US edition
The Universal Stuff, Minus the British Tax Rules
Freedom Isn't Free is a UK site, but half of what we publish is about maths and behaviour that work the same in any currency. This is that half, curated for US readers.
Compounding does not care which side of the Atlantic you are on.
We write about money for people who sell their time for a living. Most of the site is UK-specific: our tax wrappers, our pension rules, our housing market. None of that survives the crossing. But the core of personal finance - spend less than you earn, invest the difference in low-cost index funds, do not panic in a downturn, and know the number where work becomes optional - is the same in dollars as in pounds.
Below is everything on this site that a US reader can use without translation: calculators built on universal maths, and articles about behaviour, market history, and investing concepts. Where a page is UK-only, we say so up front rather than waste your time. Flip the UK/US toggle in the header and the calculators display in dollars.
Calculators that work in any currency
Compound interest, your FI number, coast FIRE, debt payoff, emergency fund sizing - 19 tools built on maths that does not know what country you live in.
Browse US-friendly toolsReads that apply anywhere
Money psychology, market history, FIRE philosophy, book reviews, and investing concepts - 73 articles with no British small print.
Browse US-friendly readsReference guides for the US system
401(k) limits, Roth IRA rules, Social Security claiming ages - 35 straight-answer guides written for the US system and cited to the IRS and SSA.
Browse US guidesProvider comparisons for US accounts
Brokerage accounts, Roth IRA providers, and HSA custodians - 6 straight-answer tables with every fee checked against the provider's published schedule, and no affiliate links.
Browse US comparisonsMore in the US edition
The reading list
Most of the personal finance canon is American anyway. Every book on our shelf now links to both Amazon US and Amazon UK.
What we are and what we are not. We are a UK publication with real money in the strategies we write about. We are not US financial advisers, and nothing here accounts for US tax rules - 401(k)s, IRAs, and the IRS are your local experts' turf. What travels is the arithmetic and the behaviour. Use the maths, keep your local tax advice local.