Have been working for 5 years and have always contributed to Roth 401K and have a Roth IRA as well. Currently in the 22% bracket and am thinking about contributing full to pre tax and still have Roth ira. Confused when it’s best to invest in Roth vs post tax for 401K. Thoughts?

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If you are "young" and can afford it, Roth is the way to go. The reason is that your gains are not taxed in a Roth IRA or 401k and if you are young, theoretically your gains will outgrow your original investment. So for example if you invest $100 post-tax you will have paid $22 in tax. That's like investing $122 right now. At 7% in 10 years you'll have ~$200 tax free. If you did the same thing with pre-tax (invest $122) you would have $244 but you would pay ~$54 tax when you pull it out. So you would really only have $190. Bam! That's like 8% extra growth on your original $122 investment. If you triple or quadruple (or more) your money before you pull it out you are in even better shape! My rule of thumb is that if you think you are at least going to double your money before you take it out it is worth it to do Roth stuff. (Of course that's assuming you'll be in the same tax bracket when you retire. Many planners assume you'll be in a lower bracket which, depending on how low, may mean you need to triple or quadruple your money before Roth starts to pays off.)

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@EY 1 I actually *was* accounting for investing the tax savings, but my napkin math was doing it wrong. I should have comparing investing $95.16 post-tax vs $122 pre-tax instead of $100 vs $122. (Because 0.78 * 122 is 95.16 not 100.). With $95.16 it IS a wash. Thanks for making me look twice! I'll probably keep investing in ROTH myself for the other benefits (RMD and tax-hike mitigation), but I appreciate the perspective that it *isn't* a vehicle for better growth.

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Great insight from everyone, after thinking through it I’ve decided to just stick to 50/50 between Roth and pre tax

smart

Realistically I’m going to forget to invest it and think it’s easier just to let my 401K automatic investment do the work, so I’ve decided to keep it in Roth

If you withdraw your Roth after retirement and before Medicare eligibility, you may be able to qualify for subsidies that are not available if you withdraw traditional Ira/401k funds. Traditional Ira/401k withdrawals increase your income while Roth withdrawals do not.

funny

Hence why I said “before Medicare eligibility “

Are you talking after tax or Roth 401k?

It technically depends on your tax bracket now vs when you withdraw. Many will have a lower tax bracket when they are withdrawing in retirement, traditional 401k would be better, assuming you invest the tax savings. If your bracket will be higher in retirement, then Roth would be better. There is no way to know so some of both might make sense

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My opinion: if you make to much for regular Roth IRA and therefor must use BACKDOOR Roth IRA, then your 401k should be pre-tax vs Roth 401k.

That may be true for many but for many others it is not correct

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