<prompt> Human: I am thinking more along the lines of what will happen to that money when I eventually quit that job. I plan and hope to be there at least 4 years but dont know if I would be better off putting money into a savings account and figuring something out with that money in the future.  <response>: The employer match is a 50 return on investment, but you need to find out what the vesting schedule is. Vesting determines how much of what your employer contributed you are entitled to when you leave the company. From the 401k wiki: Any contributions that come out of your paycheck are always 100 yours. However, if your employer provides any matching contributions to your 401k, occasionally they become yours according to a vesting schedule. A vesting schedule is essentially a time delay between when the money your employer contributes becomes yours, and is used as an incentive to keep employees with a particular company. Vesting schedules can take many forms - some schedule vesting in 20 increments 20 the first year, 40 the second year, etc., some have a set amount of time 100 vesting after 3 years, others do not have a vesting period at all and the money is yours immediately. Your companys HR section should be able to explain the terms of your companys vesting schedule, if you have one.Chances are very slim that youd do better putting money into a savings account. Even if your employer didnt match at all you would be benefiting from getting money into a 401k as early as possible, giving it more time to grow. 