Is Whole Life Insurance Better Than A 401K? 
These are two very different products that serve 2 different purposes so it ca n't be said whether one is better than the other . 401k 's are generally funded to be used for retirement savings purposes that can be accessed during your senior/retirement years . During your working life , many employers will offer to match all or a portion of the funds you place into your 401k -LRB- varying on a number of factors -RRB- . The intended purposes of whole life insurance are to create large sums of money quickly in the event the insured dies . It 's typically used as a form of protection to pay off debts -LRB- so your family is not burdened with those expenses -RRB- , provide income to a surviving spouse , leave a legacy to the insured 's loved ones , etc. . While whole life insurance does build cash value that you can borrow against , it 's actually creating a loan against the policy and is expected to be paid back -LRB- interest would be charged like you would have on a loan from a bank -RRB- . Cashing out a policy can be done , but you lose the protection of the life insurance and you may be subject to surrender charges and/or taxes on any gains -LRB- cash value amount is higher than total premiums paid into the policy -RRB- . When you buy life insurance , you 're buying it for the purposes of the death benefit protection - it 's not typically considered/used as an investment/retirement savings vehicle . 