The basics of personal finance are simple, but it is also a subject you can study for a lifetime. If you’d like to expand your knowledge, this list of the best personal finance books is a great place to start.
This collection features a diverse range of titles, including works by financial gurus such as Dave Ramsey, Robert Kiyosaki, and Tony Robbins, as well as value investing classics like ‘The Intelligent Investor’, ‘The Tao of Charlie Munger’, and ‘A Random Walk Down Wall Street’.
Dive into the world of personal finance through these insightful reads!
We considered several factors when selecting books for this list, such as the author’s expertise, awards, critical acclaim, and online reviews. We also included new and noteworthy titles to provide readers with a diverse range of options and keep up-to-date with the latest trends.
1. Unshakeable
by Tony Robbins
Tony Robbins, who has coached more than fifty million people from 100 countries, is the world’s #1 life and business strategist. In this book, he teams up with Peter Mallouk, the only man in history to be ranked the #1 financial advisor in the US for three consecutive years by Barron’s. Together they reveal how to become unshakeable—someone who can not only maintain true peace of mind in a world of immense uncertainty, economic volatility, and unprecedented change, but who can profit from the fear that immobilizes so many.
Here’s what is covered in this book
- How to put together a simple, actionable plan that will deliver true financial freedom.
- Strategies from the world’s top investors on how to protect yourself and your family and maximize profit from the inevitable crashes and corrections to come.
- How a few simple steps can add a decade or more of additional retirement income by discovering what your 401(k) provider doesn’t want you to know.
- The core four principles that most of the world’s greatest financial minds utilize so that you can maximize upside and minimize downside.
- The fastest way to put money back in your pocket: uncover the hidden fees and half truths of Wall Street—how the biggest firms keep you overpaying for underperformance.
- Master the mindset of true wealth and experience the fulfillment you deserve today.
2. Rich Dad Poor Dad
by Robert T. Kiyosaki
Rich Dad Poor Dad is the #1 selling Personal Finance book for all time. In this book, Robert Kiyosaki shares the story of his two dad: his real father, whom he calls his ‘poor dad,’ and the father of his best friend, the man who became his mentor and his ‘rich dad.’ One man was well educated and an employee all his life, the other’s education was “street smarts” over traditional classroom education and he took the path of entrepreneurship… a road that led him to become one of the wealthiest men in Hawaii. Robert’s poor dad struggled financially all his life, and these two dads – with two very different points of view of money, investing, and employment – shaped Robert’s own thinking about money.
Rich Dad Poor Dad will:
- Explode the myth that you need to earn a high income to become rich
- Show parents why they can’t rely on the school system to teach their kids
about money - Explain the difference between good debt and bad debt
- Teach you to see the world of money from different perspectives
- Discuss the shift in mindset that can put you on the road to financial freedom
Robert has challenged and changed the way tens of millions of people, around the world, think about money and investing. Maybe it will change the way you think, too?
3. The Millionaire Next Door
by Thomas J. Stanley & William D. Danko
The Millionaire Next Door is a wonderful book for anyone who wants to grow their wealth. Stanley and Danko break down 7 common traits that show up again and again among those who have accumulated wealth. By the end of the book, you’ll understand that wealth in America is more often the result of hard work, diligent savings, and living below your means than it is about inheritance, advance degrees, and even intelligence.
The authors use over two decades worth of surveys, personal interviews with millionaires, and data to reveal the secrets for building wealth in America. The Millionaire Next Door reveals the common denominators that show up again and again among those who have accumulated wealth.
4. How to Make Your Money Last
by Jane Bryant Quinn
This book will teach you how to turn your retirement savings into a steady paycheck that will last for life.
One of people’s biggest fears is running out of money in their older age. Luckily you can use a few tricks for squeezing higher payments from your assets, like:
- Your Social Security account (find the hidden values there),
- Pension (monthly income or lump sum?),
- Home equity (sell and invest the proceeds or take a reverse mortgage?),
- Savings (should you buy a lifetime annuity?),
- Retirement accounts (how to invest and—critically—how much to withdraw from your savings each year?).
