Back in the day, if you wanted to hear the thoughts of the most successful traders on Wall Street or the best budgeters ever to balance a checkbook, your only resource was the local bookstore. There, you could find self-help books about how to budget, save, and invest.
But not all accounts are created equal. Your typical “how to invest for dummies” may not account for a lot of differences in how you experience the world. And if typical financial gurus don't quite fit your style, you might find exactly what you're looking for in a new type of personality: the finfluencer.
What is a finfluencer?
In the finance world, social media personalities that share tips and opinions about investing, budgeting, and the economy are known as "finfluencers". These folks are followed by millions on social networks, meaning they're a major source of financial advice consumed by millennials and Gen Z.
A finfluencer's journey to financial independence is the focal point of their platform. Some have been able to retire early thanks to their savings and investment methods. For many of the big finfluencers, book sales, speaking engagements, and e-learning materials can also contribute to their income, while others participate in sponsored partnerships (and some do all of the above!).
The financial influencers we've chosen have a wide variety of backstories. Some were raised financially literate and felt moved to share their knowledge. Others had to self-educate, and after resolving their own debts, were determined to form communities and teach others how to do the same. Either way, these personalities are the face of a modern generation that's both social-media and finance savvy.
The Finfluencers You Should Be Following
Tiffany “The Budgetnista” Aliche
Tiffany Aliche wasn't always a New York Times best-selling author. Back in the early 2000s, Aliche was using her master's degree in education to work as a daycare teacher. But when the 2008 recession put her out of a job and a credit card scam left her with a hefty chunk of debt, she was forced to move back in with her parents. There, Aliche remembered her upbringing in a home where money was talked about openly.
So Aliche began working her way out of debt and used her skills to teach others how to do the same. Thanks to the success of her 2021 book "Get Good With Money", Aliche has been able to share her financial journey with millions across various platforms.
Follow the Budgetnista for: shame-free recovery tips for pulling yourself out of debt, improving your credit score, and building financial confidence.
Where should I start? Check out Aliche's YouTube channel for various conversations involving money, or add her to your Twitter feed for her tips and thoughts. You can also see Aliche in the Netflix documentary 'Get Smart With Money'.
Tori Dunlap/HerFirst100K
Tori Dunlap/TS
After the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Tori Dunlap realized that having money meant having choices. In the post-election political climate, emergency funds for things like reproductive services or relocating to a state that maintains marriage equality became a concern for a lot of Americans.
The realization inspired her to launch HerFirst100K, a blog detailing her goal to save $100K before her 25th birthday. Spoiler alert: she did it. Three weeks later, she quit her job to pursue what she calls her life's work. "We make content for girls, gays, and theys," she joked in an interview with TheStreet last October. She categorizes HerFirst100k as a feminist company that uses money as a medium to improve people's quality of life.
Follow Tori Dunlap for: financial outlooks geared toward toppling the patriarchy and handy tips for how to save money.
Where should I start? Dunlop has a lot of content and regularly releases new shorts on the HerFirst100K TikTok and Instagram. Her Financial Feminist Podcast hosts chats with some of the industry's biggest financial influencers -- several of which are also on this list. You can also check out her new book "Financial Feminist".
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Ross Mac
As far as job descriptions go, “finance educator and rapper” would set the tone for an unforgettable business card. And that’s just what South-Side Chicago-born Ross Mac does through his platform Maconomics. His time on Wall Street inspired him to bring financial literacy to folks who previously haven’t been included in investment conversations.
Mac hosts a few platforms where people can find his tips. He also runs the Maconomics club, a private investment group focused on building generational wealth. The club includes a lot of his teaching materials plus a weekly call where he chats about investing and answers member questions.
Follow Ross Mac for: easy-to-understand tips on generational wealth and a bright financial future. To get the best of Mac's thoughts and musical talent, we recommend the Money Music Culture podcast.
Where should I start? Mac makes most of his appearances in articles and interviews on some of your favorite finance talk shows. The best way to stay up-to-date with his appearances is through his Twitter account. You can also catch him on Netflix’s “Get Smart With Money”. You can also catch Mac talking finance with the video team here at TheStreet.
