Whether or not to make investments into a traditional tax-advantaged employer plan and IRA accounts versus contributing to Roth tax-advantaged employer plan and IRA accounts is not always a straightforward choice.

The decision on the alternatives happens to be one of the most complex choices of do-it-yourself financial planning. Many financial factors can influence whether a ordinary IRA or tax-advantaged employer plan account contribution versus a “Roth” IRA or tax-advantaged employer plan retirement account contribution choice would be best.

In most circumstances making investments into a traditional tax-advantaged employer plan or IRA accounts is the preferred decision, when those deposits would be currently tax deductible.

The trade-offs are complex. Simple retirement planning spreadsheets are not able to model all the critical tradeoffs. The choice is not simply about whether tax rates might be higher or lower. Instead, the preference requires a fully personalized personal finance projection and analysis of a person’s lifecycle income, taxes, and assets.

(Here is where you can find a comprehensive Roth IRA comparison calculator that makes automatic this ordinary IRA or tax-advantaged employer plan account versus investing in Roth tax-advantaged employer plan or IRA personal account financial projection.)

Whether or not someone will consume less and save enough and invest efficiently over a lifetime is most important in the Roth retirement plan versus the “deductible against this years income taxes” ordinary retirement plan additional investment decision.

When a person cannot earn a sufficiently high income, does not control consumption to save a lot, cannot dramatically reduce investment expenses, and/or does not build up a sufficiently substantial portfolio of assets, then that person won’t be in the upper income tax rates in retirement — whether or not federal and state income tax brackets have changed in the interim. If an investor does not have substantial enough assets and income when retired, then the current tax advantage a person will get from choosing a traditional retirement plan additional investment will tend to be more financially favorable over a life cycle.

Note: This discussion ONLY focuses on personal financial circumstances where an investor can choose between a “currently tax deductible” ordinary IRA or 401k contribution versus a currently “not tax deductible” Roth IRA or 401k additional investment. If you cannot get a current tax deduction but have available a Roth deposit, then the Roth contribution is more desirable.

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