The right moves will not only raise the amount you have to spend, they’ll stretch out your money over many more years. At a time when people are living longer, yet retiring with a smaller pot of savings than they’d hoped for, this book will become the essential guide
5. The Total Money Makeover
by Dave Ramsey & Thomas Nelson
Build up your money muscles with America’s favorite finance coach.
Okay, folks, do you want to turn those fat and flabby expenses into a well-toned budget? Do you want to transform your sad and skinny little bank account into a bulked-up cash machine? Then get with the program, people. There’s one sure way to whip your finances into shape, and that’s with The Total Money Makeover: Classic Edition.
By now, you’ve heard all the nutty get-rich-quick schemes, the fiscal diet fads that leave you with a lot of kooky ideas but not a penny in your pocket. Hey, if you’re tired of the lies and sick of the false promises, take a look at this—it’s the simplest, most straightforward game plan for completely making over your money habits. And it’s based on results, not pie-in-the-sky fantasies. With The Total Money Makeover: Classic Edition, you’ll be able to:
- Design a sure-fire plan for paying off all debt—meaning cars, houses, everything
- Recognize the 10 most dangerous money myths (these will kill you)
- Secure a big, fat nest egg for emergencies and retirement!
Includes new, expanded “Dave Rants” sidebars tackle marriage conflict, college debt, and more. All-new forms and back-of-the-book resources to make Total Money Makeover a reality.
6. Make Your Kid a Money Genius (Even If You’re Not)
by Beth Kobliner
Beth Kobliner is the author of the bestselling personal finance bible Get a Financial Life. Make Your Kid a Money Genius is a new, must-have guide showing parents how to teach their children (from toddlers to young adults) to manage money in a smart way.
This book is a easy to understand, step-by-step guide to help parents of all income levels teach their kids—from ages three to twenty-three—about money. It turns out the key to raising a money genius isn’t to teach that four quarters equal a dollar or how to pick a stock. Instead, it’s about instilling values that have been proven to make people successful—not just financially, but in life: delaying gratification, working hard, living within your means, getting a good education, and acting generously toward others.
More specifically, you’ll learn why allowance isn’t the Holy Grail when teaching your kid to handle money, and why after-school jobs aren’t always the answer either. You’ll discover the right age to give your kid a credit card, and learn why doling out a wad of cash can actually be a good parenting move.
7. The Truth About Your Future
by Ric Edelman
New York Times bestselling author and legendary investment guru Ric Edelman reveals his forward-thinking guide on how science and technology will reshape the way we save, invest, and plan for the future.
The traditional paradigms of how we live, learn, and invest are shifting under our feet. Edelman explains how smart investors can adapt and thrive in today’s changing marketplace and offers sound, practical investment advice through the lens of recent scientific and technological advancements. He illustrates how discoveries in robotics, nanotechnology, 3D printing, solar energy, biotechnology, and medicine will redefine our life expectancies, careers, and retirements. As we live and work longer, Edelman provides clear advice on how to recalibrate the way we save for college, invest during our careers, and plan for retirement.
The Truth About Your Future, featuring Edelman’s proven advice and trademark humor, is a timely, must-have guide for anyone serious about successfully adapting to the ever-evolving financial landscape.
8. The Automatic Millionaire
by David Bach
The Automatic Millionaire is one of the most popular financial books of our time. It was a runaway hit when it was first published in 2004, spending thirty-one weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and appearing at at number one simultaneously on the New York Times, USA Today, BusinessWeek, and Wall Street Journal business bestseller lists. It has sold over 1.5 million copies and been translated around the world in over a dozen languages. This is the first update since 2005 and includes updated information on taxes, investments, technologies and apps to automate your financial life as well as David’s latest systems for making the entire process even easier.
This book starts with the powerful story of an average American couple (he’s a low-level manager, she’s a beautician) whose joint income never exceeds $55,000 a year, yet who somehow manage to own two homes debt-free, put two kids through college, and retire at 55 with more than $1 million in savings. Through their story you’ll learn the surprising fact that you cannot get rich with a budget! You have to have a plan to pay yourself first that is totally automatic, a plan that will automatically secure your future and pay for your present.
