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The Meaningful Money Handbook: Everything you need to KNOW and everything you need to DO to secure your financial future
In The Meaningful Money Handbook, personal finance expert and podcaster extraordinaire Pete Matthew guides you through everything you need to KNOW and everything you need to DO to build a secure financial future for yourself and your family. This is achievable for everyone by following three simple steps: 1. Spend less than you earn and clear debt. 2. Insure against disaster. 3. Build up your savings and invest wisely. You will learn: - How to get out of debt as quickly as possible. - Techniques for good financial control, so you can avoid getting into debt again. - The importance of insurance for laying down a foundation on which to build a solid financial plan, which isn't washed away by an unexpected disaster. - How to save and invest simply and efficiently so that you can work your way towards future financial freedom. No matter your starting position, or your existing level of comfort with dealing with your money, Pete Matthew's calm, straightforward and jargon-free approach will appeal to you and help you to set out on the right path. The Meaningful Money Handbook is a practical guide to succeeding with money by cutting out the stuff you don't need to know, and clarifying the essential things you need to do, to make a real difference to your life. Don't put it off any longer - pick up this book and start to take a meaningful approach to your money today.
230 pages, Paperback
First published September 17, 2018
76 people are currently reading
664 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
March 3, 2020
Listened on Audible.
I am not quite sure why Goodreads keep having different versions of the same book listed on the website. Not even separated by different languages, just format. Which is really irritating.
Anyway that is irrelevant to the book itself.
I have listened to a lot of financial podcast in the past year. Sort of started when I was listening to the Minimalists and went from there. The FI movement is not as big in Europe so whilst it is all fun and games to listen to Dave Ramsey shouts at me, the actual financial planning techniques are pretty useless for someone not living in the US.
This is where the Meaningful Money Handbook comes in for the likes of us living in Europe, or UK specifically. It gives a pretty comprehensive guide on some key points you should follow if you'd like to gain control of your finances. It is not overly complicated but covers topic that 90% of the people would use for their personal finance. I have yet to meet anyone my age that exceeds the ISA and pension allowance every year, start-up gurus and investment bankers excluded. But honestly those don't bother with personal finance either since they are blowing most of the money on coke (ironic for the investment bankers isn't it).
It is really shocking to me how crazy we do not teach personal finance in school when I was taught some pretty fucking stupid crap instead. Religious Studies being one of those compulsory courses I had to take. So I am quite grateful for people like Pete Matthew to break this down in a simple and easily understandable terms for the general public.
I particularly found chapter 16, 17, 18, 19, 23, 25, 27 useful for my personal needs.
Now if you live in the US or want to get familiar with good financial control mindset, perhaps Dave Ramsey's infamous Total Money Makeover will be more to your taste. Because he talks / mostly shouts a lot about the importance of spending within your means, which I found to be a really fundamental point to cover before you do anything else for your finance.
But if you live in the UK and does not like being bashed with the author's religious views, or simply enjoy being talked to on Audible like a grown human, then I feel the Meaningful Money Handbook is probably the best you can find in this category.
I am not quite sure why Goodreads keep having different versions of the same book listed on the website. Not even separated by different languages, just format. Which is really irritating.
Anyway that is irrelevant to the book itself.
I have listened to a lot of financial podcast in the past year. Sort of started when I was listening to the Minimalists and went from there. The FI movement is not as big in Europe so whilst it is all fun and games to listen to Dave Ramsey shouts at me, the actual financial planning techniques are pretty useless for someone not living in the US.
This is where the Meaningful Money Handbook comes in for the likes of us living in Europe, or UK specifically. It gives a pretty comprehensive guide on some key points you should follow if you'd like to gain control of your finances. It is not overly complicated but covers topic that 90% of the people would use for their personal finance. I have yet to meet anyone my age that exceeds the ISA and pension allowance every year, start-up gurus and investment bankers excluded. But honestly those don't bother with personal finance either since they are blowing most of the money on coke (ironic for the investment bankers isn't it).
It is really shocking to me how crazy we do not teach personal finance in school when I was taught some pretty fucking stupid crap instead. Religious Studies being one of those compulsory courses I had to take. So I am quite grateful for people like Pete Matthew to break this down in a simple and easily understandable terms for the general public.
I particularly found chapter 16, 17, 18, 19, 23, 25, 27 useful for my personal needs.
