Your company match has no bearing on your tax return. Your own contributions are reported in box 12 on your W-2 and are not included in the W-2 box 1 taxable income. The more that you contribute the lower taxable box 1 income that you will have. That is the only tax difference.
Whether your overall financial situation would be better by investing in an self directed IRA that can purchase securities of your choice is something to discuss with a financial advisor. There are advantages or disadvantages to both.
Depending on the terms of your 401(k) plan it might be possible to roll the 401(k) balance to a Traditional IRA at a financial institution, but not all plans allow that prior to retirement age.
**Disclaimer: This post is for discussion purposes only and is NOT tax advice. The author takes no responsibility for the accuracy of any information in this post.**
