Many years ago, one of my Instagram followers asked me who I considered to be the best money bloggers. I realized there were far too many to tag (and they’re not all active on Instagram) so I decided to put together a giant resource list for anyone who is looking to boost their financial game by learning from other people. That resource list was shared all over the internet and is still one of the top articles that gets picked up from this website. Since it’s been a few years and there is a lot of economic uncertainty in my home country of the U.S., I figured it was time for an update.
How the Best Money Bloggers Changed My Life
I started blogging about money back in 2010 in an effort to teach myself personal finance.
I was 22 at the time and, fortunately, I got my quarter life crisis a few years early and realized I didn’t know jack about anything. I was also unemployed and broke af.
Call it Divine Intervention, good timing, or reaching a breaking point, but eventually I came to the conclusion that the only person who was ever going to have my back – especially in a down economy – was me. So, in that moment, I decided three things:
- I had to figure out a way to start making some money sans a regular job.
- I had to figure out how money actually works so I’d never be that broke again. This led to me eventually starting my own blog where I taught myself finance and an eight year career as a financial writer and expert where I would write for the lives of Discover, Credit Karma, Investopedia, Santander and more.
- I wanted to design my life with intention, not based on outside circumstances I can’t control (like a shit economy). This philosophy has led me to start businesses, travel and even move to Mexico in pursuit of a more intentional and well-designed life that prioritizes quality of life over the constant grind of American culture.
Pretty damn smart for a 22 year old if you ask me.
And so started days of endless Google searches where I was simply trying to learn how to improve my life. I just wanted to be a better human and make better decisions. And I sure as hell didn’t want to feel so fucking anxious all the time (I was suffering from panic attacks back then. Like finished my last semester of college on anxiety meds kind of panic attacks).
At first, I didn’t even start with Google searches about money. In fact, I’m pretty sure I stumbled upon blogs like Zen Habits and The Minimalists before I found personal finance blogs.
Granted, it’s not much of a stretch between personal growth and personal finance, so I did find the best money bloggers within a few weeks of beginning my quest to improve my life circumstances – and my life has never been the same since.
It was thanks to money bloggers like the ones on this list that I even started making money in my first business, saved money, never carried a balance on a consumer credit card, learned how to use credit card points for free flights, side hustled my ass off when I had a day job and eventually took the leap into entrepreneurship.
I invest because of these bloggers. I take risks because of these bloggers. I make better decisions because of these bloggers. And now I’m lucky to call lots of these guys my friends.
Honestly, who knows where the hell I’d be if I hadn’t started religiously following money bloggers back in the day!
25 Best Money Bloggers Every Millennial Should Follow
Some of these blogs I’ve been reading for years, and I’m happy to say I’ve met many of these guys personally through The Financial Blogger Conference. Others, I recently just discovered. I hope you find them as beneficial to your life as I’ve found them in mine.
Just note the list is in no particular order. Also note, I’ve done business with some of these guys – either as coaching clients over the years or because I wrote for their websites back when I was still a financial writer. Even in spite of that, this is still my unbiased opinion. Truth be told, I worked with plenty of people and companies in the personal finance space I wouldn’t put on this list. So if anything, the fact that I’ve also done business with some of these guys simply showed me how they operated behind the scenes and gave me an even better perspective.
Get Rich Slowly
Get Rich Slowly is the second personal finance blog I found back in the day. Most people want to try and get rich quick, but this site was transparent about the fact that it takes time and I found it calming.
(P.S. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and hanging out with J.D. Roth in person and I’m pretty sure he’s one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. He’s also a straight shooter and has a heart of gold which I’m sure is why Get Rich Slowly was and still is so successful.)
I Will Teach You To Be Rich
I opened up an IRA account thanks to this blog and book of the same title. What I found so intriguing about Ramit Sethi’s work back in the day was his very simple approach to automating things. He also likes to dig into the psychology of money which I totally geek out over. And finally, he didn’t make me feel guilty about buying lattes.
Budgets Are Sexy
This is the blog that helped me stop hating budgets (because how can you keep hating them with a name like that?). It’s also the blog that’s helps me discover new finance apps and encouraged me to sell a bunch of used stuff I had lying around my house when my emergency fund was low.
This blog is run by the one and only J. Money who I’ve also had the pleasure of meeting and hanging out with in person. He’s just as hilarious in person as he on the blog whcih helps make the world of finance seem less intimidating.
I’m pretty sure I didn’t even know what the term net worth meant until I stumbled upon his monthly net worth report and a video he posted of Drake’s “Started From The Bottom”. I’m not sure what his net worth was when I started reading the blog all those years ago, but now it’s at over a million.