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Delyanne “The Money Coach” Barros
Delyanne Barros used to be an employment attorney. But after years of convincing herself that she was just “bad at money”, she was barely able to manage her debt, savings, and investments. Caught up in a dream job she realized wasn’t a good fit, she set herself on a journey to achieve financial independence.
At 37 years old, she quit her law career in order to share her investment tips with anyone else who had reason to focus on investing and early retirement. Now 40 and on track to retire at the age of 45, and she wants to share her methods and experiences with the world as Delyanne the Money Coach.
Follow The Money Coach for: no-nonsense tips to understand your finances that don't shy away from addressing systemic inequality -- and how it affects your budget.
Where to start? Delyanne is very active on TikTok and Instagram and her content makes a great addition to your morning scroll. She also hosts a CNN podcast about finances called Diversifying.
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John Liang
TikToker John Liang is truly an influencer for GenZ. His content is perfectly bite-sized for an audience consuming information in 60 seconds or less. And wow, does Liang have a lot of information to share! Whether you'd like someone to explain the "quiet quitting" phenomenon from a modern lens or you want to get a new credit card with the best benefits for you, Liang's content will keep you informed.
In case you're afraid Liang's content is too modern for you, don't tune out yet it. If you can remember the days when coupon cutting was the best way to find savings, Liang shares a ton of tips for limited-time offers and stackable promotions at some of your favorite food and shopping locations -- which is modern coupon-cutting if we've ever seen it.
Follow John Liang for: credit card reviews, funny skits about modern-day job topics, and hacks for maximum savings in your daily shopping.
Where should I start? John has more than 2.2 million followers on TikTok, where his shorts can be binge-scrolled or added to your daily feed. Not on the clock app? Subscribe to Liang's YouTube channel or check out his Instagram reels.
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Kiersten & Julien Saunders of rich & REGULAR
This Atlanta-based couple is all about dissecting the fear surrounding money conversations. They have plenty of experience doing just that, and a successful stint in real estate investing inspired them to start helping their friends become financially independent, too. In 2017, the couple started rich & REGULAR as a blog.
Since then, the couple has built a community of followers unafraid to dig into some delicate money subjects like prenuptial agreements, burnout, spousal death, and more.
Follow rich & REGULAR for: deep, thought-provoking discussions on the way money affects our lives and content for couples who want to improve financial communication.
Where should I start? These chats are great food for thought while you're commuting or getting ready for work, so we recommend the couple's podcast. If you're a visual person, the rich & REGULAR YouTube features some great conversations. You can also read the couple's book "Cashing Out".
Lexa of "The Avocado Toast Budget"
In 2017, a millionaire went viral for telling millennials that if they wanted to afford to buy a house, they should stop spending money on avocado toast. The hot take was dubbed tone-deaf, but it also pointed to the prevalent idea that financial stability requires the sacrifice of anything that brings you joy.
In 2020, Lexa began documenting her journey to pay off $20,000 worth of debt on TikTok. Her tips and thoughts were built on the idea that managing your money shouldn't make you miserable -- and it has resonated with more than 489,000 viewers. Now she's a full-time content creator sharing tips for the modern era. Her platform's name? The Avocado Toast Budget.
Follow The Avocado Toast Budget for: shame-free finance tips for millennials and GenZers, particularly those with ADHD. Or if you just love a good roast of Dave Ramsey.
Where should I start? Without a doubt, the easiest way to get your daily serving of Avocado Toast is through TikTok. If your finance journey is just beginning, Lexa's YouTube videos are also informative and entertaining.
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Humphrey Yang
This former financial advisor for Merrill Lynch began his career on TikTok as a one-month experiment in 2019. In early 2020, Humphrey Yang posted a cost and revenue breakdown of the pricey Hydro Flask that went viral. As his following grew, he just kept creating content every day -- until he hit one million followers.
Now, the e-commerce expert likes to geek out about a wide variety of finance topics. Yang covers cost breakdowns of everything from a carton of eggs to personal jets. Followers can look to Yang for credit card reviews, shopping hacks, travel tips and even on-the-street interviews.
Follow Humphrey Yang for: cool trivia about anything involving finance, tips for tax credits, cost and business breakdowns, outlooks on major companies, credit card reviews, and so much more. Yang's content is great for beginners and seasoned investors alike.
