Are there any MMM-style podcasts out there?

[Unionville]

I'm trying to find a somewhat intelligent podcast that would talk about similar things I read on MMM.  Most financial podcasts seems to be extreme... two guys in a garage, a corporation trying to sell something, or an overrated media personality.  What knowledgeable responsible Financial podcasts do you like?

[CNM]

Sometimes I listen to Paula Pant's podcast, Afford Anything. It is a little heavy on the real estate/rental income side but I enjoy it enough to tune in from time to time.

[trc4897]

ChooseFI is good. Haven't listened in a while but lots of good info on there in the first 100 episodes or so I listened to.

I listened to some of the Mad Fientist ones too which were interesting

[Hall11235]

If you are desperate for FIRE podcasts, I second ChooseFI.

I listen to them, but find the hosts just a tad grating. It feels very much like a SalesForce shillcast sometimes, and they have a very gentle attitude to towards spending.

They're MUCH softer than MMM or the forums.

[MoneyTree]

I think the early days of ChooseFI were great, but then they kind of ran out of things to talk about and started being more about hyping their own community.

It started to become less about FI in particular and more about self development in general.

The Financial Independence Podcast by Mad FIentist is great, but Brandon does not post much anymore. Afford Anything is great but leans heavily into the real estate side of things and gets repetitive.

A while ago I got into Radical Personal Finance, but that one is definitely not for everyone. He definitely gets opinionated and leans more into the prepper kind of mindset. Also a lot more pessimism from him than I find on these forums. But there are also some gems in there as well.

[CNM]

A newer podcast to the FI scene is Bitches Get Riches.  It's similar to their blog & they have an advice segment. It might be a bit too introductory for someone who is already into FIRE, but it can be amusing.

[joe189man]

Ramit Sethi has a podcast called i will teach you to be rich (a little on the nose) same title as his book

its more about the psychology of money but its good

[slappy]

I can't stand the ChooseFI guys. All they talk about is how great they are. They were great at first, but it got old quickly. If you haven't listened to them, maybe start with their earlier episodes.

I love the Stacking Benjamins podcast.

[trc4897]

I can't stand the ChooseFI guys. All they talk about is how great they are. They were great at first, but it got old quickly. If you haven't listened to them, maybe start with their earlier episodes.

I love the Stacking Benjamins podcast.

Yeah that's probably why I ended up stopping after 100 episodes or so. It started out a lot more FI focused and isn't nearly as much now

[Captain Cactus]

I can't stand the ChooseFI guys. All they talk about is how great they are. They were great at first, but it got old quickly. If you haven't listened to them, maybe start with their earlier episodes.

I love the Stacking Benjamins podcast.

Yeah that's probably why I ended up stopping after 100 episodes or so. It started out a lot more FI focused and isn't nearly as much now

Yeah exactly.  The first few episodes were good when they interviewed the OG FI bloggers but then one of the guys quit his day job and dove into their "community" head first (aka he wanted to monetize it) and it got boring very quick... turned into a lot of bro-duding and talking about pullup contests etc... unsubscribed and haven't looked back.

[scottnews]

Bigger Pockets Money is ok.

Odd Lotts has some interesting episodes about macro economics, but it definitely isn't FI.

[CorpRaider]

Millionaires unveiled is a good podcast that doesn't really get stale.  It's not only about FI types but most of the pod is just talking about how someone achieved a financial milestone so it should be pretty much evergreen in my opinion.

[Fomerly known as something]

I’m also a fan of Stacking Benjamin’s although they would never call themselves a FIRE podcast.  The format and entertainment value has kept me coming back for years and while they aren’t FIRE they don’t shit on it either.

[redcedar]

Another vote for Madfientist podcast. He isn’t making episodes often but they are mostly timeless so you can enjoy the older ones and feel they remain pretty damn relevant.

[comicguy]

I like ot listen to Financially Independent Teachers (FIT) Hosted by two NC teachers one who is doing well and who is working on getting things in order (some of their financial stuff is NC teacher centered, some general teacher centered, and some just plain good financial stuff). Lots of personal experiance and openess, and lots of guest who share their ideas/hacks/successes/failures. Overall, pretty good advice/ideas given.

[EchoStache]

The Money Guy Show.  They aren't necessarily FIRE focused as they tend to appeal to a more mainstream audience, kind of in between normal and FIRE.  But all of their investment principles are sound. 