Making Sense of Cents
This is Michelle Schroeder-Gardner’s bomb ass blog that earned her nearly $1 million in 2016. Not only is Michelle’s blog a fantastic resource for money saving tips and paying off student loans, she’s also a genius when it comes to earning money through affiliate sales on her blog.
I know there are a lot of people on TikTok selling an affiliate marketing pipedream, but Michelle is legit. She was teaching this stuff long before TikTok and I personally learned how to optimize this website for affiliate sales from her.
I’ve been following Michelle’s journey since before she was making six-figures a month and watching her journey has been a total inspiration. She also really knows her shit. I purchased her Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing Course in 2016 and almost immediately saw an increase in affiliate sales on my blog.
So not only has Michelle helped me save money, she’s also helped me earn more and that’s why she is one of the best money bloggers around.
Millennial Money
Formerly owned and operated as Careful Cents, I think Carrie Smith of Careful Cents is the first personal finance blogger I met on Twitter. She may have been one of the first I met in person too.
I don’t necessarily remember how I ran across some of these personal finance blogs, but I do remember finding Carrie’s story of paying off over $14,000 of consumer debt.
She seemed like (and she is) way more of a numbers person than I am, but was still enough of a creative where my totally right-brained self didn’t feel intimidated by what she was talking about.
It was also her blog which helped me make the decision to quit my day job and pursue freelance writing full-time. It was stories like Carrie’s coupled with what I was learning at my day job as a recruiter which helped me realize the economy had changed forever and it was time to pave my own way.
She has since sold that blog and now the website operates as Millennial Money, which has some big name financial influencers writing for it.
Broke Millennial
Broke Millennial may have also been one of the first millennial centered personal finance blogs I discovered a few years ago. Erin is hilarious and pretty straightforward. She’s also not afraid of talking about pretty uncomfortable financial topics. She recently published a book by the same name and I’ve already recommended it to every recent college grad I know.
Afford Anything
I have a girl crush on Paula Pant. There, I said it.
I don’t know why or even how it took me so long to find this blog, but I am so fucking happy I finally did a couple of years ago. I have since binged on just about every blog post and podcast episode Paula has ever put out.
Like Stefanie, Paula helps me feel like I’m not alone as a business owner, as a woman and as someone who is really just trying to get my financial shit together in a crazy world.
She’s built financial freedom for herself through real estate investing and while real estate isn’t my cup of tea, I’ve still learned a shit ton about investing, the power of human potential and how to balance money and life in a way that doesn’t leave me broke or miserable.
Her philosophy of “You can afford anything but not everything” is practically my mantra when I’m trying to make money decisions that are in alignment with my values. I also feel less crazy ruthlessly cutting things out of my life that I really don’t care about in an effort to save money because I know she does it too. Long story short, Afford Anything helps me trust myself to make the right choices for me.
Debt Free Guys
Debt Free Guys is a blog by David Auten and John Schneider III that chronciles the story of how they paid off $51,000 of consumer debt. They are also THE personal finance blog I send all my LGBT friends to when they are experiencing money issues.
What I love about John and David is not only have they decided to cater to an underserved community that also experiences their own specific hurdles when it comes to money, they also have a solid understanding that there’s more to life than money. They understand that you need to give money the importance it deserves, but you can’t make it more important than it actually is.
Club Thrifty
Here is why I love this blog so much: Holly Porter Johnson is not going to bullshit you.
For example, Holly takes no issue with saying “Yeah, I want to make a shit ton of money and I don’t give an eff about your status symbols.” (She doesn’t say it so bluntly, but I would lol.)
Like Paula Pant, she makes me feel like I’m not crazy for doing things that other people find strange – like not owning a car, or working as hard as I do (though I’ve learned to work smarter), or prioritizing savings over just about anything else.
She’s also really big on travel hacking. After mostly following travel hacking blogs run by men for many years, it was cool to see a woman doing it.
Money After Graduation
If you’re still in your 20s and happen to live in Canada, money after graduation is an AWESOME resource for you learn about money. What I love about Money After Graduation is that Bridget is very candid about real life stuff, like the fact that millennials aren’t earning as much as their parents did or how to afford an unplanned pregnancy. Because life is messy, stuff happens and it affects our finances.
The College Investor
The College Investor is a fantastic blog for a few things: reviews of financial software, common sense advice for paying off student loans and common sense investing advice.
The reality is the younger you get started investing, the better. This blog teaches you how to deal with the obstacles that may be in your way and how to invest the right way.
Mr. Money Mustache
I learned about low-cost index funds thanks to Mr. Money Mustache! I’ve been investing in them for YEARS thanks to this one blog. In case you don’t know, the Mustaches reached financial independence (AKA they retired in their 30s) by investing half their income and investing them into index funds.