Where should I start? If you're a habitual TikTok scroller, you can join Yang's 3.3 million followers. Yang also creates longer, more thorough content on his YouTube channel.
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Farnoosh Torabi
Thanks to her education and the high cost of living in New York City, master's graduate Farnoosh Torabi was already heavily in debt in her early 20s. But she was able to address the problem, and based on her experiences, she’s now focused on giving young adults access to financial literacy. Her 2008 book “You’re So Money--Live Rich Even When You’re Not“ launched Farnoosh to financial fame. She's since been featured in mainstream news, reality TV, and web shows -- including Vox’s recent Netflix series “Money: Explained”.
Torabi likes to focus on the emotional factors tied up with money struggles. Personal finance grows and evolves with people, and Torabi’s tenure in the space means that she has an outlook on all kinds of complicated and personal financial struggles.
Follow Farnoosh Torabi for: a regular perspective on current happenings in the financial world or for tips to prepare your budget for significant life changes.
Where should I start? Torabi hosts the "So Money Podcast" where she chats with heavy hitters in the financial industry, plus stars like Queen Latifah, Tim Gunn, Margaret Cho, and more.
John & David, "The Debt Free Guys"
Husbands David and John want to help gay men achieve financial independence. The couple wanted to “live fabulously,” but quickly realized they had been spending beyond their means -- which landed them in more than $50 thousand in credit card debt.
Together the couple used their combined financial service experience to lift themselves out of debt, becoming The Debt-Free Guys. And now, they tell their story and help other queer people get out of debt and enjoy all of the benefits of not having to worry about money.
Follow The Debt Free Guys for: discussions on queer-centered financial issues like healthcare funds and important after-death planning. Plus, the Guys interview LGBTQ business owners and finance experts.
Where should I start? For everyday insights into LGBTQ finance, the Guys are pretty active on Twitter. But for the deep dives, stream the Queer Money Podcast or check out the recording sessions on YouTube.
Vivian Tu of Your Rich BFF
Growing up the child of immigrants, Tu learned to work hard and budget her money at a very young age. After college, she started her Wall Street career working as a Trader for JP Morgan. While in New York, Tu went on dates with your typical “finance bros” and realized that many of her peers were saddled with credit card debt, despite working in the finance industry.
After leaving Wall Street, Tu worked for BuzzFeed and noticed that her coworkers were asking her a lot of personal finance questions. When the covid-19 pandemic sent everyone home, Tu felt compelled to start making financial literacy content on TikTok, which was flooded with bad-faith financial tips meant to capitalize on pandemic financial insecurity.
Over the last two years, Tu’s success on TikTok has allowed her to create content full-time. She now gives quick, helpful money information to more than three million “besties” as "Your Rich BFF".
Follow Your Rich BFF for: hot tips for saving money on daily shopping and dining, breakdowns of current financial events, tips for how to budget and save, and more.
Where should I start? For quick tips on your daily feed, check out Tu's TikTok account. She also provides longer content on her YouTube channel.
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Leon "The Wall Street Trapper" Howard
This born-and-raised New Orleanian’s story before becoming an investor was quite a ways off the typical influencer narrative. As a young man, Howard got into trouble running the streets and spent 10 years in lockup -- which is where he taught himself everything he could about the stock market and how to invest.
After his release, Howard had a new mission: to build himself up into financial independence and provide the same education he gave himself to his community. Now known as The Wall Street Trapper, Howard’s courses, content, and online community has reached more than 700,000 viewers, all focused on investing in Black generational wealth and community education.
Follow The Wall Street Trapper for: conversational real talk about finances and investing with an emphasis on building and sustaining wealth in Black communities.
Where should I start? You can add the Trapper's content to your feed on just about every platform. Howard's Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube all stay freshly updated. Howard has also made appearances on other platforms from The Earn Your Leisure Network all the way to The Ellen Show.
Peter "The Einstein of Wall Street" Tuchman
One look at stock trader Peter Tuchman and you already can guess why he’s known as The Einstein of Wall Street. Is it because he’s a genius? Well, yes. But something about his wild hair and unbound enthusiasm says, “I just discovered the theory of relativity and I need to tell you all about it.”
Tuchman was born in New York City’s Upper West Side to an immigrant couple of Holocaust survivors. His father was a doctor and introduced him to a patient who ran a brokerage firm. Tuchman started his tenure at the New York Stock Exchange as a teletypist, and now he can be seen on the floor trading hundreds of millions of dollars in stock each day.