[nick663]

Jonathan recently left the ChooseFI podcast which has been a nice change.  He annoyed me a bit.

[JupiterGreen]

I used to listen to money podcasts (most geared towards women) some years ago but got sick of them all because they tended to go over the same ground (or were trying to sell something). There are probably so many more good ones now so thanks for the thread and all the recommendations, I'll check these out too.

[slappy]

Jonathan recently left the ChooseFI podcast which has been a nice change.  He annoyed me a bit.

Wow big news! Maybe I'll check it out again.

[englishteacheralex]

I like Stacking Benjamins and the Paula Pant podcast, Afford Anything. Neither is specifically FIRE-related, but they're FIRE adjacent and cover lots of great, informative topics. Both podcasts also frequently have excellent guests. @Nords was on Stacking Benjamins recently--I loved it!

[LifeHappens]

Rich and Regular is a newer podcast with an engaging couple hosting. They're very down to earth.

[Nords]

Both podcasts also frequently have excellent guests. @Nords was on Stacking Benjamins recently--I loved it!

Thanks, ETA!  They spend a lot of time planning & building each episode, and Joe does more than one podcast. 

Carol and I recorded almost as much in the B roll and the bloopers as we did in the final cut.

[Chris Pascale]

ChooseFI is good. Haven't listened in a while but lots of good info on there in the first 100 episodes or so I listened to.

I listened to some of the Mad Fientist ones too which were interesting

Really enjoyed both of these.

[Chris Pascale]

I think the early days of ChooseFI were great, but then they kind of ran out of things to talk about.....

And guests. There were a lot of repeats when I stopped listening, but do appreciate the great episodes they had. I really learned a lot.

[techwiz]

Some podcasts that I listen too.

• https://www.choosefi.com/listen/choose-fi-podcast
• https://milehighfi.com/
• https://www.madfientist.com/podcast/

[Fomerly known as something]

I think the early days of ChooseFI were great, but then they kind of ran out of things to talk about.....

And guests. There were a lot of repeats when I stopped listening, but do appreciate the great episodes they had. I really learned a lot.

I just went back and listened to an I love Southwest episode, I mean a travel hack episode.  I should mention I’m not a huge southwest fan, for years they didn’t fly where I needed them to.  Plus I’m single so could care less about the companion pass.  Yawn.  I guess I should check a few more out to see if there is anything new that is useful.

[Chris Pascale]

I think the early days of ChooseFI were great, but then they kind of ran out of things to talk about.....

And guests. There were a lot of repeats when I stopped listening, but do appreciate the great episodes they had. I really learned a lot.

I just went back and listened to an I love Southwest episode, I mean a travel hack episode.  I should mention I’m not a huge southwest fan, for years they didn’t fly where I needed them to.  Plus I’m single so could care less about the companion pass.  Yawn.  I guess I should check a few more out to see if there is anything new that is useful.

Yes! They were always talking about flying Southwest with the companion pass. I mean, hey, I'm glad you're happy, but is this a lifestyle brand where we learn to live like you? A guest who said something like "on Delta, it's like this" would have brought a little variety.

[nick663]

I think the early days of ChooseFI were great, but then they kind of ran out of things to talk about.....

And guests. There were a lot of repeats when I stopped listening, but do appreciate the great episodes they had. I really learned a lot.

I just went back and listened to an I love Southwest episode, I mean a travel hack episode.  I should mention I’m not a huge southwest fan, for years they didn’t fly where I needed them to.  Plus I’m single so could care less about the companion pass.  Yawn.  I guess I should check a few more out to see if there is anything new that is useful.

Yes! They were always talking about flying Southwest with the companion pass. I mean, hey, I'm glad you're happy, but is this a lifestyle brand where we learn to live like you? A guest who said something like "on Delta, it's like this" would have brought a little variety.

One of the things I didn't realize until changing cities was how much your primary airline is dependent on your airport.  I used to love American when I lived next to their hub but now flying them requires a layover.  Delta has direct flights to most places though so they are suddenly my new favorite.

[Fomerly known as something]

I think the early days of ChooseFI were great, but then they kind of ran out of things to talk about.....

And guests. There were a lot of repeats when I stopped listening, but do appreciate the great episodes they had. I really learned a lot.

I just went back and listened to an I love Southwest episode, I mean a travel hack episode.  I should mention I’m not a huge southwest fan, for years they didn’t fly where I needed them to.  Plus I’m single so could care less about the companion pass.  Yawn.  I guess I should check a few more out to see if there is anything new that is useful.

