Best place to open Roth IRA

Not to hijack this thread, but would you guys suggest maxing out 401k before opening a roth IRA, or to supplement it. I'm getting the max employer contributions already in the 401k, but am not putting in the max.

Quote from zarfus : Not to hijack this thread, but would you guys suggest maxing out 401k before opening a roth IRA, or to supplement it. I'm getting the max employer contributions already in the 401k, but am not putting in the max.

Contribute enough to take advantage of your employer's full match, then swap over to a Roth IRA and max it out. If you have any money left over, put it in the 401(k).

Vanguard for sure. Super low fees and lots of index funds.

Quote from zarfus : Not to hijack this thread, but would you guys suggest maxing out 401k before opening a roth IRA, or to supplement it. I'm getting the max employer contributions already in the 401k, but am not putting in the max.

Quote from Brian1 : Contribute enough to take advantage of your employer's full match, then swap over to a Roth IRA and max it out. If you have any money left over, put it in the 401(k).

Would it also be beneficial to consider tax implications? Such as, if contributing an extra couple thousand would drop you from 25% to 15% the tax savings might be a little more significant, although this may be moot depending on what taxes you pay down the road when you take it out. But I agree - with Brian1: match > roth ira > 401k

so if what im talking about is a roth 401k vs traditional 401k not IRA, and i plan on maxing it out, and i also am projecting that a large portion of my retirement may come from the 401k, then the presidents illustration is not necessarily applicable and i would want to consider the "effective average tax rate" at retirement rather than just the marginal?

Quote from Brian1 : Generally speaking, when considering a brokerage for a retirement account that will be filled with index funds Vanguard is quite a bit cheaper than TD Ameritrade [vanguard.com].

I am not sure why Vanguard would have less cost than TD Ameritarde.

Say you are buying PTTRX using Vanguard IRA VS TD or maybe some of the TD no commission funds
What are the additional cost?

Quote from IvoryCadenza : I don't ever here TD Ameritrade mentioned on these boards. Is there a reason people stay away from them? I opened a Roth with them last year, chosing them because that's who my dad uses. They do offer some free-to-trade ETFs but otherwise I think they're 19.95 a trade.

$9.99 for equity trades with Ameritrade.

The reason why fees are less with Vanguard is because you have a much more limited selection. And no, you should not just own index funds in a retirement account, that's absurd.

One reason to consider Ameritrade is they now own Thinkorswim which is a ninja trading platform. Probably much to much for the avg "dump money in and pray for a good return" retail n00b, but a nice perk nonetheless.

As far as Scottrade goes, keep in mind they have local officies all over the country where you can pop in and get help from a real person. $7 equity trades, but no up front perks like Ameritrade usually offers.

When in doubt, haggle. There's something like $4-5T in retirement account in the US and all these brokerages are fighting for your fiat because the draw downs and loans against them are at record highs. In the end, you're parking hard earned money at a bank which in turn takes it and gambles with it. Choose wisely.

Quote from kyotuosa : I am not sure why Vanguard would have less cost than TD Ameritarde. Say you are buying PTTRX using Vanguard IRA VS TD or maybe some of the TD no commission funds What are the additional cost?

Management fees. That's where they differ.

But, if you're interested in ETFs only, TD Ameritrade is a great company to be with as they offer over 100 commission-free ETFs.

Vanguard is the cheapest brokerage out there for index funds and mutual funds. They're tied in the ETF category with other brokerages like Fidelity, Charles Schwab, TD Ameritrade, and Scottrade.

Quote from Brian1 : Management fees. That's where they differ. But, if you're interested in ETFs only, TD Ameritrade is a great company to be with as they offer over 100 commission-free ETFs. Vanguard is the cheapest brokerage out there for index funds and mutual funds. They're tied in the ETF category with other brokerages like Fidelity, Charles Schwab, TD Ameritrade, and Scottrade.

I think it's going to cost the same no matter you are using TD or Vanguard if you are purchasing a Pimco fund. The only difference is if u r choosing Vanguard fund.