I know there are varying schools of thought on this. Currently, at 28, I have $86k between my 401k and IRA. If I left that alone, at 7% average growth per year, it should end up around $780k to $800k. I will, of course, continue to contribute the amount I need to get my max employer match.
You should also consider how much you expect it to grow
in terms of spending power, not in nominal terms. If it has an average of 4% growth
above inflation, you'll have the equivalent of a little more than $300,000 in there, or a sustainable $12,000/year income stream. How much of your expected expenses will this cover?
Would it be more wise to focus on taxable investments now, after paying off student loans, in order to fund the first part of early retirement? Or do I max out my 401k and IRA because of the additional tax benefits?
I think it makes the most sense to deal with tax-advantaged accounts first; there are enough ways to get at the money - 72(t) distributions and Roth pipelines being popular.
Should I max out my 401k first or is there any benefit in having an IRA in addition to a 401k that I'm not making max contributions to?
Depends on the fund availability in your 401(k), how long you intend to stay at your employer, and whether or not you want the tax diversification that a Roth IRA offers (you might also have Roth 401(k) as an option). All other things being equal, the
general advice is to max out the match from your employer, then an IRA, then go back to add more to the employer plan.