<prompt> Human: Hello everyone, I am currently an E2 in the Navy and I want to start saving for my retirement. I am 23 years old and I have two choices. The Thrift Savings Plan provided by the government or Roth IRA. I do not plan on staying in the military for a 20 year career so I cant see why the TSP would be an advantage for me. However my superiors in the Navy say that Id be crazy not to invest in TSP. I have researched the Roth and it seems that they are incredibly similar? Any advice?Assistant: I do not plan on staying in the military for a 20 year career so I cant see why the TSP would be an advantage for me.You can keep your TSP account after you separate from the service, and it has lower expenses than any IRA Ive ever heard of. The TSP is one of the rare 401k plans that is generally worth prioritizing over an IRA, unless you have a really good reason to contribute to the IRA instead.Human: Am I able to contribute to the TSP even after leaving the military?  <response>: Not directly, but you can roll qualifying retirement plans into the TSP as long as the account has a non-zero balance. 