Reddit Personal Finance: The Missing Guide - Financially Alert (2024)

Reddit is one of the most popular social media platforms right now.

Like most social media sites, the goal is to connect with new people, share information, and hopefully, learn a few new things.

If you’re diving into the world of personal finance, Reddit is, somewhat surprisingly, a great place to go. Beneath all the snark lies a wealth of information (literally).

What is Reddit?

Reddit is basically a giant forum in which people post in sub-threads – called subreddits – about various topics.

These can range from everything from world news and politicsto videogames and music, to fun stuff like humor, or r/RoastMe, in which people post pictures of themselves in order to get roasted (and boy do they ever).

But Reddit also has a huge personal finance community, and in it are a lot of knowledgeable people and tons of useful information.

Enter r/personalfinance (aka Reddit Personal Finance).

r/personalfinance

The flagship sub on reddit for everything personal finance is r/personalfinance. It boasts over 14.0 million members, and as many as eleven-thousand members online at any one time!

r/personalfinance is absolutely stuffed with information, and it seems to be never-ending, with popular subs being added to daily. There’s also this great wiki that has tons of information on money.

There are literally thousands of different topics talked about in r/personalfinance, whether that’s the basics like debt and money management, to more advanced ideas like travel hacking and F.I.R.E. (financial independence retire early), to things that everyone should know, such as housing, inheritances, and more.

What’s wonderful about r/personalfinance is that the category can be as broad or narrow as you like.

• Want to learn how to save?
• Want to learn how to make a good impression at your job?
• Looking to learn how to invest in dirt?

No matter the sort of information you’re looking for regarding money, it’s likely to exist on Reddit.

And because it’s real people giving their thoughts and experiences, it’s that much more believable. And helpful.

Here are a few examples of the wide variety of helpful information you can find on Reddit Personal Finance:

Asking for a Raise

This thread is the perfect example of finding great advice in an unsuspecting place.

In this thread, the poster asks for some help in negotiating a raise after learning a new hire makes the same amount he does.

As he goes about asking for a raise, he knows he needs to mention his new responsibilities and the average wage in his area.

While that sounds like a great start, other commenters have indicated that employers can try to weasel out of this.

What they can’t weasel out of? Data from the Bureau of Labor.

From a commenter:

“My go-to if I’m under market is to cite the Bureau of Labor Statistics in my promotion and/or raise request. Tends to shut down any chance of the employer arguing monetary value with you… That is, presuming you also have positive performance history at the company to leverage in your favor.”

By having clear data on what someone with your job should make, even down to the county level, you have a great bargaining chip if you’re being paid below market value.

Also, a good reminder that if you’re asking for a raise, you need to actually deserve it.

Saving Money on Your Cell Phone Bill

This recent thread is an example of how information that can help you save money just pops up randomly on Reddit.

This poster explains how he saved 60% on his cell phone bill, just by switching to the prepaid wireless carrier Cricket, knocking his bill down from $225 to $90 – for two phones, unlimited talk and text and a 10 GB hotspot. A similar plan at Verizon would cost over $200 per month.

This helpful comment from another poster also reminds us to pay attention to our bills:

“I looked at my father in law’s Verizon account last year and it was close to $300 a month for 3 phones. They had tacked on things like $10/mo per phone for insurance and another $10/line for roadside assistance. I managed to get that down to $160 with no change in his actual phone services.”

Should I Get a Master’s Degree?

This thread is a great example of how you can go to Reddit to get a quick and dirty opinion on something going on in your life.

This poster is a new college graduate with no debt, but he isn’t satisfied with his current job. He’s hungry to work in management, and wonders if it might make sense to get a master’s degree to do so, which will cost $50,000.00.

Good thing Redditors are here to talk him out of it.

“Upper management a year out of bachelor’s? Nah bro. You need experience more than anything, and then maybe a graduate degree. Experience and networking are more important, and in that order.”

“The primary prerequisite to a management job – any management job – is experience managing.”

“Top jobs come with experience. Work your way up and find a company that will pay for the program. Paying out of pocket for an MBA is pointless. No-one is hiring some rookie out of school for upper management, MBA or not.”

r/personalfinance may be the largest hub for money related talk, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t other pockets of Reddit with money on their minds.

Here are four additional subs related to Reddit Personal Finance:

r/financialindependence

This sub is one of my favorites. It’s dedicated to teaching you about financial independence. At 647,000 members, it’s definitely one of the larger subs in the personal finance community.

Financial independence is the idea that once you have enough assets generating income to cover your living expenses (whether that’s housing, investments like stocks or bonds, etc.) you are financially independent. At this time, all of your living expenses are covered, so you no longer need to work, allowing you to retire. This is where the acronym FIRE comes from.

This community has exploded in the last few years, with many stories reaching mainstream publications. Check out my FIRE Guide 101… still, you may have questions about FIRE.

For everything FIRE related, first check out this F.A.Q. section.

Here are a few other popular links in the r/financialindependence sub.

Popular in r/financialindependence

Book List as Recommended by Readers

This is a wonderful list of financial independence-related books comprised of recommendations of the Reddit community.

Not only does it feature books on retiring early, it also features recommendations for books on investing, frugality, the philosophy of money, and living a good life.

These books are practically required reading for people wanting to become financially independent.

Firecalc

This is an online retirement calculator that works a little differently than the average retirement calculator.

Simply plug in your spending, your portfolio number and the time span you want it to last, and it’ll give you data based on over 100 possible periods of time that your plan would have succeeded or failed.

The Six Stages of Financial Freedom

This is a terrific thread that discusses the six stages of financial independence, from complete dependency to financial freedom.