David gives you a realistic system, based on timeless principles, with everything you need to know, including phone numbers, websites and apps, so you can put the secret to becoming an Automatic Millionaire in place from the comfort of your own home. This powerful little book has the potential to secure your financial future. Do it once – the rest is automatic!
9. Pogue’s Basics
by David Pogue
- Want to know where you can buy $100 iTunes gift cards for $85?
- Did you know you can pay your taxes by using a cash-back credit card?
- Why are you still paying $235 a year to rent your cable box?
You’re leaving money on the table every day, with every transaction you make: changing your oil, withdrawing ATM cash, booking flights, buying insurance, shopping for clothes, squirting toothpaste. But in Pogue’s Basics: Money, the third book of this New York Times bestselling series, David Pogue proves that information is money. Each of his 150 simple tips and tricks includes a ballpark estimate of the money you could make or save.
Okay, you won’t use every tip in the book―but if you did, you’d come ahead by $61,195 a year.
10. The Intelligent Investor
by Benjamin Graham
If you only ever read one investment book, then let it be The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham. There’s a reason why Graham is called the “Godfather of Value Investing.” Benjamin Graham was probably the most influential investing figure of the 20th century, and The Intelligent Investor is probably the most influential investment book of all time. The Intelligent Investor is the value investor’s bible… keep this one on your bedside table.
“By far the best book on investing ever written.” – Warren Buffett
“If you read just one book on investing during your lifetime, make it this one” – Fortune
“The wider Mr. Graham’s gospel spreads, the more fairly the market will deal with its public.” – Barron’s
11. Money Master the Game
by Tony Robbins
This is the second book on this list by Tony Robbins. Based on extensive research and one-on-one interviews with more than 50 of the most legendary financial experts in the world – from Carl Icahn and Warren Buffett, to Ray Dalio and Steve Forbes – Tony Robbins has created a simple 7-step blueprint that anyone can use for financial freedom.
Robbins has a brilliant way of using metaphor and story to illustrate even the most complex financial concepts—making them simple and actionable. With expert advice on our most important financial decisions, Robbins is an advocate for the reader, dispelling the myths that often rob people of their financial dreams.
Tony Robbins walks readers of every income level through the steps to become financially free by creating a lifetime income plan. This book delivers invaluable information and essential practices for getting your financial house in order.
12. Ageproof
by Jean Chatzky & Michael Roizen
In this book, two of the world’s leading experts explain the vital link between health and wealth that could add years to your life and dollars to your retirement savings. Learn about how to rollover your HSA funds, etc.
All the money in the world doesn’t mean a thing if we can’t get out of bed. And the healthiest body in the world won’t stay that way if we’re frazzled about five figures worth of debt. TODAY Show financial expert Jean Chatzky and the Cleveland Clinic’s chief wellness officer Dr. Michael Roizen explain the vital connection between health and wealth – giving readers all the tactics, strategies, and know-how to live longer, healthier, more lucrative lives.
The same principles that allow us to achieve a better body will allow us to do the same for our investment portfolio. For instance, physical and financial stability comes down to the same equation: Inflow versus outflow. Do we burn more calories than we ingest? Likewise, are we making more money than we spend? The authors detail scientific ways to improve our behavior so that the answers tilt in the readers’ favor. They also offer ways to beat the system by automating how we do things and limiting our decisions in the face of too much food or too much debt. Chatzky and Roizen provide a plan for both financial independence and biological strength with action steps to get you there.
13. A Random Walk Down Wall Street
by Burton G. Malkiel
Burton G. Malkiel’s classic and gimmick-free investment guide is now more necessary than ever. Rather than tricks, what you’ll find here is a time-tested and thoroughly research-based strategy for your portfolio. Whether you’re considering your first 401(k) contribution or contemplating retirement, this fully updated edition of A Random Walk Down Wall Street should be the first book on your reading list.
In A Random Walk Down Wall Street you’ll learn the basic terminology of “The Street” and how to navigate it with the help of a user-friendly, long-range investment strategy that really works. Drawing on his own varied experience as an economist, financial adviser, and successful investor, Malkiel shows why, despite recent advice to the contrary from so-called experts in the wake of the financial crisis, an individual who buys over time and holds a low-cost, internationally diversified index of securities is still likely to exceed the performance of portfolios carefully picked by professionals using sophisticated analytical techniques. In this new edition, Malkiel has provided valuable new material throughout the book on exchange-traded funds and investment opportunities in emerging markets, and in a brand-new, timely chapter, Malkiel authoritatively assesses the pitfalls and prospects of the latest investing trend, “smart beta.”
