401k plans are plans for your retirement; your 401k takes a certain amount of money from your paycheck and submits it to a bank account for later use. After you have reached a certain amount of money in your 401k you are eligible to make withdrawals, but these withdrawals are just like loans all the money you withdraw you must pay it back within 5 years of the withdrawal.
Also like any other loan it accumulates interest that must be paid but so not the smartest idea to make withdrawals from your 401k until you can do it freely and not have to pay it back. You can freely withdraw from your 401k at the age of 59 ½ , but if you leave your employer after the age of 55 and become disabled you are also liable to withdraw from your 401k freely. Also, by the age of 70 you will have to take out a certain amount of money from your 401k monthly.
There are also many other rules about your 401k that you’re going to need to know though. Like to start you cannot just make deposits into your 401k you