Yes! They were always talking about flying Southwest with the companion pass. I mean, hey, I'm glad you're happy, but is this a lifestyle brand where we learn to live like you? A guest who said something like "on Delta, it's like this" would have brought a little variety.

One of the things I didn't realize until changing cities was how much your primary airline is dependent on your airport.  I used to love American when I lived next to their hub but now flying them requires a layover.  Delta has direct flights to most places though so they are suddenly my new favorite.

I fly Delta when I go to my parents, no one does direct, but Delta has the best connections.  American and Southwest are Ok and I will never willingly fly United into that city.  (I had to with work and too many missed connections due to just a bad set up).

[Abe Froman]

https://paulmerriman.com/podcasts/

This is investment focused - not frugality focused.
You can thank me later.

[Chris Pascale]

https://paulmerriman.com/podcasts/

This is investment focused - not frugality focused.
You can thank me later.

Abe Froman, from Chicago? I believe I once waited on you at a fine restaurant. You were with 2 friends, enjoying a lovely weekday afternoon.

[HawkeyeNFO]

One of the things I didn't realize until changing cities was how much your primary airline is dependent on your airport.  I used to love American when I lived next to their hub but now flying them requires a layover.  Delta has direct flights to most places though so they are suddenly my new favorite.

Yeah, I'm blessed to have 3 big airports within 45 minutes.  Each airport is a hub for one of the big 4:  DCA=American, IAD=United, BWI=Southwest, and Delta has to compete too.  The competition results in (usually) decent airfares.

[G-String]

Jonathan recently left the ChooseFI podcast which has been a nice change.  He annoyed me a bit.

Why did he leave?

[Fomerly known as something]

Jonathan recently left the ChooseFI podcast which has been a nice change.  He annoyed me a bit.

Why did he leave?

They haven’t said other than it’s by his choice and he continues to work for ChooseFI in other roles.

[Sandi_k]

Jonathan recently left the ChooseFI podcast which has been a nice change.  He annoyed me a bit.

Me too - he SHOUTED all the time, and my ears got tired of it.

Most of my faves have been mentioned already, but this is my current rotation:

- Stacking Benjamins
- Afford Anything
- Jill on Money (Jill Schlesinger, old school and awesome, each episode is only ~ 15 minutes)
- Mad Fientist (I wish he was more regular, but he is my fave)
- Bigger Pockets Money

Others that I listen to occasionally:

- The Dough Roller
- The Long View
- NewRetirement
- The Money Show with Katie
- Money Rehab with Nicole Lapin
- Her Money with Jean Chatzky
- Financial Feminist
- Crazy Money with Paul Ollinger
- Animal Spirits with Ben Carlson
- All the Hacks
- Bogleheads on Investing with Rick Ferri

[G-String]

Jonathan recently left the ChooseFI podcast which has been a nice change.  He annoyed me a bit.

Why did he leave?

They haven’t said other than it’s by his choice and he continues to work for ChooseFI in other roles.

Sounds like some juicy gossip!! 

[Metalcat]

Jonathan recently left the ChooseFI podcast which has been a nice change.  He annoyed me a bit.

Wow big news! Maybe I'll check it out again.

That's huge!

Yeah, I couldn't handle him. I didn't mind his bragging or personality, I'm fine with extremely confident, self satisfied people, what I couldn't stand was how he talked over everyone.

Like dude, I want to hear what the *other* person has to say, I've heard what you have to say for hours and hours now and you're not actually that interesting!

And that's the thing, he didn't come off as legitimately confident, his constant need to overshadow made him seem painfully insecure. Brad seemed way more legitimately confident, at least in the episodes I listened to before I lost patience with the whole endeavor.

It was too bad because I really enjoyed hearing the stories from their guests. I was often left so frustrated because I didn't get to heat enough of them and just heard what Jonathan had to say over and over and over again. I would listen while cooking and find my shoulders up by my ears with tension until I would snap at the speaker "Just shut up and let them talk!!!"

Not the mellow vibe I like to enjoy while cooking. Lol.

[clarkfan1979]

The Money Guy Show.  They aren't necessarily FIRE focused as they tend to appeal to a more mainstream audience, kind of in between normal and FIRE.  But all of their investment principles are sound.

I also enjoy the Money Guy Show. It's not a FIRE podcast, but there are FI principles.

