Our 8 Favorite Personal Finance Blogs for Millennials

8 min read
August 20, 2014

At XY Planning Network, we love any resource that helps Gen Y and Gen X do more with their money. We believe in the power of financial education, and love when financially savvy individuals use their knowledge to help others.

That's why we're honoring 8 of our favorite personal finance blogs for Millennials. If you need some inspiration, motivation, and education on how to make your money work for you in order to achieve financial success, start right here with our list.

If you need help with your finances, please check out our Find An Advisor portal. All XYPN advisors sign a fiduciary oath vowing to work in the best interest of their clients, and all advisors in our Network are available to work with clients virtually.

1. Frugalwoods

"We’re on a journey to financial independence and a simple, fulfilling life on a homestead in the woods—‘til then, we write about adventures in frugal city living with our Frugal Hound!

Frugalwoods, which we began in April 2014, is a living document of the accelerated final few years of our journey to financial independence. We’ve been frugaling it up together for ten years, but this is our most intensely-focused sprint of frugality. Through Frugalwoods, we share our plan, process, and daily life stories of intentional, joyful frugality."

If you’re new to the concept of extreme early retirement, or if the idea of being frugal intrigues you but you really don't know how to go about it - Frugalwoods is a great place to start. The posts are fun and engaging, while providing actionable tips designed to help Gen X and Gen Y stretch their dollars and cents.

From stories explaining how to be frugal, to monthly spending reports detailing their budgeting prowess; The Frugalwoods are refreshingly transparent and provide a unique perspective on living well with less.

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2. Blonde on a Budget

"I started Blonde on a Budget to document my debt repayment journey, but this space has turned into so much more than that.

After paying off my debt, I adopted a minimalist lifestyle, tossed 75% of my stuff and am currently doing on a two-year shopping ban ending July 6, 2016."

Cait is the minimalist creator behind Blonde on a Budget. She blogs about a variety of topics within the personal finance realm, from budgeting and paying down debt to her two-year shopping ban that ends later this year. Blonde on a Budget is a great resource for millennials looking to embrace a full life, with less 'stuff'.

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3. Millennial Money Man

"I started writing blog posts about my story as something to do while I was winding down at night after work. My blogs were surprisingly well received, and people I didn’t even know were starting to reach out and thank me for giving them some inspiration. I realized I was on to something. I wanted to help at least one other Millennial like myself.

Since then my mantra has become: “I did it, and you can too.” I’m no different from any other Millennial, I just did things differently with my money and lived differently as well. Ever since, I’ve started on a journey to build wealth and spread the word."

The Millennial Money Man blog is a great resource for college grads and young professionals who are looking to get started on the right financial footing. His post are are honest, sometimes brutal honest -- but it all comes from a good place. The reason for his direct approach is simple, he explains that "as a millennial, I had been misled and taught poorly about money all of my life, and I want to help other people avoid the same problems."

His site focuses on "anti-entitlement advice," that helps young adults understand that just because they're a millennial doesn't mean they have to be poor.

Must-Read Posts:

4. Money Peach

"My passion is sharing ideas and creating products for people who are looking for a better way to handle their money. I love showing everyday-normal people how to go from living paycheck-to-paycheck, to getting completely out of debt and creating hope for their future.

I am living proof that your money problems and money success stories are based on your behavior with money. Just some very small tweaks can create huge success with your life and money. If I can do it, so can you."

Chris aka "Peach" runs Money Peach, a site that focuses on helping people make better choices with money and breaking the cycle of paycheck-to-paycheck living. The posts on the site cover many aspects of the financial journey from budgeting and saving money, to investing and insurance.

Having paid off $52,000 of debt in 7 months, Chris isn't just sharing his theory on what should be done to change your relationship with money -- he's actually lived it.

Money Peach is a great resource for those looking to make a major change in their spending habits and eliminate debt once and for all.

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5. Afford Anything

“My mission is to help you break free: launch a business, start a charity, travel the world. The world is overflowing with opportunity.

To achieve it, you have to overthrow all the myths that society teaches us about money. Affording Anything starts with your mindset. You have to break free from the misconceptions that buying junk equals happiness while also avoiding the common trap of getting fixated on the “saving” side of the equation. Frugality keeps your focus on consumption, and this website is about creation.

