Personal finance for your 20s and 30s
Turn every paycheck into a plan for freedom.
A four-step plan, four calculators and real economic data, in plain numbers. Free, no account needed.
Photo: forpanzersseo, CC BY-SA 2.0
Step 2 · Safety net
Three to six months of needs, kept in cash.
Size your emergency fund from your budget, not your salary, and see how long it takes to build.
Photo: Raisin - Finance Stock Images, CC BY 2.0
Step 4 · FIRE
Find the number that buys your freedom.
Yearly spending divided by a withdrawal rate, with the limits of the 4% rule explained.
Photo: Philip Taylor PT, CC BY 2.0
This week
What inflation and rates mean for your savings.
Live US data from FRED and the week's economic calendar, explained for people with a budget.
Photo: Dean Hochman, CC BY 2.0
Today's numbers
Snapshot · not live
Snapshot
Economic calendar
Interest-rate decisions, inflation data and other events that often move crypto prices. Times are shown in your time zone.
Loading this week's events…
Source: ForexFactory weekly calendar. Countries: US, Euro area, UK, Japan, China.
The plan, step by step
Do them in order. Each step makes the next one safer, and each one links to a full guide with worked numbers.
- 01
Split every paycheck
Start from 50/30/20 and adjust it to your rent.
Read the budget guide - 02
Build the emergency fund
Three to six months of needs, kept in cash.
Size your fund - 03
Clear expensive debt
Highest interest rate first, month by month.
Compare payoff methods - 04
Invest toward your number
Low-cost and automatic, measured against FIRE.
Find your FIRE number
Calculators
Needs–
Wants–
Save & invest–
NeedsWantsSavings
You put in–
Growth–
Final balance–
BalanceContributions only
Assumes a constant return compounded monthly. Real returns vary and can be negative.
Months to debt-free–
Total interest–
Paying +$100/mo saves–
Your FIRE number–
Progress today–
Years to reach it–
FIRE number = yearly spending ÷ withdrawal rate. The 4% figure is a historical guideline from US data, not a guarantee. Illustration only.
Everything runs in your browser and nothing is saved. Results are illustrations, not advice.
Three numbers that move your money
Monthly US data from FRED, last 24 months.
Crypto board
20 major coins in USDT. Volatile: an optional, small slice after the basics.
| Asset | Price | 24h | 7d | 7 days |
|---|
spot, USDT pairs
Fear & Greed
Alternative.me
Guides
Six foundation guides with worked examples. See all
The 50/30/20 budget, worked through
A simple split for needs, wants and savings, and how to bend it when rent takes more than half.
How big should your emergency fund be?
Three to six months of needs, where to keep it, and what actually counts as an emergency.
Avalanche or snowball: clearing debt in the right order
Two methods compared month by month on the same three debts, with the interest each one costs.
Compound growth: why starting ten years earlier matters
The same monthly amount over 20 and 30 years, and how much a 1% fee takes along the way.
Find your FIRE number in ten minutes
Spending divided by a withdrawal rate, and why the 4% guideline is a starting point, not a promise.
Inflation and interest rates: what they do to your savings
Today's US numbers from FRED, what real return means, and why cash slowly loses value.
Money headlines
Telegram channel
@skoekow
Short money tips, app and banking explainers, and each new guide the day it goes live. Free.
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Still unsure? Write to hello@ledgerly.blog.
Is this financial advice?
No. Ledgerly is general education. It doesn't know your full situation, so treat every number as a starting point and talk to a licensed adviser for decisions about your own money.
Do I need to know about investing to start?
No. The plan starts with budgeting and an emergency fund. Investing comes after high-interest debt is gone.
Where does the data come from?
Inflation, interest rates and unemployment come from FRED, the St. Louis Fed's public database. Crypto prices come from Binance with Bybit and MEXC as fallbacks, and the Fear & Greed index from Alternative.me. Each block shows its source and when it was fetched.
How often will you email me?
One note every Sunday, plus a new guide now and then. Unsubscribe from any email in one click.
Why is there crypto on a personal finance site?
Many readers already hold some. We show prices and sentiment so you can see how volatile it is, and our guides treat it as an optional, small slice after the basics are done.
The Sunday note
One email a week. Five minutes. One thing to do.
- What changed in rates and prices
- What it means for your plan
- One action for the week ahead