Now if you live in the US or want to get familiar with good financial control mindset, perhaps Dave Ramsey's infamous Total Money Makeover will be more to your taste. Because he talks / mostly shouts a lot about the importance of spending within your means, which I found to be a really fundamental point to cover before you do anything else for your finance.
But if you live in the UK and does not like being bashed with the author's religious views, or simply enjoy being talked to on Audible like a grown human, then I feel the Meaningful Money Handbook is probably the best you can find in this category.
November 4, 2025
very helpful & surprisingly an enjoyable read considering how boring i find money
January 2, 2021
The content on savings, budget, debts and etc are pretty standard. Most of which you will be able to find for free on the internet. It is well written and probably the best written section in the book in my opinion.
The section on investment is a bit all over the place, honestly, just a bit messy. I understood it pretty well but that’s only because I have a financially savvy friend who explained a lot of it before, I can only imagine how confusing it might be to read all that stuff for the first time. I’ve been a long time listener of the podcast, and frankly found it to be better structured compared to the written version. It felt more like a wiki than a handbook.
I found the section on insurance the most helpful, or maybe that’s because it’s the area I lack the most understanding prior to reading this book. I feel like I have a path forward based on some of the recommendations provided in the book. I do wish it was more detailed, but this section alone made this book worth reading for me.
The section on investment is a bit all over the place, honestly, just a bit messy. I understood it pretty well but that’s only because I have a financially savvy friend who explained a lot of it before, I can only imagine how confusing it might be to read all that stuff for the first time. I’ve been a long time listener of the podcast, and frankly found it to be better structured compared to the written version. It felt more like a wiki than a handbook.
I found the section on insurance the most helpful, or maybe that’s because it’s the area I lack the most understanding prior to reading this book. I feel like I have a path forward based on some of the recommendations provided in the book. I do wish it was more detailed, but this section alone made this book worth reading for me.
June 24, 2021
Well written advice that everyone should read to get a good start on your own money . Highly recommended this should be given to all teenagers before that start life x
September 3, 2023
very easy to read and helpful for a silly little girl that doesn’t know anything about finance - only giving three stars as i am not a finance bro & not passionate enough to rate it higher 💋
November 15, 2021
Good UK centric personal finance book that covers the basics
December 20, 2019
Listened on Audible.
I am not quite sure why Goodreads keep having different versions of the same book listed on the website. Not even separated by different languages, just format. Which is really irritating.
Anyway that is irrelevant to the book itself.
I have listened to a lot of financial podcast in the past year. Sort of started when I was listening to the Minimalists and went from there. The FI movement is not as big in Europe so whilst it is all fun and games to listen Dave Ramsey shouts at me, the actual financial planning techniques are pretty useless to me.
This is where the Meaningful Money Handbook comes in for the likes of us living in Europe, or UK specifically. It gives a pretty comprehensive guide on some key points you should follow if you'd like to gain control of your finances. It is not overly complicated but covers topic that 90% of the people would use for their personal finance. I have yet to meet anyone my age that exceeds the ISA and pension allowance every year, start-up gurus and investment bankers excluded. But honestly those don't bother with personal finance either since they are blowing most of the money on coke (ironic for the investment bankers isn't it).
It is really shocking to me how crazy we do not teach personal finance in school when I was taught some pretty fucking stupid crap instead. Religious Studies being one of those compulsory courses I had to take. So I am quite grateful for people like Pete Matthew to break this down in a simple and easily understandable terms for the general public.
I particularly found chapter 16, 17, 18, 19, 23, 25, 27 useful for my personal needs.
Now if you live in the US or want to get familiar with good financial control mindset, perhaps Dave Ramsey's infamous Total Money Makeover will be more to your taste. Because he talks / mostly shouts a lot about the importance of spending within your means, which I found to be a really fundamental point to cover before you do anything else for your finance.
But if you live in the UK and does not like being bashed with the author's religious views, or simply enjoy being talked to on Audible like a grown human, then I feel the Meaningful Money Handbook is probably the best you can find in this category.
I am not quite sure why Goodreads keep having different versions of the same book listed on the website. Not even separated by different languages, just format. Which is really irritating.
Anyway that is irrelevant to the book itself.
