25 of the Best Personal Finance Books to Fill Out Your Reading List
Personal finance books can be a source of inspiration and guidance. They can help you improve your financial literacy and your life.
If you’re looking for a good read that can impact how you make, save and grow your money, pick up one of these popular personal finance books.
25 of the Best Personal Finance Books
Add these helpful personal finance books to your “to read” list.
1. ‘Finance for the People: Getting a Grip on Your Finances’ by Paco de Leon
Chock-full of illustrations, relatable metaphors and practical advice, Paco de Leon’s “Finance for the People” is a rallying cry to transform how you manage money.
Described as part therapy, part personal finance book, de Leon puts her valuable insight into banking, business consulting and financial planning to work distilling complex financial concepts into actionable tips.
2. ‘The Total Money Makeover’ by Dave Ramsey
“The Total Money Makeover” breaks down how to transform your money habits, pay off debt and build up a nest egg for the future.
The most recent iteration of this classic, long regarded as one of the best personal finance books, is a workbook edition for you to apply the teachings to your own financial situation.
3. ‘The Millionaire Next Door’ by Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko
This popular book spills the secrets of how to accumulate wealth in America — which has a lot to do with managing money, not just how much you make.
Read “The Millionaire Next Door” for advice on how to upgrade your net worth.
4. ‘Rich Dad Poor Dad’ by Robert Kiyosaki
Robert Kiyosaki shares the lessons he learned from his father and his best friend’s dad in “Rich Dad Poor Dad.”
This personal finance book gives guidance on what you should be teaching your children about money and investing so you can create generational wealth.
5. ‘Financial Feminist’ by Tori Dunlap
Written specifically for women, “Financial Feminist” empowers beginners in money management to approach their financial future with confidence.
Tori Dunlap, a financial adviser and host of the No. 1 business podcast “Financial Feminist,” has inspired more than 3 million women into taking control of their money and establishing financial independence.
6. ‘The Index Card: Why Personal Finance Doesn’t Have to Be Complicated’ by Helaine Olen and Harold Pollack
Helaine Olen and Harold Pollack, personal finances columnists, team up in “The Index Card” to offer simple rules for living your best money life that fit on index cards.
From financial moves like maxing out your 401(k) to building home equity gradually, this is one of the finance books young adults should read to avoid common money mistakes.
7. ‘What to Do With Your Money When Crisis Hits: A Survival Guide’ by Michelle Singletary
If your own financial life feels like an endless cycle of feast or famine, Michelle Singletary’s “What to Do With Your Money When Crisis Hits” is the perfect read.
As the celebrated Washington Post columnist of “The Color of Money,” Singletary gets beyond having an emergency fund to what it takes to get off the financial diet and build true economic resilience.
8. ‘Your Playbook for Tough Times’ by Donna Freedman
Your personal finance journey may be wrought with highs and lows.
“Your Playbook for Tough Times” helps those struggling financially by offering advice and encouragement to make it through hardship. Learn how to reduce expenses, find temporary assistance and even eke out some savings while navigating difficult times.
9. ‘A Random Walk Down Wall Street: The Best Investment Guide That Money Can Buy’ by Burton G. Malkiel
If you’re uncertain of the value investing provides or intimidated by index funds, this New York Times bestseller is for you.
Written by economics professor Burton Malkeil, “A Random Walk Down Wall Street” is a finance classic that combines investing wisdom from America’s wealthy, like Warren Buffett, into a crash course on how successful people make Wall Street work for them.
10. ‘I Will Teach You to Be Rich’ by Ramit Sethi
Level up your financial life with this book, which aims to show you the pathway to wealth. “I Will Teach You to Be Rich” first came out in 2009, but an updated version was released in 2019.
This book shares how to get out of debt, automate your finances and save money while still being able to afford what’s important to you. Ramit Sethi also runs a website by the same name.
11. ‘Get Good With Money’ by Tiffany Aliche
Tiffany Aliche is known across the internet by her moniker “The Budgetnista,” but her book “Get Good With Money” is about more than just budgeting.
This book breaks down 10 steps to becoming financially whole and includes topics such as improving your credit score, increasing your income and getting the right type of insurance.
12. ‘Napkin Finance’ by Tina Hay
If you’re a visual learner who takes in information best when it’s presented as pictures or infographics, check out “Napkin Finance.”
This book offers bite-sized lessons on a variety of topics, including credit scores, investing, taxes and cryptocurrency. Each topic is explained via an illustration drawn out on what looks like the back of a napkin.
See our review of “Napkin Finance” and our Q&A with Tina Hay.