Follow The Einstein of Wall Street for: big-time fun uncle energy that can help you better understand your finances and the workings of the New York Stock Exchange.
Where should I start? Tuchman has been a financial influencer before social media came onto the scene thanks to his appearance and local tourism. But for the best of the Einstein's tips, we recommend his TikTok.
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Haley Sacks of Mrs. Dow Jones
If you’re a regular user of social media, chances are you speak pop culture very fluently. For those who enjoy their financial outlooks filtered through the hottest meme of the moment, Mrs. Dow Jones is the finfluencer of your dreams. Haley Sacks wanted financial literacy she could relate to, so she created it! With her business Finance is Cool, Sachs uses memes and clips from the cultural zeitgeist to make financial literacy more relatable to Zillennial scrollers.
Whether it's the brilliant business moves of Beyoncé or tips for how to handle a recent job layoff, Sacks wants to do more than make finance accessible -- she wants to make it fashionable. And her audience of more than 520,000 followers proves that knowing your way around money is very in style.
Follow Mrs. Dow Jones for: financial outlooks on the business moves of the day, a sassy and entertaining analysis of trending pop-culture moments, and financial education for beginners (or fans of "Sex & the City" and "Keeping Up With the Kardashians").
Where should I start? Sachs makes content across multiple platforms, and each has its own style. For casual followers, Twitter and Instagram will make sure that a dollop of contemporary money tips appears on your feed. But for the deeper dives, spend some time with Mrs. Dow Jones on TikTok and YouTube.
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Ecomm Jess
Dr. Jessica "Jess" Spangler is a clinical pharmacist -- not the first profession you think of when it comes to investing. But after nearly a decade in school, she realized that she and her colleagues missed out on essential financial literacy lessons while racking up six figures or more in student loan debt.
Spangler took her experiences teaching medical professionals how to manage their finances and turned them into a teaching opportunity. Through her platform, Ecomm Jess provides straightforward breakdowns of investing concepts that anyone in any field of work can understand.
Follow Ecomm Jess for: beginner's tips for basic investing, everyday money hacks to help you save, and insider tips on affordable healthcare developments.
Where should I start? For great starter-investor content, check out Jess' YouTube videos. For a daily dose of quick-fin tips, Jess updates her TikTok account fairly regularly.
Natalie Garces of Invest with Nat
Natalie Garces is TikTok’s GenZ finance and partnerships guru. Whether she’s working with the newest innovative company helping consumers save money and build credit or she’s helping you throw an elegant wedding for an affordable price tag, don’t let Garces’ youthfulness fool you -- her feed shows that she has plenty of experience in investing and budgeting.
Her nearly 50 thousand followers on TikTok can attest to her ability to teach finance tips to even the greenest of newbies, all through her platform "Invest With Nat".
Follow Invest With Nat for: beginners' tips for investing and saving. Garces' library is great for teaching kids the basics, but entertaining for adults learning about money for the first time. She's also currently planning a wedding and taking her followers on her journey to throw an elegant bash without a hefty price tag.
Where should I start? Nat's claim to fame is her TikTok channel, but those who prefer Instagram can find her content there as well.
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Talaat & Tai McNeely of "His & Her Money"
Have you ever been in a relationship with someone whose financial outlook is completely different than yours? That's the story of high school sweethearts Talaat and Tai. Just a year before their wedding, the couple had a "come-to-Jesus" moment when they realized they'd soon have to start managing money as a team.
Together, the couple paid off debt brought into the marriage and a $330,000 mortgage in five years. The couple was overjoyed and wanted to share everything they'd learned about finance with others through their business His & Her Money. The two are now associate pastors at a local church, and their faith plays a role in the conversations on their podcast and YouTube channel.
Follow His & Her Money for: great dialogue for couples, particularly those who are Christian. Faith-based looks at well-being in connection with money and communication, with emphasis on establishing Black generational wealth.
Where should I start? If you're into a casual stroll, the His & Her Money Instagram account has stories and thoughts the couple find inspiring. But if you're looking for tips and techniques to apply to your budget, their YouTube channel hosts plenty of content to chew on.