[G-String]

Jonathan recently left the ChooseFI podcast which has been a nice change.  He annoyed me a bit.

Wow big news! Maybe I'll check it out again.

That's huge!

Yeah, I couldn't handle him. I didn't mind his bragging or personality, I'm fine with extremely confident, self satisfied people, what I couldn't stand was how he talked over everyone.

Like dude, I want to hear what the *other* person has to say, I've heard what you have to say for hours and hours now and you're not actually that interesting!

And that's the thing, he didn't come off as legitimately confident, his constant need to overshadow made him seem painfully insecure. Brad seemed way more legitimately confident, at least in the episodes I listened to before I lost patience with the whole endeavor.

It was too bad because I really enjoyed hearing the stories from their guests. I was often left so frustrated because I didn't get to heat enough of them and just heard what Jonathan had to say over and over and over again. I would listen while cooking and find my shoulders up by my ears with tension until I would snap at the speaker "Just shut up and let them talk!!!"

Not the mellow vibe I like to enjoy while cooking. Lol.

Brad definitely seems to be more comfortable in his own skin, but he also has an air about him that he feels like he's better than everyone else, but it's more subtle than Jonathan. 

[Metalcat]

Brad definitely seems to be more comfortable in his own skin, but he also has an air about him that he feels like he's better than everyone else, but it's more subtle than Jonathan.

To be fair, I didn't listen to all that much of it, so I didn't get that much of a sense of Brad aside from him seeming much more at ease. That's not to say I particularly liked him, he just didn't strike me as insecure, and Jonathan struck me as someone who felt he had an enormous amount to prove.

I didn't really like either of them to be totally honest, but I generally don't like podcasters unless they are trained professionals, people get weird when being recorded.

A lot of the people they interviewed were much more seasoned speakers, but they just got talked over so much it was exhausting to listen to.

I don't mean to be overly critical of them, again, they're not trained professionals, and they were remarkably successful for two dudes who essentially had no clue what they were doing.

But it certainly made it painful for me to try and listen. Also, so much of the content was american, so I got easily bored and I am not someone who can really tolerate being bored while listening to people talking. I can't even listen to audiobooks at normal speed without losing my patience.

[Blackeagle]

I didn't really like either of them to be totally honest, but I generally don't like podcasters unless they are trained professionals, people get weird when being recorded.

The vast majority of podcasters I listen to regularly are not trained professionals.  All of them are loads better than the ChooseFI guys.

[nick663]

Brad definitely seems to be more comfortable in his own skin, but he also has an air about him that he feels like he's better than everyone else, but it's more subtle than Jonathan.

To be fair, I didn't listen to all that much of it, so I didn't get that much of a sense of Brad aside from him seeming much more at ease. That's not to say I particularly liked him, he just didn't strike me as insecure, and Jonathan struck me as someone who felt he had an enormous amount to prove.

I didn't really like either of them to be totally honest, but I generally don't like podcasters unless they are trained professionals, people get weird when being recorded.

A lot of the people they interviewed were much more seasoned speakers, but they just got talked over so much it was exhausting to listen to.

I don't mean to be overly critical of them, again, they're not trained professionals, and they were remarkably successful for two dudes who essentially had no clue what they were doing.

But it certainly made it painful for me to try and listen. Also, so much of the content was american, so I got easily bored and I am not someone who can really tolerate being bored while listening to people talking. I can't even listen to audiobooks at normal speed without losing my patience.

IIRC Jonathan quit his job with a relatively small nest egg (definitely not at FI) so he could pursue being an entrepreneur full time.  Likely a bit of imposter syndrome causing him to act the way he did.

[Metalcat]

IIRC Jonathan quit his job with a relatively small nest egg (definitely not at FI) so he could pursue being an entrepreneur full time.  Likely a bit of imposter syndrome causing him to act the way he did.

I could see that. And the internet is absolutely vicious to anyone with a speck of fame, so he was right to be self conscious putting himself out there as a face of personal finance if he didn't have a really solid financial position to start from.

Also if he needed the podcast success to support his entrepreneurial endeavours, that would put even more pressure on him.

This is all speculation, but I'm trying to posit explanations beyond "dude seems like an arrogant asshole" because I can actually understand how that pressure makes people more annoying.

[lifeisshort123]

My favorite is this specific episode:

https://affordanything.com/153-hate-fire-movement-suze-orman/

[eyesonthehorizon]

Really appreciate some of the recommendations in here.

