<prompt> Human: Im new to the game of financial planning for retirement. I have a free account with my local credit union which serves my county and has a credit union organization with other credit unions in my state. I currently do not have a matching 401K, so Im starting an IRA. I have an option of opening up a free IRA or Roth IRA with my credit union, but I notice that the FAQ mentions 3 much larger companies. Im a little confused why I would go with those as opposed to something free.  <response>: Most bank or credit union IRAs are essentially just savings accounts or CDs with pretty poor interest rates. Opening an IRA with a brokerage firm like Vanguard, Fidelity, or Schwab enables you to invest in the stock and bond markets for more substantial growth potential over the years until you retire the recommendation of this sub is that you do that using index mutual funds. 