Roth vs Traditional

If I make $180k/r now, and I expect to have about $50k/y coming in during retirement, Traditional is the clear winner.

If I make $30k/y now, but I expect to work for a really long time and due to SS and other investments expect to have $60k/yr coming in during retirement, Roth will be the winner.

*your* situation and expectations are the only ones that matter, and you’re not going to get it perfect. Take your best guess, and move on with your life.

you could also take the middle road of “I have no damn clue” like I do and do sort of a 50/50 approach.

When I go to retire am I really going to complain because I paid a little more in taxes 30 years ago and now I have one bucket of money that I don’t have to pay taxes on? Probably not.

Another wildcard is that future tax rates may be higher in general especially since eventually the government is going to have to figure out how they’ll save social security and other entitlements.(Hint: it’s taxes. It’s always taxes).