands of individuals.

State-Level Retirement Benefits

If you worked for a state or local government, your pension is managed by your state's retirement system rather than a private plan. Contact the retirement system for the state where you worked. Even if you left public employment years ago and didn't vest in the pension, you may be owed a return of your own contributions.

Social Security Benefits

While Social Security isn't technically "unclaimed property," many people underestimate or are unaware of the benefits they've earned. Create a free "my Social Security" account at ssa.gov to view your estimated benefits, verify your earnings history, and check for errors. Correcting missing or incorrect earnings on your record can increase your future benefits.

Survivors of deceased workers should also check whether they're eligible for survivor benefits. Many spouses, ex-spouses (if the marriage lasted at least 10 years), and dependent children are entitled to Social Security survivor benefits and don't realize it.

What to Do When You Find Something

Once you locate a forgotten retirement account, you have several options. You can leave it where it is (if the plan allows), roll it over into your current employer's 401(k) or into an IRA (which consolidates your retirement savings and avoids tax penalties), or, in some cases, cash it out (though this triggers income taxes and, if you're under 59½, a 10 percent early withdrawal penalty). Rolling the funds into an IRA or current employer plan is almost always the best financial move.