Book · 2003
The Total Money Makeover
by Dave Ramsey
Dave Ramsey's seven baby steps: the debt half works, the investing half gets blocked alongside his YouTube channel.
What does Reddit think of The Total Money Makeover?
The pattern across all 8 is nearly identical: the debt-snowball framework earns credit, the investment advice earns a warning. One commenter (↑32) reproduced all seven steps in plain text with no caveats. Another (↑46) opens by naming the book specifically and says not to listen to Ramsey for investment advice — at all. A ↑15 post captures the arc cleanly: "Though it helped me get out of debt I will not recommend it. He talks about himself 75% of the book. Only his debt advice is relevant. I have since blocked his channel from my YouTube." The SmartVestor Pro referral structure, which Ramsey takes a cut from while pointing readers toward advisors who claim to beat index funds, gets called out directly (↑10). r/Entrepreneur and r/datascience each added 1 neutral mention. Nothing in the data suggests those subs found it differently. That's the whole argument in a number.
Community feedback & reader fit
Themes
- · Debt elimination and the debt-snowball method
- · Emergency fund sequencing
- · Dave Ramsey's investment advice as a conflict of interest
- · Personal finance as a relay race — different books for different stages
- · Commissioned advisor referral structures
Common praise
- + The seven-step framework fits in a Reddit comment, which is probably why it keeps getting quoted verbatim (↑32).
- + Multiple Bogleheads credit it as the book that started behavioral change in their 20s — one traces a seven-figure outcome to reading it alongside two other books (↑86).
- + The debt-snowball mechanic works on behavior, not just math, and the distinction matters when motivation is the actual problem.
Common criticism
- − r/Bogleheads (↑10) flags the SmartVestor Pro referral system as a conflict of interest — Ramsey gets a cut from advisors he tells readers will outperform index funds.
- − A commenter who credits the book with getting them out of debt still counts: Ramsey occupies roughly 75% of the book talking about himself (↑15).
- − The investment advice contradicts everything else on the Bogleheads reading list, which makes bundling the book into a recommendation stack awkward.
Who it's for
You're carrying consumer debt and have read zero personal finance books. The seven steps function as triage. Once the debt is cleared, r/Bogleheads is consistent: switch to something that doesn't conflict with index-fund logic. Readers who already know what a fiduciary is will find the investment chapters counterproductive rather than neutral. The 10 mentions almost never come from people still following the full system — they come from people describing what they graduated from.
Mentions over time
Top subreddits
Which Reddit comments matter for The Total Money Makeover?
Top-upvoted quotes across the subreddits where this book is mentioned. Click through to read the full thread.
“I'm 44 and started reading "The Simple Path to Wealth" this past Saturday morning, and finished reading it on Saturday night at 11pm. Spent this week planning on breaking up with my Financial Advisor of 15 years on January 2nd, transferring IRA and Roth IRA to a brokerage of my choice and move to lo…
“Boring yet effective. Started saving at 22 in a 401K. Bought a house. 17-19 years later, 7 figures. 50-100K income. No home runs, all singles and doubles. Co-workers bought new cars all the time. $500 payments. I did not. Read millionaire next door and your money or your life, total money m…
“I’ve been in industry at this point for a long time. I’ve seen many cycles where layoffs have occurred. I largely have been isolated from that and got my first layoff ever in my career after working nearly 15 years. I was working with as a subcontractor/AWS ProServe Partner and eventually all the …
“Although targeted towards high income earners and contains additional details for medical professionals, The White Coat Investor is one of my favorites. Whatever you do, do not listen to Dave Ramsey for investment advice (e.g. The Total Money Makeover). I know his name hasn’t been mentioned at all …
“the total money makeover: 1) Save $1,000 emergency fund. 2) Get out of debt using the debt-snowball method. 3) Save an emergency fund of 3-6 months expenses. 4) Invest 15% of household income for retirement. 5) Save for children's college. 6) Pay off the home early. 7) Build wealth …
“0. Take a few courses on the basics of business: \- \- \- Starting a Business All-In-One For Dummies: [
“Its only fair that I mention those missteps. Discovered Dave Ramsey and bought his book Total Money Makeover. Though it helped me get out of debt I will not recommend it. 1. He talks about himself 75% of the book. 2. Only his debt advice is relevant. I have sense blocked his channel from my YouTub…
“I feel like A Simple Path to Wealth is the Blueprint for financial independence. Boglehead's Guide to Investing is a more in depth look into not only the what but the why of the Boglehead investment strategy. A Random Walk Down Wall Street by Burton G Makiel is the "Why Not" on other investing strat…
Convinced? Pick up The Total Money Makeover
Readers also mention
Books that share discussion threads with The Total Money Makeover — counted from the comments, not curated.
The Millionaire Next Door
Thomas J. Stanley
A 1996 study of 1,000 American millionaires found they drove used cars, lived in modest houses, and got rich by spending less than they earned.
A Random Walk Down Wall Street
Burton G. Malkiel
Burton Malkiel's 50-year argument that you can't beat the market, backed by data, and Reddit's most-cited reason to stop stock-picking.
The Simple Path to Wealth
JL Collins
A retired fund manager distills 40 years of index investing into one rule: buy VTSAX, ignore the noise, and wait.
The Little Book of Common Sense Investing
John C. Bogle
John Bogle's case for index funds in 200 pages: own the whole market, pay almost nothing, and wait — cited 262 times on Reddit and counting.
The Total Money Makeover — frequently asked
Is The Total Money Makeover's debt advice worth following even if you reject the investing chapters?+
Yes. The debt-snowball steps (↑32 on r/Bogleheads) function as a behavioral system independent of the author's investment views. The book earns consistent credit for getting people out of debt across all 8 r/Bogleheads mentions. The problem is the chapters don't stop there — once you're out of debt, the advice shifts to territory r/Bogleheads considers actively harmful.
What does Reddit think of The Total Money Makeover?+
Cautious credit, with a specific warning. The 8 r/Bogleheads mentions split cleanly: debt advice works, investment advice doesn't. A ↑46 comment names the book and says not to listen to Ramsey for investing. A ↑15 comment credits and criticizes it in the same breath.
How does The Total Money Makeover sit alongside The Simple Path to Wealth on r/Bogleheads?+
As a predecessor. The ↑131 comment describes finishing The Simple Path to Wealth in a single Saturday and immediately planning to fire a financial advisor of 15 years. Total Money Makeover appears in the same threads but as a prior stage — the book that got someone out of debt before they encountered index-fund thinking. Nobody recommends running them in parallel.