The basics, in the order that matters
Free, plain-language reference guides to the foundations of personal finance, written from the Boglehead philosophy: keep costs low, diversify broadly, automate, and stop tinkering. Nothing here is sold, and nothing here is personalised advice — it is the framework that lets you ask better questions of anyone who does give you advice.
The Order of Operations — one-page checklist
The eight steps below as a printable PDF, with 2026 limits. Free, no email required.
The order of operations
Where each next dollar should go. Work down the list; most people are on step two or three for years, and that is fine.
Throughout: low-cost index funds, a written stock/bond split, automatic contributions, and an annual rebalance. That is the whole strategy. The essays on this site spend a lot of words on why the exciting alternatives usually end worse.
The guides
Emergency fund
Why it comes first, how much, where to keep it, and what counts as an emergency.
Accounts401(k) basics
Traditional vs Roth, the match, 2026 limits, what to invest in, and the costly mistakes.
AccountsRoth IRA basics
Tax-free growth, accessible contributions, income phase-outs, and how to open one.
InvestingIndex funds & the three-fund portfolio
Why cost is the whole argument, and the simplest portfolio with a serious track record.
ProductsAnnuities explained
The one simple kind worth understanding, and why the complicated ones deserve scepticism.
FoundationBanking basics
What a bank sells you, the three accounts you need, FDIC, and the fees that tell you how it thinks about you.
CreditCredit cards
How interest really works, why rewards are a rebate not a goal, and the one rule.
CreditCredit scores
The five factors, the two that matter, what moves it fast, and the expensive myths.
RetirementRetirement planning
The 4% guideline, sequence risk, Social Security timing, and withdrawal order.
InsuranceTerm life insurance
Who needs it, how much, and why term beats permanent for nearly everyone.
InsuranceDisability insurance
The most under-bought protection there is, and the clauses that decide whether it pays.
AdviceWhen you need a CPA
The situations that justify one, how the fee works, and CPA vs enrolled agent vs software.
AdviceHow financial planners get paid
Five compensation models, their conflicts, and why a one-time fee-only review beats ongoing management for most people.
IncomePassive income, honestly assessed
Five real business models measured against the only genuinely passive option there is.
Tax
How the rules work and where the legitimate levers are. General information for tax year 2026, updated when the IRS publishes new figures each autumn; never a substitute for a professional on your own return.
How deductions actually work
Marginal vs effective rates, the standard deduction, itemising, and why a credit beats a deduction.
TaxSelf-employed and 1099 taxes
SE tax, quarterlies, what is deductible, and the retirement plans that shelter far more.
TaxWhere to hold what
Asset location: which funds go in which accounts, and the two harvesting tools.
In progress
Tax: capital gains and tax-loss harvesting · Tax: Roth conversions · Tax: HSA as a retirement account · Tax: employing family members (legitimately) · Tax: common mistakes · HSA basics · Traditional vs Roth: deciding · Backdoor Roth and the pro-rata rule · Target-date funds · Rebalancing · Paying off debt: avalanche vs snowball · 529 plans · How to read a fund’s expense ratio · Social Security basics · Taxes on investments · What a fiduciary is
How these are written
Each guide states its sources and the tax year its figures apply to, and gets re-checked when the IRS publishes new limits each November. They describe how things work; they do not tell you what to do. Corrections are welcome and get priority — see the about page.