Every claim on this site has a receipt.
The original studies, official rules, and datasets behind our articles and tools — labeled by source type, with the date we last checked each one.
- Academic StudyGlobalIndependence
Lusardi & Mitchell — The Economic Importance of Financial Literacy
Why financial literacy has economic importance, especially for retirement planning.
Published 2014 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed stable
- Academic StudyGlobalIndependenceGenerational
van Rooij, Lusardi & Alessie — Financial Literacy, Retirement Planning and Household Wealth
Strong positive association between financial literacy and household net worth.
Published 2011 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed stable
- Academic StudyGlobalIndependence
Education alone often has weak behavioral effects — pair education with calculators, checklists, and action flows.
Published 2014 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed stable
- Industry SurveyUSIndependence
FINRA Foundation — National Financial Capability Study
Large dataset on U.S. adults' financial behaviors, attitudes, knowledge, and access.
Published Ongoing · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual
- Industry SurveyUSIndependence
FINRA Foundation — Financial Capability in the United States, Sixth Edition
Latest broad NFCS findings on financial capability.
Published 2025 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual
- Consumer Protection GuideUSIndependence
CFPB — Financial Well-Being Scale
Validated method for measuring financial well-being; inspires our (non-scientific) wellness check.
Published 2015 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed stable · Related calculator →
- Government DataUSIndependence
Federal Reserve — Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2024 (SHED)
55% of adults had three months of emergency savings in 2024; household financial-resilience data.
Published 2025 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual · Related calculator →
- Government RuleUSRetirementTax Strategy
IRS — 401(k) limit increases to $24,500 for 2026; IRA limit increases to $7,500
Official 2026 retirement contribution limits.
Published 2025 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual · Related calculator →
- Government RuleUSRetirementTax Strategy
IRS Publication 590-A — Contributions to IRAs
IRA contribution rules and limits.
Published Updated annually · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual
- Government RuleUSTax Strategy
IRS Publication 590-B — Distributions from IRAs
IRA distribution rules, including Roth distribution concepts and RMDs.
Published Updated annually · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual
- Government RuleUSTax StrategyHealth & LTC
IRS Publication 969 — Health Savings Accounts and Other Tax-Favored Health Plans
HSA tax treatment and qualified medical expense rules.
Published Updated annually · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual
- Government RuleUSTax StrategyHealth & LTC
IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-19 — 2026 HSA and HDHP inflation-adjusted limits
Official 2026 HSA/HDHP limits.
Published 2025 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual
- Academic StudyUSRetirement
NBER — Nudges and Retirement Saving (automatic enrollment & escalation)
Automatic enrollment and escalation meaningfully raise retirement saving.
Published Various · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed stable
- Academic StudyUSRetirementIndependence
William P. Bengen — Determining Withdrawal Rates Using Historical Data
The classic safe-withdrawal-rate research behind the '4% rule' — a planning assumption, not a guarantee.
Published 1994 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed stable · Related calculator →
- Industry SurveyUSRetirementIndependence
Morningstar — The State of Retirement Income
Current withdrawal-rate research (~3.9% starting point framing for 2026).
Published 2025 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual · Related calculator →
- Consumer Protection GuideUSWills & Trusts
American Bar Association — Estate Planning Information and FAQs
Estate planning education and terminology from the ABA.
Published Ongoing · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed quarterly · Related calculator →
- Industry SurveyUSWills & TrustsGenerational
Caring.com — 2025 Wills and Estate Planning Study
Only 24% of 2025 respondents had a will; 13% had a living trust.
Published 2025 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual · Related calculator →
- State-Specific ResourceTexasWills & Trusts
Texas State Law Library — Wills & Directives
Texas consumer guidance on wills, directives, and what state law does with your property when there is no will.
Published Ongoing · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed quarterly
- Industry SurveyUSGenerational
Cerulli — $124 Trillion in Wealth Will Transfer Through 2048
Projection of $124 trillion in U.S. wealth transfers through 2048.
Published 2024 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual
- Industry SurveyUSLife Insurance
LIMRA / Life Happens — 2025 Facts About Life Insurance
51% of U.S. adults have some life insurance; 42% believe they need (more) coverage.
Published 2025 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual · Related calculator →
- Industry SurveyUSLife Insurance
LIMRA — 2025 Insurance Barometer Study
Annual attitudes and behavior study for life insurance.
Published 2025 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual
- Consumer Protection GuideUSLife Insurance
NAIC — Consumer Life Insurance Guide
Neutral consumer definitions, including accelerated death benefits / living benefits.
Published Ongoing · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed quarterly
- Consumer Protection GuideUSLife Insurance
NAIC — Life Insurance Topic Page
Regulatory/consumer overview of term, whole, and universal life insurance.
Published Ongoing · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed quarterly
- Government RuleUSHealth & LTC
Medicare.gov — Long-Term Care Coverage
What Medicare does and does not cover for long-term care.
Published Ongoing · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual
- Industry SurveyUSHealth & LTCRetirement
Fidelity — 2025 Retiree Health Care Cost Estimate
A 65-year-old retiring in 2025 may need ~$172,500 for health care in retirement.
Published 2025 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed annual
- Academic StudyGlobalIndependence
Dixon & Halperin — Goal-Based Wealth Management with Reinforcement Learning
Advanced goal-based wealth management framing for future research.
Published 2020 · Checked 2026-06 · Reviewed stable
- Consumer Protection GuideUSIndependenceTax Strategy
SEC & FINRA Investor Alert — Securities-Backed Lines of Credit
How securities-backed lines of credit / pledged asset lines work and their risks: interest-only revolving structure, maintenance calls with 2–3 days to respond, forced liquidation the firm can carry out without notice, interest-rate and concentration risk, and the unintended capital-gains tax from a forced sale.
Published 2015-12 · Checked 2026-07 · Reviewed stable
- Consumer Protection GuideUSIndependence
FINRA — Securities-Backed Lines of Credit Explained
Plain-language FINRA explainer on SBLOCs: they are demand loans callable at any time, borrowing is typically 50–95% of pledged value, and a market decline can force a sale of pledged securities — often with no advance notice.
Published 2015 · Checked 2026-07 · Reviewed stable
Contribution limits, tax rules, and program details change. Figures are current as of the date shown — always verify against the linked official source. Rules-based pages (contribution limits, Medicare, tax treatment) are reviewed annually and whenever laws change; consumer-protection content quarterly.