Is Thrift Savings Plan a good tool to use?

First TSP and any other 401 is PART of a retirement plan. You'll need 3-4 streams to quit and not have a drop in pay. I did 10% for for 23 years in Civil Service. That number turned out to be big. TSP should be a no brainer because the first 5% of your contribution gets a 100% return every payday you put it in. If you want to "no brainer" it, the horizon funds are an easy way to go. Just remember it's a long term game. You can fire and forget and have much more at the end that your would otherwise. People should look at rolling the TSP into commercial management at 59 1/2. I'm seeing 3-4% better performance at the same risk as TSP. So what types of streams do you need? An annuity or two like military and something else. Social Security weighs in there too, but you'll want to defer that until 70 if the rules stay the same. And most MILs are entitled to some VA disability after getting knocked around 20-30 years. You'll hit a point where you don't want to or can't work anymore. You can go to most any WalMart and see elderly people working because they have to. So your choice is what do you want to be doing at age 60? Age 70?

Yes, if you are in the plan for the long haul it will give a retiree a nice nest egg. I was in the Army under that retirement system but have had dealings with civilian IRA. The problem I have noted is that many need cash for one reason or another "using the established rules for withdrawal" that cost you. I believe the minimum contribution is 3% of soldier's pay, which in 10 years will be a good start on that on funds for retirement

Yes. The earlier you start saving for retirement the better. Also, any plan where your employer puts money in along with you is a good idea. TSP offers several funds so your investments can be diversified. For advice on which funds to invest your TSP in try http://www.smart401k.com.

The quick answer is yes but that is only part of the story. Contact USAA, they have free investment consulting. You are young , but you will need a lot to retire at any level close to your income upon retirement.

Save15% of your current income for retirement, especially with the reduced pension plan of the Pentagon.

I been using it for a bunch of years, I dedicate %5 towards if from my pay.

I use it, I put in about 25K. It's currently sitting between 55-65k. I got in during the economic downturn and kept dumping money in. Now most of the investments have doubled so I made out. It kind of pays for itself. The money you put in TSP is not immediately taxed, so it could lower your taxes for that year.

Yes it provides a wide spectrum of investments.

PFC I know nothing about a TSP but I know 401k which is about the same thing. Is there any matching funds going into the TSP? If there is that is reason enought to sign up. I signed up for a 401K at my civilian job. Been drawing now for over 5 years and the matching part of the plan is around 14k. Reason enough. I didn't touch my 401K until I had to by law. Doubled in value 14 years. Another reason. By all means sign up.

I think it is a great plan, especially if you are not very interested in investment stuff, but still want to save for retirement. I started my TSP in the military and when I retired and became a Federal Employee it moved right over with me. The TSP is a simple, easy-to-understand tool that when you average everything out, works as good as any other IRA out there. You don't get a lot of options, but I don't really feel like I need all that many anyway to meet my goals. Investments are a lot like food. There are a whole bunch of different kinds but in the end, it boils down to 3 -shit, boring but reliable, and unpredictable but exciting.