Is one of these options better than the other?
NatureKnight, welcome to the forums.
The answer to your question is "yes".
A less smart-alecky response is, "yes, 2 * $3000 = $6000 is better than 1 * $5,500 = $5,500."
But the real answer is "it depends on what you are trying to accomplish."
- If you
need to save
right now for a house, then put $0 in the IRA and accumulate as much as possible as fast as possible for the house.
- If you can postpone some short term gratification to get a better long term outlook, put the full $17,500 into the 401k and $11,000 into the IRAs.
Don't know your overall situation and plans so I can't get more specific than that. If you are like most people, you could afford to put more into the 401k and IRAs than you are now.
Good luck!