Every hard word, in the words you already know.
Fifty words stand between a first-timer and their first step. Each card here does two things: says what the word means in plain words, and what it means for your first $100. The cards are wired into the sequencer and the doors — you will meet them exactly when a result uses the word.
Putting money into things that can grow in value over time — pieces of companies, loans to companies and gover…
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The published sequence for where your next dollar goes: starter cushion, employer match, expensive debt, full …
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Everything you hold across all your accounts, counted together — the 401(k), the IRA, the stray brokerage acco…
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The habit of moving money to savings and investing on payday, automatically, before spending decides for you. …
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Everything you own minus everything you owe. It can be negative, and for most beginners it is small — both are…
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A small piece of ownership in one company. If the company grows and earns more, your piece is usually worth mo…
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One unit of a stock or a fund. When people say they bought ten shares, they mean ten units. The price of one s…
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A loan you make to a company or a government. They promise to pay you interest and return your money on a set …
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A published list of investments, chosen by written rules — for example, a list of large US companies, updated …
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A fund that copies a published list (an index) instead of paying someone to pick winners. Because copying is c…
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A pool of money from many people, run by a company, that buys a collection of stocks, bonds, or both. You buy …
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A fund that trades on an exchange like a stock, during the day, at prices that move minute to minute. Many ETF…
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A single fund built around a year — the year you expect to retire, printed in its name. It holds a mix of stoc…
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A fund that holds very short-term, cash-like loans and aims to keep a steady value. It pays a modest yield and…
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Spreading money across many holdings so no single company's bad year decides yours. A fund that holds hundreds…
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The mix of kinds you hold — how much in stock funds, how much in bond funds, how much in cash-like holdings. I…
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The chance your money is worth less when you need it — or worth less, period, for a while. Stock funds swing m…
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What your money earns, shown as a percentage over a period. A 7% yearly return on $100 is $7 in a year — befor…
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Growth on top of growth. Your money earns a return; next year the return itself earns too. It is why starting …
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A payment some companies make to their shareholders out of profits, usually in cash, on a schedule. Inside a f…
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Investing a fixed amount on a fixed schedule — say, $100 every payday — instead of trying to time a perfect mo…
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The slow rise of prices that makes idle cash lose buying power — roughly, money under the mattress shrinks a f…
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The profit when you sell something for more than you paid. In a regular brokerage account, gains are taxed und…
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The price of borrowed money — paid by you on debts, paid to you on savings and bonds. On a credit card it is t…
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The yearly cost of a debt, in percent. It lets you compare debts honestly: a 24.99% APR card costs roughly fiv…
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Cash kept for life's ambushes — the car repair, the lost shift, the broken furnace — so those costs never land…
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Debt whose APR is high enough that paying it beats investing almost every time. Published frameworks draw the …
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A retirement account offered through an employer. Money goes in straight from your paycheck, often before inco…
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The public-school, hospital, nonprofit, and ministry cousin of the 401(k). Same idea — paycheck-in retirement …
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Free money your employer adds when you contribute to your workplace plan, following a formula — for example, 5…
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The schedule that says when your employer's contributions become fully yours. Your own contributions are alway…
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A retirement account you open yourself, at a brokerage or bank. You put money in after tax — and then, if you …
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A retirement account you open yourself, like a Roth IRA, but with the tax break at the other end: contribution…
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The umbrella name for retirement accounts you open yourself — mainly Roth and Traditional. An IRA is not an in…
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A regular investment account you open yourself, with no special tax wrapper and no yearly contribution limit. …
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A tax-advantaged account available only alongside a high-deductible health plan. Money goes in pre-tax, grows …
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A health plan with lower monthly premiums and a higher deductible — you pay more of the early bills yourself. …
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A use-it-mostly-or-lose-it account through an employer for health or dependent-care costs, funded pre-tax from…
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The legal ceiling on what you can put into a tax-advantaged account each year. Every account on this site carr…
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Extra room Congress adds to contribution limits for older savers. In 2026: a 401(k) allows $8,000 extra at 50+…
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The cash parking spot inside a brokerage or IRA where money waits — deposits land here, and buys are paid from…
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A tax credit for lower-income savers who contribute to a retirement account — up to 50% of the first $2,000 co…
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A retirement plan built for small employers — the kind with a handful of staff, where no 401(k) exists. It wor…
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The screen where you tell a brokerage what to purchase and how much. The scary-looking fields are mostly simpl…
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Money you put into a retirement account. Contributions have years attached — an IRA contribution is designated…
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Money taken out of an account. In retirement accounts, early withdrawals of earnings can bring taxes and penal…
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The person you name to receive an account if you die. The designation on file at the brokerage beats your will…
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