FIRE stands for "Financial Independence, Retire Early." It is a movement or lifestyle choice that aims to allow individuals to retire much earlier than the typical retirement age by saving and investing a significant portion of their income and living frugally. The goal of FIRE is to achieve financial independence, which is defined as having enough passive income or assets to cover one's living expenses without the need to work for pay.
Showing 50 results of 195
Picture this: You’re in your mid-40s and you’ve just quit your stressful corporate job. You’ve set aside enough money to ... Read more
Hi readers, it’s been a while since we’ve done a reader case, so here goes! This one is a doozy, and I knew it as soon as I saw the headline in my inbox “FIRE with 7 kids”. If you have a big family, i...
As someone who's been writing about FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) since 2009 and actually leaving full-time work for good in 2012, it's been quite an interesting ride. For the most part, ...
Hey Everyone! I’m still here. The Retire by 40 blog is on life support, but I’m committed to posting at least once per month this year. Did you know Retire ... Read more The post Q1 2026 FIRE Update a...
From JL: Turns out you can still travel, even with a kid. Who knew? Certainly not their detractors. For years they confidently said, “You can only travel as you do, and be FIRE’d, because you don’t ha...
Most people think retirement begins the day they turn in their notice. In reality, retirement begins much earlier than that. It begins the moment you stop depending on your employer for everything. In...
Can you retire early if you are a parent and don’t have a six-figure salary? It’s a question the FIRE community gets often. Well, today we’re going to meet a reader who worked as a librarian, has a to...
From 2009, when I started writing about FIRE, until now, the FIRE movement has had a great run. It was born out of the 2008-2009 global financial crisis, when hundreds of thousands of people were losi...
Physicians are trained to be conservative for good reasons. You don’t “wing it” in the OR. You don’t ignore a ... Read more
Happy 2026! Get the updated FAANG FIRE Cheat Sheet with new 401k limits ($24.5k), tax brackets, and triple paycheck dates.
As the Retirement Plan Live case study continues, Roger Whitney helps Henry and Lucy articulate what they want their FIRE retirement to actually look like—starting with values, dreaming without constr...
As a FIRE parents raising two children in San Francisco, we rely heavily on our investments to remain free. If we significantly misjudge returns, we increase the probability of having to go back to wo...
As the new year begins, Roger Whitney launches a new Retirement Plan Live case study, introducing Henry and Lucy, a couple in their mid-40s pursuing Financial Independence and Retire Early (FIRE). Rog...
How shifting from "Retiring Early" to "Living Early" allows child-free adults to enjoy their wealth while they’re still young enough to use it.
YMYW friends, welcome to 2026. What actually mattered most to you in 2025? It turns out to be tax-free gains on investments, retirement timing, and claiming Social Security. Today on Your Money, Your ...
Hear Paula discuss the importance of values-driven money decisions, human-centered strategies for navigating complexity, and her unique Double-I FIRE framework. The post Podcast 105: You Can Afford An...
MillennialAcademicScientist (or MAS) wrote to us when this blog was just a tiny fledging collection of articles back in 2017. What made her story stand out was her background. Like me, she had grown u...
As someone who has been writing about financial independence and escaping corporate America since 2009, I’ve developed several rules that serve as the backbone for achieving FIRE and staying free. The...
What if the biggest obstacle to a joyful retirement isn't your money — but the belief that you never have enough of it? In this episode, we discuss: Why "having enough" is both a financial and emotion...
Hey Everyone! 2025 is quickly coming to an end. Are you ready for the holidays? It will be a bit different for us this year. Mrs. RB40 is going to ... Read more The post November 2025 FIRE Update appe...
Are you dreaming of the day work is an option? Are you on track for financial freedom or perhaps Coast Fire? Which is betst for your financial goals?
Today’s reader case touches on an issue that’s near and dear to my heart, so without further ado, let’s dive in! Hi Firecracker & Wanderer! I’ve been an avid reader of your...
Back in 2009 (a year when retirement wasn't even on the horizon) I visited the first ever Durham Lumiere Festival. It left quite an impression, not least of the Son et Lumiere depicting the history of...
