<prompt> Human: Hi guys am 34 years old, just started investing. This community is awesome, I often curse myself for the blissful ignorance for the last 10 years. Its a late start, better late than never I guess. I need help understanding which is better ROTH or 401k. I currently allocate 5 of my annual salary about 5 K to 401K as my employer matches it. This year when I get a raise of 3 I am planning to up the 401K to 8. I wanted to understand if I should instead send the money to ROTH. Can you please guide me ?  <response>: You need to clarify if by ROTH you mean Roth 401K or Roth IRA. Most comments have presumed you meant Roth IRA and have given you advice based on that. But many companies offer Roth 401Ks that also offer a pre-tax employer match. 