7 Personal Finance Blog Success Stories [2024]

Updated: November 19th, 2023
Start A Personal Finance Blog

Here are some real life success stories of starting a personal finance blog:

1. Making Sense of Cents ($900K/year)

Michelle Schroeder-Gardner came up with the idea for Making Sense of Cents as a way to document her personal finance journey. She started the blog as a hobby, but after readers suggested she monetize it, she leaped and quit her stable job as an analyst. Making Sense of Cents now earns over $100,000 a month and has made over $5 million in total.

How much they make: $900K/year
How much did it cost to start: $100
Current team size: 1

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How I Started A $100K/Month Blog About Personal Finance

Michelle Schroeder-Gardner earns $100,000 a month from Making Sense of Cents, a personal finance and lifestyle blog where she writes informative and fun articles about financial freedom and her life on the road, thanks to a diversified traffic approach and monetization strategies, such as affiliate marketing, sponsored partnerships, and course sales.

About
Michelle started Making Sense of Cents over 12 years ago
Revenue
Michelle grew the business to $75K/month
Costs
It cost Michelle $100 to start the business
Read by 18,454 founders

2. DollarSprout ($600K/year)

Jeff Proctor, co-founder of personal finance blog DollarSprout.com, came up with the idea after realizing he didn't enjoy working for someone else. Initially planning to create a subscription-based investing website, Proctor and his partner eventually pivoted to focus on affiliate marketing. Now, four years later, DollarSprout is on track to generate over $2 million in revenue for 2019.

How much they make: $600K/year
Current team size: 3

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How We Grew Our Personal Finance Blog To $2M/Year

DollarSprout.com, a personal finance blog geared towards millennials, went from zero to over $2 million in revenue in four years through a laser focus on affiliate marketing, constantly creating useful, keyword-oriented content that helps readers solve a problem, SEO, and diversifying income verticals.

About
Jeff started DollarSprout over 8 years ago
Revenue
Jeff grew the business to $50K/month
Read by 20,225 founders

So... can you actually make money with a personal finance blog?

Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.

But how?

  1. Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
  2. Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
  3. Take action, because now you have the roadmap.

Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:

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3. Astute Actions Inc ($360K/year)

David Ning accidentally stumbled upon the idea for his personal finance website, MoneyNing.com, when his personal blog started attracting advertisers. He decided to focus on money management because of his passion for the subject, and the site quickly grew to receive 200,000 monthly visitors. Through networking and genuine content, David was able to build a successful business with minimal startup costs and ongoing profitability.

How much they make: $360K/year
How much did it cost to start: $10
Current team size: 1

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How I Started A $30K/Month Blog About Personal Finance

MoneyNing.com, a personal finance website that receives 200,000 monthly visitors, discusses how the founder's accidental and passionate interest in tackling personal finance has led to its profitability through advertising, affiliate marketing, and email campaigns alongside insights on building long-form content and networking with the community.

About
David started Astute Actions Inc over 15 years ago
Revenue
David grew the business to $30K/month
Costs
It cost David $10 to start the business
Read by 8,908 founders

4. Well Kept Wallet ($1.2M/year)

How much they make: $1.2M/year
Current team size: 5

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HOW DEACON HAYES BUILT A BLOG TO OVER A MILLION VISITORS AND $100,000 A MONTH

This case study showcases the success of a personal finance expert who has grown his business to make over $100,000 in revenue per month while helping individuals with financial assistance.

About
Deacon started Well Kept Wallet over 11 years ago
Revenue
Deacon grew the business to $100K/month
Read by 750 founders

So... can you actually make money with a personal finance blog?

Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.

But how?

  1. Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
  2. Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
  3. Take action, because now you have the roadmap.

Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:

Start Now