The Library

Everything worth reading on this site

Curated by Marcus · Updated April 2026

The short version

This is the curated index of SimpleMoneyHabits. The posts and tools below are the ones I’d actually send a new reader to today, organized by the same six categories as the homepage. Older posts on the site exist at their original URLs; this page is the working library of what’s currently in active use.

Start here

13 Simple Money Habits the cornerstone framework
The Perpetual Emergency Portfolio a smarter emergency fund
F-You Money what financial freedom is actually for

FIRE Movement 6 posts

Darwin FIRE A flavor of FIRE built around evolving with your work, not escaping it.
Coast FIRE When your existing investments will compound to your number on their own.
Barista FIRE The hybrid: enough invested that part-time work covers the rest.
Lean FIRE Lower number, lower expenses, faster timeline.
Fat FIRE The high-income, high-target version of the same pursuit.
Slow FIRE Reaching financial freedom on a calmer, longer arc.

Browse the full FIRE category →

Investing 6 posts

VOO vs VTI Two of Vanguard’s most popular index ETFs, compared.
VTI vs VTSAX Same fund, two wrappers. Which one fits your situation.
How to Invest $30,000 A concrete allocation walkthrough for a meaningful starting balance.
How to Invest $5 Million Allocation thinking for a portfolio that’s already past the finish line.
How to Invest $10 Million The same exercise, scaled up to multi-generational territory.
Health Savings Account The most underrated tax-advantaged account in the U.S.

Browse the full Investing category →

Reviews 6 posts

Rocket Money Review The keystone app for tracking expenses, net worth, and subscriptions.
Acorns Review How I use it as my Perpetual Emergency Portfolio.
Coinbase Review The HOLD app for a small, deliberate crypto allocation.
Robinhood Review The contained speculation cage. Useful in its place.
SoFi Free Credit Score Credit monitoring and fraud alerts, free.
Fundrise Review An alt-asset sleeve in real estate and venture, with caveats.

Browse the full Reviews category →

Tutorials and exercises 3 posts

SSA Lifetime Earnings Find a number most people will never see in their lives.
Wealth Ratio Net worth divided by lifetime earnings. The most honest financial metric.
Sinking Fund Calculator Plan for predictable irregular expenses without raiding your savings.

Income 2 posts

Money Making Apps An honest look at side-income apps, what they’re worth, and what they’re not.
Income Producing Assets The asset categories that pay you while you own them.

Browse the full Income category →

Salary Conversions 3 posts

$40,000 a year is how much an hour Per-hour, per-week, per-month math for a $40K salary.
$45,000 a year is how much an hour The same breakdown for a $45K salary.
$60,000 a year is how much an hour And again, scaled up to a $60K salary.

Browse the full Salary Conversions category →

Money is a funny thing 7 posts

Lifestyle Creep The quiet force that delays FIRE timelines by years.
Best Personal Finance Books Fifteen books that actually changed how I think about money.
How to Make One Million Dollars The compounding math behind the first big number.
Stealth Wealth Why some of the wealthiest people don’t look it.
How Much Money Is Enough The hardest question in personal finance.
Mid-Term Goals The 3-to-7 year horizon nobody plans for properly.
Personal OKRs Objectives and key results, applied to a life.

Browse the full Money is a Funny Thing category →

The longer questions 5 posts

FIRE and Art Reflecting on Derek Sivers’ “do what you love and make good money” through a FIRE lens.
Money Is Everything The case, made honestly.
Money Is Not Everything The counter-case, also honestly.
Success Is the Best Revenge A meditation on building a quiet, undeniable life.
What’s the Point of Being Rich The question that gets harder, not easier, after the math is solved.

Looking for something specific

Searches every post on the site, including older posts not featured in the library above.

The library above is the curated working set, the things I’d actively recommend to a reader walking the journey today. Older posts remain at their original URLs and are findable through the search above.

Have a topic you’d like covered? Contact me on X.