A Roth IRA is generally best for people who are in lower-income tax brackets during their earning years than they expect to be during their retirement years. The idea is to pay the tax while you are in the lowest possible tax bracket.
A Roth is also a good idea for people who don’t have access to a retirement plan through work. Only 50% of Americans have access to a 401(k) plan. A Roth is a great way to jumpstart your retirement savings, especially if you start investing at a young age.
Since the Roth IRA rules around withdrawals are more forgiving than other retirement accounts (for both early and regular withdrawals), a Roth can also act as an absolute last-ditch emergency fund. Generally, the advice from financial advisors and experts is never to withdraw money from retirement accounts before you need it. And that’s good advice. But if something terrible befalls your finances, it is easier to get money out of a Roth IRA than other accounts.