Oh My Dollar's weekly show on Youtube is colorful & fun with a younger bent.

Searching podcasts or video interviews for either MMM/ Pete or ERE/ Jacob Lund Fisker is highly recommended for a concentrated dose of self-determination. Jacob's interviews are dense enough to merit taking notes or re-listening, which is great imo. Neither offers a steady stream of new content, though MMM has a Youtube channel with his son that gets irregular updates.

Mad Fientist is brilliant, but he's also been so successful he doesn't have a reason to think much about money anymore & thus become infrequent.

Stacking Benjamins is goofy in a good way with a segment format. The hosts love to mock themselves.

I used to listen to Afford Anything regularly - the real estate episodes didn't interest me but were labeled differently from the rest of the podcast. Paula trained as a journalist & gives legitimately good interviews. I checked out altogether when she started to fall in with the NFT/ crypto crowd, though.

Interesting news about ChooseFI. Generally agree with the other opinions here on that one, too interested in dominating the conversation over any guests.

Radical Personal Finance was the first one I got into, but turned doomer/ prepper-lite with evangelical rhetoric - killed it for me completely but ymmv.

[nick663]

Radical Personal Finance was the first one I got into, but turned doomer/ prepper-lite with evangelical rhetoric - killed it for me completely but ymmv.

I had the same progression with RPF.  I finally unsubscribed when he went on a rant about marriage being between one man and one woman during a Q&A episode.

[Zoot]

I've really enjoyed Earn And Invest (which used to be called something else--the name escapes me at the moment!).  It's hosted by Jordan Grumet (also known as Doc G), a former hospice doctor.  He also has a book called Taking Stock, which I haven't read but which I have heard a lot of positive stuff about.

Grumet is a really good interviewer, and the conversation is long-form, nuanced, and free from gimmickry.  The signal-to-noise ratio is one of the most favorable I've experienced in this space (on par with Afford Anything).  Here's a link:  https://www.earnandinvest.com/

One I just discovered recently is Two Sides of FI.  Concept:  two lifelong friends, very different personalities and career trajectories, one already FI, one working toward it, talk about issues relating to getting there and what happens after.  Free-form, free-flowing conversation, occasional guests.  I've really enjoyed listening to them.  They apparently have a YouTube channel as well; I haven't yet checked this out but am positively-disposed to doing so.  Here's a link:  https://twosidesoffi.com/

[iris lily]

Ramit Sethi has a podcast called i will teach you to be rich (a little on the nose) same title as his book

its more about the psychology of money but its good

I have listened to this guy a couple times and I like his style and generally like his advice.

In a recent podcast tho,  he really fell down on advising an old couple like me who have made their money and are not spending it. He gave them an exercise where they had to go out and spend X amount of money, an amount that was comfortable for them, to get them into the habit of spending.

Doh.

I thought that was ridiculous. Clearly these are people who, like me anyway, i’m not interested in spending money to keep up with the Joneses. He dropped the ball because he could’ve advised them to start giving to charitable organizations they are passionate about. Give them the assignment of developing interests and passions about nonprofits that do good in their immediate community.

He also advised oldsters  like me to start giving money away to their children in their 20s and 30s. His reasoning being that the money is far more useful now to young people then to when those people get to be 50-60:and their parents die.

I suppose that advice makes theoretical sense, but given the huge cost of end-of-life treatments and nursing home care, hoarding money to the end of my life doesn’t seem unreasonable to me.

But overall, yeah, I like this guy and he’s a new listen for me.

[MoneyTree]

MMM himself had a post or two back in the day about Ramit: https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/11/06/book-review-will-this-guy-really-teach-you-to-be-rich/

I consider Ramit to be a gateway drug to more hardcore mustachian principles. He focuses on big wins and low hanging fruit, because for the majority of people, they aren't even doing those things. But I find that most people on this forum are already way past things simple things like setting up automatic credit card payments and "paying yourself first."

[Extramedium]

I like several of these.  I subscribe to: Afford Anything, Earn and Invest, Optimal Finance Daily, Mad Fientist (Financial Independence Podcast), friends on FIRE, Mile High FI, Millionaires Unveiled.

Periodically listen to: Stacking Benjamins, Retirement Answer Man, Retirement Starts Today Radio, Go Bucket Yourself, The Dough Roller, Choose FI, and Bitches Get Riches.

Yes, I apparently have too much time on my hands.