With the prevailing wisdom changing on an almost daily basis, Malkiel’s reassuring and vastly informative volume remains the best investment guide money can buy.
14. How to Retire With Enough Money
by Teresa Ghilarducci
This is a short book (144 pages) that you can read in a single sitting – but it can change the course of your retirement. It begins with acknowledging what a person or household actually needs to have saved—the rule of thumb is eight to ten times your annual salary before retirement—and how much to expect from Social Security. And then it delivers the basic principles that will make the money grow, including a dozen good ideas to get current expenses under control. Why to “get rid of your guy”—those for-fee (or hidden-fee) financial planners that suck up valuable assets. Why it’s always better to pay off a loan or a mortgage.
There are no gimmicks, no magical thinking—just an easy-to-follow program that works:
- A comfortable nest egg is eight times your annual salary
- “Fire the guy!” Now’s the time to move investments into low-cost index funds—you’ll beat the experts and save a ton of money
- How to get the very most out of Social Security—and why it’s a healthy and dependable system
- The incalculable advantage of paying down debt, starting with your mortgage
- The dual benefit of downsizing before retiring, including ten proven strategies for cutting back on spending
15. The Tao of Charlie Munger
by David Clark
Words of wisdom from Charlie Munger – Warren Buffett’s longtime business partner and the visionary Vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway – collected and interpreted with an eye towards investing by David Clark, coauthor of the bestselling Buffettology series.
Like The Tao of Warren Buffett and The Tao of Te Ching, The Tao of Charlie Munger is a compendium of pithy quotes including, “Knowing what you don’t know is more useful than being brilliant” and “In my whole life, I have known no wise people who didn’t read all the time—none, zero.” This collection, culled from interviews, speeches, and questions and answers at the Berkshire Hathaway and Wesco annual meetings, offers insights into Munger’s amazing financial success and life philosophies.
Described by Business Insider as “sharp in his wit and investing wisdom,” Charlie Munger’s investment tips, business philosophy, and rules for living are as unique as his life story.
16. Mindful Money
by Jonathan K. Deyoe
Is it possible to be a conscientious citizen of the world and grow wealth? Jonathan DeYoe, a Buddhist and a financial planner, says yes and explains exactly how.
Money drives many of our decisions. We all worry about earning it, spending it, and saving it — regardless of our income level or spiritual perspective. Yet few of us understand money’s true nature. Mindful Money helps you create a unique financial plan that is guided by your deepest beliefs, and shows you how to save, invest, pay off debt, and fund your retirement and dreams by building a lifetime income stream.
With a foreword by Pulitzer Prize–winner Alice Walker, Mindful Money does all this while emphasizing that money is a tool you can use to support your lifestyle, reach your goals, and earn the “happiness dividend” everyone deserves.
17. The Only Investment Guide You’ll Ever Need
by Andrew Tobias
For nearly forty years, The Only Investment Guide You’ll Ever Need has been a favorite finance guide, earning the allegiance of more than a million readers across America. This completely updated edition will show you how to use your money to your best advantage in today’s financial marketplace, no matter what your means.
Using concise, witty, and truly understandable tips and explanations, Andrew Tobias delivers sensible advice and useful information on savings, investments, preparing for retirement, and much more.
18. How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free
by Ernie J. Zelinski
How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free offers inspirational advice on how to enjoy life to its fullest. The key to achieving an active and satisfying retirement involves a great deal more than having adequate financial resources; it also encompasses all other aspects of life – interesting leisure activities, creative pursuits, physical well-being, mental well-being, and solid social support.
This book guides you to:
- Gain courage to take early retirement; in fact, the earlier the better.
- Put money in proper perspective so that you don’t need a million dollars to retire.
- Generate purpose in your retirement life with meaningful creative pursuits.
- Follow your dreams instead of someone else’s.
- Take charge of your mental, physical, and spiritual health.
