It's hard to estimate how much money you'll need for retirement when that milestone is many years, if not decades, away. But no matter what your lifestyle ends up looking like and costing in retirement, it's important to build up a nice nest egg ahead of time.

Social Security will generally only replace about 40% of you pre-retirement earnings, and that assumes you make an average income. Since seniors commonly need a lot more income than that to live comfortably, it's imperative that you build savings -- and that's where your 401(k) plan comes in.

The great thing about 401(k) plans is that employers commonly match contributions to these accounts. That doesn't mean they'll match every dollar you put in. But if your company will match up to 100% of your first $3,000 in contributions, for example, it means you have a chance to snag a free $3,000 each year.

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Source Fool.com