Side Hustle Nation
You can’t talk about millennials without mentioning side hustles. After all, as a generation that was dealt a pretty shitty economic hand, we eat, sleep and breathe side hustles.
Nick has a podcast where he interviewers hustlers like myself on their stories and how they’ve managed to earn income without relying on a day job. I’ve been following this blog for a really long time and it’s amazing to see how much the community has grown over the years.
(P.S. Click here to listen to my interview on Side Hustle Nation.)
Well Kept Wallet
Deacon Hayes has a great blog where he covers three main topics: making more money, saving money and how to pay off debt. He has a great story about how he paid off over $50k of debt in 18 months and on the blog he shares strategies that can help people accomplish this.
Miranda Marquit
Miranda Marquit is another one of my financial girl crushes. She’s been in the financial blogging game for some time and what I find so amazing about her is that she’s insanely generous. Not only does she have great content on her own site, but she also writes great content for several other PF sites.
Additionally, she’s very much involved with The Financial Blogger Conference and I have the utmost respect for her political activism. She seriously has me thinking about some of the ways I can get more involved politically, not just financially but also by showing up in my local community.
Wallet Hacks
Jim Wang has been writing about personal finance online for over 10 years and his philosophy is quite simple: he’s regular person and so are you. If he was able to figure out how to build wealth on his own (through trial and error) then you can as well.
Dear Debt
Voted the Best Debt Blog two years in a row, Dear Debt is a raw and beautifully written account of how Melanie Locket has dealt with paying off $81k of student loan debt. What I love about Melanie is that she truly focuses on the intersection between money and mental health. It’s something we discussed on my podcast which you can find here.
(By the way, her podcast episode is one of the most popular on this site. Her story has touched many of you already.)
My Fab Finance
Tonya Rapley started My Fab Finance back in 2013 and while I can’t remember exactly when I found her blog, I do know that I’ve been following her journey for years. From YouTube videos to a challenge where she helps people pay down debt, Tonya has basically got every area of personal finance covered. She also tours the country providing workshops for the likes of Fidelity and Prudential.
Principles of Increase
Aja McClanahan is a financial blogger who got a lot of attention for paying off $120,00 in debt, for investing in what was considered less than ideal neighborhoods in Chicago and managing her children’s acting careers. It was unconventional, and I love unconventional people and stories.
Now she’s talking more about international real estate, international travel and living in Puerto Rico. As a former financial writer who moved to Mexico I’m all over it.
A lot of people talk about travel and a of people talk about finance, but not a lot of people talk about the combination of travel, business, wealth building and how to optimize your finances to build wealth while overseas. That is a rare breed on the internet.
Redefining Wealth
Patrice Washington is a force. I simply have no other way to describe this woman. She’s not just a financial expert, but she covers wealth from all aspects. Her top rated podcast was one of ones I would listen to on repeat back in the day when I was sun tanning at my condo’s pool in Miami. It just seemed appropriate to go the Church of Patrice Washington while enjoying a little bit of luxury in Miami and it got me through some interesting transitions in life.
I’ve since had her on the podcast and she did not disappoint.
Unapologetic Wealth
Natalie Bullen is a newer friend and colleague in comparison to everyone else on this list. In fact, I should probably introduce her to everyone on this list.
Not only did she work in the financial industry, she is also a sales maven. In fact, we bonded over our love of sales. There aren’t many sales trainers for women I would recommend other than myself, but Natalie is definitely at the top of the list when it comes to not just understanding how to make money, but how to actually build wealth.
You can also check out Natalie on the Make Money Your Honey podcast here.
WiseBread
WiseBread has been around for over a decade and it is still going strong. In these interesting economic times, this is definitely one of the websites you want to check out for financial tips. With over 15 years of articles, it covers just about every financial scenario you can think of.
Financial Samurai
Financial Samurai started during the 2008/2009 recession and it is still going strong.
It’s where you want to go if you want to go beyond personal finance basics and geek out over investing. He’s not just talking about how to save money on your grocery bill, he’s talking about how to actually become a millionaire and build wealth via investing.
NerdWallet
If you’re looking for a website that helps you compare financial products look no further than NerdWallet. They were always known to have some of the best easiest-to-follow comparisons on products such as credit cards, loans, insurance and more.
GOBankingRates
GOBanking Rates is another great financial product comparison website. What I particularly like about GoBankingRates is they have a a library of articles they’ve categorized between beginner, intermediate and advanced. This is especially helpful because people are at different stages of their financial journey and need different things.
Who is on your list of best money bloggers?
These are the money bloggers I’ve been following religiously for quite some time, but I know there are plenty more out there. In fact, there are plenty that I simply could not put on the list because I ran out of space. Who are some of your favorite money bloggers these days? Let me know on Twitter!