- Better envision your retirement goals — including where you want to live.
- Above all, make you retirement years the best time of your life.
19. The Index Card
by Helaine Olen & Harold Pollack
TV analysts and money managers would have you believe your finances are enormously complicated, and if you don’t follow their guidance, you’ll end up in the poorhouse.
They’re wrong.
When University of Chicago professor Harold Pollack interviewed Helaine Olen, an award-winning financial journalist and the author of the bestselling Pound Foolish, he made an offhand suggestion: everything you need to know about managing your money could fit on an index card. To prove his point, he grabbed a 4″ x 6″ card, scribbled down a list of rules, and posted a picture of the card online. The post went viral.
Now, Pollack teams up with Olen to explain why the ten simple rules of the index card outperform more complicated financial strategies. Inside is an easy-to-follow action plan that works in good times and bad, giving you the tools, knowledge, and confidence to seize control of your financial life.
20. What Your Financial Advisor Isn’t Telling You
by Liz Davidson
It seems like a foolproof decision: if you want to be smart about protecting and growing your wealth, you should seek guidance from a trained financial advisor.
However, you can never blindly trust that your advisor has your best interests at heart. There are many benefits to working with a financial pro, but there are some things you should know first.
That’s where this book comes in. Drawing on her insider’s knowledge of how the financial advice profession really works, Davidson reveals how to judge whether an advisor is going to help or harm your savings. How should you decide if you really need an advisor? What financial moves can you make without their help? What important questions should you ask before trusting them with your money? What are the red flags you should run from? And what does all their jargon really mean?
This friendly, no-nonsense guide is a must-read if you want to finally take control of your financial well-being, either with a financial advisor or without one.
21. Worth It
by Amanda Steinberg
From the founder and superstar CEO of DailyWorth.com—the go-to financial site for women with more than one million subscribers—comes a fresh book that redefines the relationship between women, self-worth, and money. Worth It shows women how to view money as a source of personal power and freedom—and live life on their terms.
Worth It outlines the essential financial information women need—and everything the institutions and advisors don’t spell out. Steinberg gets to the bottom of why women are stressed and anxious when it comes to their finances and teaches them to stay away from strict budgeting and other harsh austerity practices. Instead, she makes money relatable, while sharing strategies she uses herself to build confidence and ease in her own financial life. Through her first-hand experiences and the stories from other women who’ve woken up, Steinberg’s powerful and encouraging advice can help women of any age and income view money as a source of freedom and independence—and create bright financial futures.
22. The Opposite of Spoiled
Raising Kids Who Are Grounded, Generous, and Smart About Money
by Ron Lieber
Written in a warm, accessible voice, grounded in real-world experience and stories from families with a range of incomes, The Opposite of Spoiled is both a practical guidebook and a values-based philosophy. The foundation of the book is a detailed blueprint for the best ways to handle the basics: the tooth fairy, allowance, chores, charity, saving, birthdays, holidays, cell phones, checking accounts, clothing, cars, part-time jobs, and college tuition. It identifies a set of traits and virtues that embody the opposite of spoiled, and shares how to embrace the topic of money to help parents raise kids who are more generous and less materialistic.
But The Opposite of Spoiled is also a promise to our kids that we will make them better with money than we are. It is for all of the parents who know that honest conversations about money with their curious children can help them become more patient and prudent, but who don’t know how and when to start.
23. Investing 101
by Michele Cagan
A crash course in managing personal wealth!
Too often, textbooks turn the noteworthy details of investing into tedious discourse that would put even Warren Buffett to sleep. Investing 101 cuts out the boring explanations, and instead provides a hands-on lesson that keeps you engaged as you learn how to build a portfolio and expand your savings. From value investing to short selling to risk tolerance, this primer is packed with hundreds of entertaining tidbits and concepts that you won’t be able to get anywhere else.
So whether you’re looking to master the major principles of investing, or just want to learn more about stocks and bonds, Investing 101 has all the answers–even the ones you didn’t know you were looking for.
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The Ultimate Guide to Value Investing
Do you want to know how to invest like the value investing legend Warren Buffett? All you need is money to invest, a little patience—and this book. Learn more