Whether you’re on the path to FIRE or have yet to get the fire started, head over to r/financialindependence.

r/churning

This sub is dedicated to teaching you about credit card churning/travel hacking. At 193,695 members, it’s one of the larger subs on Reddit.

Churning is the process of using credit card sign up rewards to accrue either airline miles, credit card points, or cashback that you can then use on lodging, flights, or other travel accommodations, essentially allowing you to travel for free or with heavy discounts.

This sub is jam-packed with information on churning, whether that’s the basics like miles vs. points, to helping you decide which credit card you should get to maximize your benefits.

There is a ton of information here, so the community suggests reading this wiki before diving in:

Once that’s out of the way, you can get to some of the more fun links.

Here are some of the most popular links in the r/churning sub.

Popular in r/churning

What Card Should I Get?

This is a weekly recurring thread, in which you can get advice/feedback on what credit cards you should get or are planning to get.

I love travel hacking, but these enthusiasts take it to a whole new level!

Credit Card Flowchart

One of the most helpful guides in the r/churning sub is this post on credit card recommendations.

It’s a cool flowchart that shows you what credit cards to open and in which order to maximize the received benefits.

It even splits itself up based on whether you want the Southwest Companion Pass, a coveted item for travelers, as it’s basically a buy one-get one free ticket, even eligible for use with reward miles.

(*Side note, a reader mentioned to me this information is a bit dated. So, if you’re interested in the latest data, I know Dr. McFrugal has an updated post explaining this further.)

I referenced this chart again just this weekend. Because I’ve already scored my SW companion pass, I wanted to know which card to get next. This chart helped me to figure out which Chase cards to target next while traversing the “Chase Gauntlet”.

It was between the Chase World of Hyatt card, or the United Explorer card. I chose the World of Hyatt card, although the Chase United Explorer card isn’t far behind.

Current & Recent Credit Card Signup Bonuses

This is a handy Google spreadsheet that shows all recent and current credit card sign up bonuses for all major credit cards. It also lists helpful info like the minimum spend of each card, whether or not the annual fee is waived the first year, the bonus received, and more!

If you have any questions about travel hacking or earning miles/points with credit cards, this is the place to go because details are constantly changing.

r/investing

This sub is dedicated to teaching newbie investors the ropes. Over eight years old and with 812,000 members, r/investing is a great resource for people with little to no investing experience.

Whether you want to learn about index investing, crowdfunding, REITs, the differences between using Vanguard or Schwab, the differences between Roth IRAs and Traditional IRAs, it’s all here.

If you have absolutely no investing experience, it’s likely you’ll have many questions that have already been answered many times before. Most of the common questions you have about investing can be answered in this great F.A.Q. Others can be found in various threads throughout.

Here are some of the most popular links in the r/investing sub.

Popular in r/investing

I’ve Never Invested Before and I’m Trying to Learn. Give Me Wisdom/Tips.

This thread has some great information for the brand new investor, with many solid tips coming from lots of commenters.

Tips such as the ones below are commonly found in all great practical investing books (more on that below):

• Invest in low-cost index funds
• Avoid day trading
• Don’t try to time the market
• Be patient
• Know that the stock market will go down

r/investing’s Favorite Books

This thread (and this thread) lists r/investing’s favorite books about investing and personal finance – and it’s a pretty solid list.

Including classics like “The Richest Man in Babylon”, “The Bogleheads Guide to Investing”, “The Simple Path to Wealth”, “A Random Walk Down Wall Street”, “The Intelligent Investor” and “Four Pillars of Investing”, these are some of the most beloved books in the investing world, and are great reads for anyone looking to learn about the stock market.

It’s clear these Redditor’s know what they’re talking about.

Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Letters

This is more of a cool little bonus, but this entry on the sidebar of r/investing is a link to all of Warren Buffet’s letters to his shareholders, from 1977 to 2018, for his company Berkshire Hathaway.

If you’re in need of investing knowledge and advice, r/investing is the place to go on Reddit.

r/passive_income

This sub is dedicated to teaching you how to make passive income.

It’s definitely one of the smaller communities, at not-quite 37,000 members, and just forty people online at a given time, but it’s still filled with some valid advice on how to make money passively.

Unfortunately, there are no F.A.Q.s or helpful links to explain more fully the concepts of passive income, but you can still find some interesting posts with useful information.

Here are some of the most popular threads in the r/passive_income sub.

Popular in r/passive_income

Top 5 Best Passive Income Streams

This thread has a ton of useful information on passive income. The first reply is a doozy, as the poster makes money from renting his place out with Airbnb, creating software, selling photos and other digital products, investing in real estate and the stock market, and doing fulfillment by Amazon (Amazon FBA).

Your List of Top Passive Income Sources That Actually Worked

While the title is hopeful, the first comment hits with big facts. Making passive income isn’t always easy or fast.

From user wannabenewyorker:

“There are no sustainable and quick passive income sources. You either need to already have a significant amount of cash to invest or you need to work for months, if not years on building a successful business before you can step back from the day to day activities and just watch as the money comes in.”

Final Thoughts

Reddit Personal Finance, r/personalfinance, is an excellent starting place for the average person to get knowledgable about personal finance.

Remember, the community is made up of people just like you and me. And due to the sheer volume of people that come together, it means there are bound to be experts lurking with smart answers.

I love that Reddit Personal Finance is so diverse. We shared with you a few of our favorites. But, don’t forget you can find even more subs like frugality, saving money, and real estate investing (how’d we not dig into that one?)

So the next time you have got a question about money, don’t overlook going to Reddit. It could change your relationship with money forever.

Readers, what are your favorite sub reddits?