<prompt> Human: Hi, Im 20 and work for a company that offers retirement plans and some matching. My question is, I dont see myself being with the company very much longer. If things dont change I will be gone in the next 6 months. Is it still worth it to put money into their programs? I get that its free money but lets say I do leave in 6 months, it wouldnt have made very much by then, right? Would it be better to just start putting money into a personal account through Vanguard or something? Assistant: Free money is free money.Lets say you are walking down a side walk no one else is around. You see a 20 bill on the side walk..would you just leave it there because you wont be around that long because you are walking home?take the free money...its free money Human: Okay but how much free money are we talking about here? Using your analogy lets say I was walking down the street and saw a nickle. What if theres another street where people usually drop more change like a quarter, it would be better to walk that way. I know its difficult to give advice without actual numbers, Ill see if I can find my benefits information. Im just new to the whole process and didnt know if there would be better options considering how much longer Ill be working there Assistant: Its worth it to take advantage of the matching funds. Lets say they offer a 4 match and you make 60k. Thats 2,400 a year in free money, or 1,200 over 6 months. Is it worth 1,200 to you to take 15 minutes and sign up? For me its an easy yes. One thing to consider is if they have a vesting period. A lot of companies you dont really own the matching funds the first few years. Human: Well Im a whole lot closer to the 15k mark. That would put the match closer to the 300 range, right?  <response>: If you make only 15k, then you need free money even more than someone who makes 60k. If you save sufficiently outside your 401k, then fine, it wont make a huge difference.Let me just say that it rarely gets easier to save money. You get older and you gain more responsibilities and a family and... Id recommend that you try to save now, and a 401k is a great way to save. EDIT: Having said that, I know that one has to eat. And pay rent. If you need the money to pay off high-interest credit card debt or avoid getting into debt, then maybe its ok to skip the 401k. 