Building wealth and creating cash flow are more important than pinching pennies.”

Paula runs Afford Anything, a personal finance blog dedicated to helping readers leverage their money to fund their biggest dreams and goals. She means “afford anything” in a literal way.

This blog is a strong wake-up call for Millennials who aren’t sure how to effectively use their money to pursue their passions. As Paula states, “you can’t afford everything. But you can afford anything.” For Afford Anything readers, it’s all about ruthlessly eliminating expenses that don’t matter in order to spend freely on the few things that do.

Paula is strongly anti-cubicle, and believes we’re not meant to sit in offices and rush hour traffic day after day after day. Instead, she’s all about building wealth so you can use your finances to create freedom. And her blog serves as her platform for sharing exactly how to do it.

Must-Read Posts:

6. Broke Millennial

"Since my fateful first lesson in economics I’ve become fascinated with building wealth and understanding money.

Unfortunately, some of my fellow millennials don’t find money so empowering. I started this site to increase financial literacy — mostly through telling funny financial tales from my own life and sneaking in an actual money lesson.

Now that I’m no longer on parental welfare, I’m trying to survive the financial burden of living in New York City and simultaneously develop a respectable net worth on my meager salary."

Erin is a no-nonsense Gen Yer determined to educate her fellow twenty-somethings on how to spend less, save more, and avoid money problems that crop up where financial literacy is low. She shares sound financial advice, and tips while injecting her writing with dry wit and sarcasm -- which makes money lessons for Millennials that much more engaging.

She’s learned how to make the most of a meager salary and start saving for her retirement while living in one of the most expensive cities in America: NYC. Erin knows how to find a deal and often shares her strategies in her Friday series, Frugal Finds.

She’s relatable and speaks honestly about her financial experiences.

Must-Read Posts:

7. Budgets Are Sexy

"Budgets = Confidence = Sexy

My goal with this blog is to get people to stop and *pay attention* to their money. Especially you youngin’s.

You won’t find any long in-depth instruction manuals or anything else that bores me to death here, as I really want this to be a fun place to share and interact with each other.

I think this comment from a random passer-by sums it up perfectly, 'he’s the Miley Cyrus of finance.' … I’m pretty sure it wasn’t a compliment, but I’m taking it as one anyways."

Blogger J. Money, the voice behind Budgets Are Sexy, is one of the best-loved personal finance bloggers in the industry -- and that reaches across all age groups. His humor and genuine interest in both readers and fellow bloggers makes him and his blog stand out.

But he's more than a great guy. He's also financially savvy and shares his thoughts, experiences, and perspective on money with others in order to help his audience set and celebrate their own financial goals. And some of his quick reads offer a much needed break from long-winded posts.

The ideas he shares cover the ground between budgets, debt, family finance, net worth, saving, and side hustling. When he's not busy writing up a storm at Budgets Are Sexy, he also curates awesome financial  content (while supporting other financial bloggers) at Rockstar Finance.

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8. The College Investor

"With this site, I want to be as transparent as possible and highlight both the good and the bad.  I also want to make sure that I’m helping and not hurting.

I don’t consider myself some sort of investing 'guru,' my ideas are not necessarily new, and my techniques aren’t secret. There are no 'get-rich-quick' schemes here. Making money through investing takes hard work, patience, and time.   My goal is to showcase a variety of personal finance and investing ideas, and hopefully some prove useful to you."

Robert runs The College Investor, an impressive financial resource for young adults and professionals. He believes in the power of developing multiple income streams while you're in your 20s and 30s and in wealth accumulation mode.

In addition to blog posts, he also provides guides and trainings for Gen Yers who want to learn how to invest and get on the right track to financial success.

And because he's focused on helping students and new grads, he also provides information and education on how to repay student loans and work your way to being debt-free.

Must-Read Posts:

Who is your favorite personal finance blogger for Gen X and Gen Y?

If you need help with your finances, please check out our Find An Advisor portal.

Please note that XY Planning Network has no affiliation or relationship with any featured blogger. Some of the bloggers we have linked to via this site share content with affiliate links and make money off commissioned sales of products. Each blog has a disclosure page that we encourage you to read for more consumer information and details about how these independent sites are monetized.