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I promise I'm not just randomly trolling Dave Ramsey. I've just noticed lately that the old-school personal finance guru — who, to be fair, has long had his detractors — is catching an extra amount of Internet strays these days.

I suspect this is because much of his go-to advice doesn't play well during an absolutely relentless affordability crisis. (Really, Dave? You expect me to buy an average-priced $26,000 used car in cash on my also-average $83,730 household income. And what's this about a 15-year mortgage?)

I also suspect it's because Dave Ramsey is almost a billionaire and has been rich for quite some time now, which — at least for the sake of this argument — doesn't make him bad; it just makes him unfamiliar with the current financial challenges faced by everyday Americans.

And yet Ramsey has persisted ever since his 1988 Chapter 7 bankruptcy inspired him to help other people with their money, and there's validation (or at least the argument for validation) in staying power, so his advice feels worth a proper 2026 evaluation.

As a reminder (or primer), Ramsey’s main schtick is that debt is the devil. (That's not really hyperbole; his financial teachings have a strong faith-based component.) He hates credit cards. Like HATEs them, hates them. (Seriously, don't ever show this man your credit card.) And he's got a long list of big and small rules, like invest 15% of your income, prioritize wants over needs, and have a zero-based budget, meant to help people build long-term financial stability.

This advice, on its face, isn't bad at all, actually, but it's certainly not for everyone. In fact, it's mostly for people who struggle with impulse control or living within their means, the seriously cash-strapped who need to make some tough (and often unfair) choices to make ends meet, or money novices who haven’t had exposure to foundational financial literacy concepts.

That's a caveat that Ramsey has long refused to acknowledge. I suppose, on one level, this inclination is appealing. Way too much personal finance content ends with the often unhelpful conclusion that the "right decision depends on your situation and goals." (And, listen, I know because I’ve certainly written this line in the past.)

But you can be more prescriptive without giving everyone the exact same prescription, especially since, let's face it:

But I digress, because, really, I'm just splitting hairs, and my main grip against endorsing Dave Ramsey in 2026 isn't about his advice. It's about his delivery, which often feels akin to visiting a surly dentist who spends an entire cleaning dragging your abysmal flossing skills while poking sharpened instruments into your increasingly tender teeth and gums.

This is ostensibly because he's one of those accountability guys who believes your financial problems were created by you and you alone, and not, say, $43,000 health insurance plans, $90,000 college tuition, or $600 data-center-driven energy bills.

In other words, Ramsey is the guy asking why you're buying $32 worth of ground beef to feed you family and not, say, why the ground beef costs $32 to begin with. (One of his catchphrases is effectively "debt is not a mathematics problem; it's a behavior problem" or some variant thereof.)

And, sure, there are different schools of thought, and accountability is still a part of the whole financial wellness equation (and on and on and on), but that doesn't address the widening holes in Ramsey's sales pitch.

Following his big rules and seven baby steps might have been a great way to build wealth (or as he puts it, achieve financial peace) back in, say, the 1990s, when housing prices were stable, interest rates were moderate, savings yields were good, and real wages were growing, alongside the tech boom.

But these days, when everything costs at least $100, homeownership is increasingly a pipe dream, and the economy operates more like a casino than anything else, they're more likely to just make you miserable or cause you to hate yourself for not achieving something that's not fully within your control.

Because sadly, in 2026, it is more about math and less about behavior change. And, IMHO, the current path to financial peace involves — no, not giving up or giving in, but, first and foremost, acknowledging that.

Nowadays, most financial takes are boilerplate. These aren't.

And, finally, today, in the things we should buy when we have to buy things …

As someone who actually probably under-buys ahead of a big winter storm (it just never feels like the snow is happening until it's actually happening, you know?) I found the video above from Bankrate reporter Katie Kelton super helpful for both short- and long-term snow planning.

Stay safe, fellow East Coasters. Apparently, a bomb cyclone is on the way.

Got questions, comments, receipts, tips, thirst traps, etc. you’d like to share? Send them to [email protected].

_{This article is for educational purposes only. We don’t recommend or advise individuals to buy, not buy, sell, or not sell particular investments or other assets, as everyone’s circumstances are different. Also, it’s your money and ultimately up to you to decide the best use for it.}