How this works

Where the logic comes from

The knowledge base is a distillation of a widely shared personal-finance flowchart (FinFlowChart v4.3, from the r/financialindependence community, itself a continuation of the r/personalfinance chart). It is a community document rather than an official one, and we treat it as a well-argued default rather than gospel.

The chart itself is not the interface. Its sections became 18 decision nodes and a priority ladder; the interface only asks the 11 questions that can move a recommendation, which is why a typical journey is four to seven questions rather than a form.

The ladder

In rough order, money goes to:

1. Budget — A rough picture of income minus expenses. Everything after this step depends on knowing the number.
2. Essentials — Housing, food, utilities, transport to work, and health care come before any optimization.
3. Minimum payments — Minimums on all loans and cards, always — a missed payment costs more than the interest saved elsewhere.
4. Starter buffer — Around $1,000, or one month of expenses if that is larger, in a high-yield savings account.
5. Employer match — Contribute exactly enough to your workplace plan to receive every matching dollar — and, for now, no more.
6. High-interest debt — Anything around double the prime rate and above — most credit cards, payday loans, some personal loans.
7. Emergency fund — Three months of essential expenses if your income is steady, six or more if it isn't.
8. Moderate debt — Balances above the prime rate but below the high-interest line — often car loans and some student loans.
9. HSA — Available with a qualifying high-deductible health plan. Deductible going in, tax-free growth, tax-free for medical costs.
10. IRA — Roth or traditional depending on income and expectations, opened by you rather than through an employer.
11. ESPP — A typical 15% discount on company stock, immediately vested — often sold straight away to lock in the discount.
12. Near-term goal — Anything you plan to spend in roughly the next three to five years belongs in savings, not the market.
13. 401(k) / 403(b) — Beyond the match: contributing toward the annual employee limit in a 401(k), 403(b) or 457(b).
14. Mega backdoor — If your plan allows after-tax contributions with an immediate Roth conversion, there is extra room above the normal limit.
15. 529 / ESA — A 529 or ESA for a child's education, once your own retirement funding is on track.
16. Taxable brokerage — No contribution limits and no withdrawal rules — the flexible home for everything above the tax-advantaged ceiling.
17. Mortgage / low-interest debt — Below the prime rate this becomes a preference question: a guaranteed return versus an expected one.
18. Optimize — An investment policy statement, periodic rebalancing, tax-loss harvesting, charitable and estate planning.

Where we depart from the source

• Goals inside two years come earlier. The source handles near-future purchases after retirement accounts. Money you will spend within two years cannot take market risk, so we fund it before long-term tax-advantaged accounts.
• Lower-interest debt is rate-driven, not rule-driven. Rather than a fixed position, extra loan payments move above taxable investing once the rate clears a risk-adjusted hurdle of 5.5%.
• Retiring early reorders the last rungs. When flexibility before 59½ matters, a taxable account moves ahead of the final slice of workplace-plan space.
• Questions are gated on materiality. If a rung cannot hold a meaningful share of your money, its question is skipped entirely.

Assumptions

• Long-run expected return on a diversified portfolio: 7% nominal.
• Hurdle a guaranteed debt payoff must beat: 5.5%.
• “High interest” starts around 15% — roughly double the prime rate. “Moderate” is above prime and below that line.
• Emergency fund targets: 3 months of essentials with steady income, 6+ when income is variable.
• 2026 limits: HSA $4,400 individual / $8,750 family, IRA $7,500, workplace deferral $24,500.

Every one of those figures lives in a single file (src/data/tax-rules) so they can be updated in one place each year rather than hunted through the interface.

What we deliberately do not do

• No accounts, no logins, no bank connections. Answers stay in your browser.
• No email gate. The plan is free and complete before we ever mention a newsletter.
• No pretence of precision. Where a decision is genuinely close we say so, and the threshold explorers exist to show you where it flips rather than hand you a number.

Disclaimer

This site provides educational information, not individualized investment, tax or legal advice, and no fiduciary relationship is created by using it. Contribution limits, income thresholds and eligibility rules change, and the right answer depends on specifics we do not ask about. For decisions that matter, check current figures and consider speaking to a professional who can see your whole situation.