Some people hear me say I’m a third-generation self-made millionaire and a third-generation early retiree, and they instantly question it. They assume I had a head start. They assume “self...
A lot of people have strong opinions about paying off a mortgage early. Some argue it’s always the smartest move, others insist you should keep the loan and invest instead. The noise gets loud, ...
Hey Everyone! Oh wow, it’s November already. The leaves are turning, and it’s a beautiful day in Portland. We had a rainstorm yesterday, but the sun is out today. Ahh, ... Read more The po...
It’s a raging bull market, and I’ll confess, I’m a little annoyed I don’t have a large paycheck anymore to take advantage of more investment opportunities. Every day, I see peo...
I retired at 42. That was four years ago. A reader from my (forever free) newsletter recently asked me: “What do your income streams look like?” It’s a fair question. Most people exp...
Dear Kristy, I just wanted to say that you have truly changed my life… Messages like this make my ears perk up. Despite having last heard from this particular reader about a decade ago, I remem...
A fellow FIRE blogger, MrNomadNumbers, came to visit us in Valencia recently and showed me some AI capabilities that blew my mind. Before he retired, he was a software developer, like us, so he knows ...
I used to be thrifty but not financial literate. This is my journey to learning about money and why, in retrospect, it was so vital. The post What’s Your Motivational Fire Toward Financial Liter...
Hey Everyone! It’s October and the days are getting shorter in Portland. This year is a bit crazier than usual because the troops are massing in “war-ravaged” Portland. I haven&rsquo...
This FIRE experiment has been quite a ride. Through the ups and downs, I’ve documented our investing journey on this blog so that anyone can see how a portfolio like the one we taught in the Inv...
The precious metals market is experiencing a historic rally that’s catching the attention of savvy investors. As of early October ... Read more...
Most people stay with the wrong financial advisor far too long: out of loyalty, inertia, or fear of starting over. But the cost of sticking with the wrong person can be measured in dollars, stress, an...
In 2020, during the heart of the COVID pandemic, I remember listening to a FIRE-focused podcast hosted by two people who claimed to be financially independent and retired early. Even though it’s...
Even with the money to retire early, FIRE clients often face unexpected challenges. Advisors say mindset — more than finances — is often the real hurdle....
Test your knowledge of the different types of FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) with this short quiz....
The other evening, my wife and I went to a school reception held for parents and alumni who donated at least a certain amount in the calendar school year. It was a warm, intimate gathering where we mi...
A 401(k) isn't the only way to fire up your savings. There are other tax-smart ways to build a nest egg, including these three out-of-the-box moves used by the richest retirees....
If you want to FIRE, one of my regrets was pulling the ripcord too early at age 34 in 2012. Even though I started writing about FIRE in 2009 with the launch of Financial Samurai—trying to uncove...
Hey Everyone! It’s September, and the long days of summer are almost gone. RB40Jr started high school, and he seems to be enjoying it. He is taking Physics, Advanced Algebra, ... Read more The p...
At Physician on FIRE, we’re constantly seeking resources and strategies to reach FIRE. This week, we’re thrilled to share a ... Read more...
For all that we talk about FIRE and how it’s the way to secure a financially sound future early in ... Read more...
If you decide to forsake making maximum money to become a FIRE parent or stay-at-home parent, then you had best spend more time with your kids. Otherwise, you might as well go back to the office and g...
As a kid, when I first learned about the butterfly’s life cycle, I was instantly fascinated. Not because of the ... Read more...
Since writing about FIRE in 2009, I’ve favored investing in growth stocks over value stocks. As someone who wanted to retire early from finance, my goal was to build as large a capital base as q...
FIRECracker is a world-travelling early retiree. She used to live in one of the most expensive cities in Canada, but ... Read more...
You can have all of the money in the world, but it means nothing if you don’t have your health. Warren Buffett drove this point home at the first Berkshire Hathaway meeting I attended over 10 ye...
They say parenting lets you relive your childhood. Great, if you had an awesome one. Not so great if you didn’t. Mine nearly made me swear off having kids forever. It wasn’t just the yelli...