I have listened to a lot of financial podcast in the past year. Sort of started when I was listening to the Minimalists and went from there. The FI movement is not as big in Europe so whilst it is all fun and games to listen Dave Ramsey shouts at me, the actual financial planning techniques are pretty useless to me.
This is where the Meaningful Money Handbook comes in for the likes of us living in Europe, or UK specifically. It gives a pretty comprehensive guide on some key points you should follow if you'd like to gain control of your finances. It is not overly complicated but covers topic that 90% of the people would use for their personal finance. I have yet to meet anyone my age that exceeds the ISA and pension allowance every year, start-up gurus and investment bankers excluded. But honestly those don't bother with personal finance either since they are blowing most of the money on coke (ironic for the investment bankers isn't it).
It is really shocking to me how crazy we do not teach personal finance in school when I was taught some pretty fucking stupid crap instead. Religious Studies being one of those compulsory courses I had to take. So I am quite grateful for people like Pete Matthew to break this down in a simple and easily understandable terms for the general public.
I particularly found chapter 16, 17, 18, 19, 23, 25, 27 useful for my personal needs.
Now if you live in the US or want to get familiar with good financial control mindset, perhaps Dave Ramsey's infamous Total Money Makeover will be more to your taste. Because he talks / mostly shouts a lot about the importance of spending within your means, which I found to be a really fundamental point to cover before you do anything else for your finance.
But if you live in the UK and does not like being bashed with the author's religious views, or simply enjoy being talked to on Audible like a grown human, then I feel the Meaningful Money Handbook is probably the best you can find in this category.
October 11, 2019
Excellent read for all areas
Loved that it was simply laid out and although I've read more complex books, I still gained alot from reading this one.
Loved that it was simply laid out and although I've read more complex books, I still gained alot from reading this one.
January 23, 2023
I listened to this on Audible.
Good to know before picking up this book is, that it's quite UK focused, and that it was released 2018, before the pandemic. As someone who's from Finland, it's nice to get away from US only concepts but I ended up learning a lot of UK only concepts.
While I don't pick up these books hoping to learn a lot anymore, it is more a reminder to myself to actively stay on track with my personal finance planning.
The book begins with a section on Budgeting and savings. Great standard advice, some good examples and while nothing super new, it's quite well written. Made me reflect on what I'm already doing.
The second section was on insurance and preparing for disaster, this was an area that often doesn't interest me, and while I didn't particularly enjoy listening to different insurance types (UK specific also), it did really open up the importance for me to include insurances in my financial planning and to view it as a part of my emergency fund and disaster recovery. This made the book worth it to read for me personally.
The investment section rounds out the book but it's messy. I know a lot of the information from before, but it's still confusing and a bit poorly structured. It made investing feel unapproachable, and still I felt left some important gaps. One example would be that it talked about investing in funds that track an index for example, and to run a certain stock to bond % ratio for according to your risk tolerance, while barely talking about which indexes is safe to track. If the person invests in an index tracking the largest British companies, while the British economy tanks it's not great diversification. It didn't at all talk about investing into individual stocks, which a lot of people are attracted to, while it could simply say it's not a great idea, it still only talks as if an active investor only tries investing into different funds. It also raises some ideas that I dislike, perhaps as an effect of the meme stock mania, like "It's not a loss until you sell" and generally feels like it doesn't capture the picture of the majority of investors today.
Would I recommend this book? Yes if you live in the UK, it's a great introduction to all your special account types, taxes reliefs and insurances. Would I recommend it outside the UK, some parts like the insurance and budgeting maybe.
Good to know before picking up this book is, that it's quite UK focused, and that it was released 2018, before the pandemic. As someone who's from Finland, it's nice to get away from US only concepts but I ended up learning a lot of UK only concepts.
While I don't pick up these books hoping to learn a lot anymore, it is more a reminder to myself to actively stay on track with my personal finance planning.
The book begins with a section on Budgeting and savings. Great standard advice, some good examples and while nothing super new, it's quite well written. Made me reflect on what I'm already doing.
The second section was on insurance and preparing for disaster, this was an area that often doesn't interest me, and while I didn't particularly enjoy listening to different insurance types (UK specific also), it did really open up the importance for me to include insurances in my financial planning and to view it as a part of my emergency fund and disaster recovery. This made the book worth it to read for me personally.
