Personal Finance

Personal finance may be personal, but it is deceptively simple: spend less than you earn, invest the difference, and repeat.

The hard part? All the details. How much should you save? When does paying off debt beat investing? Is your emergency fund doing more harm than good?

This collection covers our research and compiled strategies behind building wealth. Whether you're optimizing your savings rate, deciding between Roth and traditional accounts, or just trying to figure out how you stack up, these articles dig into the numbers.

Popular articles

Start here. These are some of our most-read pieces on savings, retirement, and the data behind American finances.

Retirement planning

How much should you have saved by now? What's the real early retirement rate? When do most Americans actually retire? We've crunched the numbers.

Explore Retirement Research →

All personal finance articles

The complete DQYDJ collection. Browse by title or dig into our research on savings, debt, side income, and more.

401k: Roth vs. Traditional
45-49 Years Old: The Peak of Your Financial Prowess
5 Reasons You Shouldn't Pay Off Your Mortgage Early
Age and Retirement Savings to Income Multiple: What Should You Have Saved?
All About Credit Cards and the Perfect Credit Card Spending Strategy
American Debt Statistics – Debt by Generation, Income, Type, and More
American Retirement Savings by Age: Averages, Medians and Percentiles
Are College Graduates Better Off Today Than in the Past?
Average American Credit Card Debt by Generation, Income, and Percentile
Average Drawdowns of Wealth for American Retirees
Average Retirement Age in the United States
Average, Median, Top 1%, and all United States Retirement Savings Percentiles
Beating the Lottery: When Math (Not Gambling) Pays Off
Capital Gains Tax Calculator: Value of Waiting on an Investment
Charge Cards: How They Compare to Standard Credit Cards
Debt Payoff Fanaticism vs. Investing
Do Americans Feel On-Track for Retirement?
Do You Say Anything When You See People Spending Foolishly?
Early Retirement: How Common – Or Rare – Is It?
Emergency Funds are Overrated: Part One of Three
Emergency Funds are Overrated: Part Three of Three
Emergency Funds are Overrated: Part Two of Three
ESPP - The Worldwide Leader in Returns
Geographic Arbitrage: Savings Rates and Amounts Saved vs. Location
Health Savings Account Arbitrage
Hedge Your Gas Prices
Hedge Your Gas Prices – Calculate ETF Hedging
Historical 401(k) Contribution Limit
Historical HSA Contribution Limit
Historical IRA Contribution Limit
How Do You Compare to Other Americans in Tobacco and Alcohol Spending?
How Do You Define Savings?
How Do You Stack Up to Other Americans in Monthly Food Spending?
How Much Do Americans Earn From Side Jobs?
How Much Do Americans Save, by Age?
How Much Do Early Retirees – Or Extremely Early Retirees – Have Saved?
How Much Do People Save, by Income?
How Much Income Should You Save? What's the Best Savings Rate?
How Much Time Do Americans Spend on Side Jobs?
How to Calculate Your Savings Percentage
How To Define 'Savings'
How to Make an Emergency Fund With Your Health Savings Account
Ideal Savings Rate Calculator for Retirement Planning or FIRE
If You Always Maxed Out Your 401(k) How Much Money Would You Have?
If You Always Maxed Out Your IRA How Much Money Would You Have?
Is A Million Dollars Enough? 'Millionaire' is On The Way Out
Is College Worth It?
Is Increased Savings Good or Bad For the Economy?
Marginal Tax Rates Versus Effective Tax Rates
Mortgage Debt: Home Debt Stats by Income Bracket, Age, and Percentile
No, You're Not Saving Too Much for Retirement
On Track Retirement Doubts: What's a Spending Goal?
Pay Down Debt or Invest the Cash?
Paying Down Student Loans Versus Paying Down Other Investments
Personal Finance 101 - Personal Finance Basics in Under an Hour
Planning a Cashback Strategy
Retiree Net Worth in America in 2016
Retirement Income Generator: Other Ways to Handle Interest Rate Risk Than a Pure Bond/Equity Portfolio
Retirement Planning: How Do Americans Pay For Retirement?
Roth IRA Conversion Calculator – Should You Convert?
Savings Rate Calculator
Should I Quit Work to Go to Graduate School?
Should You Buy Many Lottery Tickets for One Drawing, or A Few Tickets For Many Drawings?
Should You Care About Income When You Choose a Major?
Should You Focus on Spending Less or Earning More?
Should You Get a Degree or Drive a Truck?
Should You Ignore Inflation in Investment Returns?
Should You Major In Photography?
Student Loan Debt: Stats by Age, Income, and Percentile
The 7 Best Finance Related Songs
The Drag of Taxes and Inflation: A Penny Saved is Worth More Than a Penny Earned
The Four Pillars of Personal Finance
The Net Worth of American Retirees
The Psychology of Passive Investing
The Risk of Not Enough Risk
The Roth IRA and Why (Most of) You Need One Yesterday
The Roth IRA Loophole for Absurdly High Contributions (And No Income Limits)
Under 30? Here's Why You Should Invest in the Stock Market
Wealth is Not Income
What are the Magical Saving Rate Breakpoints?
What Are the Most Common Side Jobs in America?
What Constitutes 'Rich'?
What Does it Mean to be Retired?
What is the Early Retirement Age and How Common is Early Retirement?
What is the Early Retirement Age? Examining Government and Popular Opinion
What is the Savings Rate in Other Countries?
What Kind of Investor Are You?
What Will Save You More Money At Work? Bringing Lunch or Buying It?
When Having an Emergency Fund is the Right Move - Or, At Least, Not Counterproductive
When You're Young, Work For The Money...
Why Do Americans Retire?
Why Do Americans Work Side Jobs?
Why Do People Work Side Jobs?
Why Should You Track Your Savings Rate?
Work Harder, Earn More: 2013 Incomes by Hours Worked
You Need to Have Savings In Your 20s
You Should Max Out Your Retirement Accounts As Early and Often as Possible

Don't Quit Your Day Job...

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