13. ‘You Are a Badass at Making Money’ by Jen Sincero
You can only decrease your spending so much. If you’ve whittled down your budget and are still living paycheck to paycheck, your problem is probably due to not bringing in enough income.
Following up on Jen Sincero’s inspirational bestseller, “You Are a Badass,” “You Are a Badass at Making Money” focuses on how to dump limiting beliefs about wealth building and create an influx of income.
14. ‘The Psychology of Money’ by Morgan Housel
Mastering money is more than just a numbers game. Your emotions, mindsets and habits have a big influence over your financial life. It requires having the right mindset about money.
In “The Psychology of Money,” Morgan Housel shines a light on the way people think about money.
15. ‘Why Didn’t They Teach Me This in School?’ by Cary Siegel
Many of us struggle with personal finance matters because we never received any formal education on the topic.
If you can relate, check out “Why Didn’t They Teach Me This in School?” Cary Siegel covers 99 money principles everyone should know.
16. ‘Broke Millennial Talks Money’ by Erin Lowry
Our relationship with others tends to affect our finances — whether that’s shelling out hundreds to be a bridesmaid for your best friend or financially supporting your parents in their old age.
“Broke Millennial Talks Money” aims to help people navigate the sometimes awkward money conversations you’ll have with people in your life. The book is broken up into four parts: talking about money at work, talking about money with friends, talking about money with family and talking about money with your romantic partner.
See our review of “Broke Millennial Talks Money” and our Q&A with Erin Lowry.
17. ‘The One-Page Financial Plan’ by Carl Richards
Transforming your financial life doesn’t have to be complicated. Learn to simplify your approach with “The One-Page Financial Plan.”
Carl Richards, a certified financial planner and New York Times columnist, shows you how to reduce the complexity of financial topics and create a simple financial plan that focuses on your priorities.
18. ‘Everyday Millionaires’ by Chris Hogan
Ever wonder how millionaires built their wealth?
In “Everyday Millionaires,” Chris Hogan shares lessons gleaned from a study of 10,000 millionaires. This book will help you create a blueprint for increasing your net worth.
19. ‘Stacked: Your Super Serious Guide to Modern Money Management’ by Joe Saul-Sehy and Emily Guy Birken
Don’t be fooled by the name of this book. This “super serious guide” is full of humor and relatability while teaching you how to budget, invest and figure out insurance.
Fans of the “Stacking Benjamins” podcast will enjoy “Stacked” as it’s co-authored by one of the podcast’s hosts.
20. ‘Happy Money’ by Ken Honda
Money is often a source of stress for many people, but it doesn’t have to be.
“Happy Money” takes a Japanese perspective to teach people to find peace in their financial lives.
21. ‘Get a Financial Life’ by Beth Kobliner
This book is geared for folks in their 20s and 30s struggling to get a grip on all the money-related stressors thrown at them.
“Get a Financial Life” covers topics like managing student loans, paying off credit card debt, buying your first home and much more. This book was first published in 1996, but its updated fourth edition was released in 2017.
22. ‘My Money My Way’ by Kumiko Love
Personal finance is, well, personal. That means there’s no cookie-cutter, one-size-fits-all solution to managing money.
In “My Money My Way,” Kumiko Love (an accredited financial counselor who is also known as “The Budget Mom”) helps people reach financial fulfillment by addressing their emotions around spending and adjusting money mindsets that are holding them back.
Here’s what Love shared with The Penny Hoarder about the path to reaching financial fulfillment.
23. ‘Financial Freedom’ by Grant Sabatier
Grant Sabatier, creator of Millennial Money, illuminates the path to financial independence in his book “Financial Freedom.”
Having reached financial independence by age 30, Sabatier tells others how to determine how much money they need to quit their 9-to-5 and how to invest and build the habits required to reach that goal.
24. ‘The Black Girl’s Guide to Financial Freedom: Build Wealth, Retire Early, and Live the Life of Your Dreams’ by Paris Woods
Paris Woods takes a creative, personal approach in her step-by-step guide to becoming financially free.
Her everyday life and struggles infuse “The Black Girl’s Guide to Financial Freedom” with the keys to building wealth, retiring early and achieving financial goals on your own terms.
25. ‘Passive Income, Aggressive Retirement’ by Rachel Richards
Early retirement is one thing, but retiring at age 27? Rachel Richards proves it’s achievable in “Passive Income, Aggressive Retirement.”
Focusing on 28 paths to passive income that successful people leverage, Richards builds a road map to building a bank account you can live off and a brand-new approach to living your best financial life.
Kaz Weida is a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder. Nicole Dow is a former senior writer at The Penny Hoarder.