The investment section rounds out the book but it's messy. I know a lot of the information from before, but it's still confusing and a bit poorly structured. It made investing feel unapproachable, and still I felt left some important gaps. One example would be that it talked about investing in funds that track an index for example, and to run a certain stock to bond % ratio for according to your risk tolerance, while barely talking about which indexes is safe to track. If the person invests in an index tracking the largest British companies, while the British economy tanks it's not great diversification. It didn't at all talk about investing into individual stocks, which a lot of people are attracted to, while it could simply say it's not a great idea, it still only talks as if an active investor only tries investing into different funds. It also raises some ideas that I dislike, perhaps as an effect of the meme stock mania, like "It's not a loss until you sell" and generally feels like it doesn't capture the picture of the majority of investors today.
Would I recommend this book? Yes if you live in the UK, it's a great introduction to all your special account types, taxes reliefs and insurances. Would I recommend it outside the UK, some parts like the insurance and budgeting maybe.
January 25, 2023
Bel manuale dal tipico stile anglossassone: cosa devi sapere, cosa devi fare. In effetti non occorre altro. Questo è uno di quei libri che non possono essere letti e archiviati ma si trasformano in compagni di vita. I contenuti trattati sono 3:
1_ Creazione di un budget e monitoraggio delle spese;
2_ Approfondimento sui prodotti assicurativi, come trattarli in relazione ad alcune aree della nostra vita;
3_ Investimento dei risparmi, diretta conseguenza del primo punto;
Ogni argomento viene spacchettato in semplici concetti con una guida sulla loro corretta implementazione pratica.
Come tutti i manuali la costante applicazione dei concetti esplicati porta alla padronanza della disciplina, quindi non resta che passare all'azione.
1_ Creazione di un budget e monitoraggio delle spese;
2_ Approfondimento sui prodotti assicurativi, come trattarli in relazione ad alcune aree della nostra vita;
3_ Investimento dei risparmi, diretta conseguenza del primo punto;
Ogni argomento viene spacchettato in semplici concetti con una guida sulla loro corretta implementazione pratica.
Come tutti i manuali la costante applicazione dei concetti esplicati porta alla padronanza della disciplina, quindi non resta che passare all'azione.
December 31, 2024
This is an excellent read by one of the UK's most trusted and respected personal finance experts.
In this book, author Pete Matthew, host of the Meaningful Money Podcast and website, simplifies personal finance topics offering practical advice on getting out of debt, building savings, getting started with investments, putting money away into pensions, and many other aspects of financial planning.
I wish I had read this book when I was much younger, as it demistifies many of the confusing aspects of personal finances. What exactly is a tracker? How do Bonds work? What is an ISA? The answers are all in this book in simple, easy to understand terms.
I'd recommend this book to anybody in the UK - it really is a manual for your financial life!
In this book, author Pete Matthew, host of the Meaningful Money Podcast and website, simplifies personal finance topics offering practical advice on getting out of debt, building savings, getting started with investments, putting money away into pensions, and many other aspects of financial planning.
I wish I had read this book when I was much younger, as it demistifies many of the confusing aspects of personal finances. What exactly is a tracker? How do Bonds work? What is an ISA? The answers are all in this book in simple, easy to understand terms.
I'd recommend this book to anybody in the UK - it really is a manual for your financial life!
June 6, 2020
I read several books about managing money and some knowledge from my university, and this book makes it simpler to understand. If you do not have background in economics or finance or business in general, this is a very nice book.
The reason I bought this is that I wanted to understand how UK-ish personal finance works, such as investment opportunity and tax. He can explain it very well.
I recommend this book for beginners, but not for intermediate or advanced readers.
If you want to have "the book" on your shelf to remind yourself to build small habits in terms of managing money, this is the one.
The reason I bought this is that I wanted to understand how UK-ish personal finance works, such as investment opportunity and tax. He can explain it very well.
I recommend this book for beginners, but not for intermediate or advanced readers.
If you want to have "the book" on your shelf to remind yourself to build small habits in terms of managing money, this is the one.
September 28, 2019
A life changing book
This book is a wonderful gift for all ages and still applicable even if you don't live in the UK. I live in Kenya and I still found many useful ideas that can be applied outside of the UK. One can tweak ideas learnt to fit into their country situation. I would recommend every parent buys this book as a valuable gift for their children within the first year of employment. Many people in their 40s, 50s, 60s will wish they knew this in their 20s but it's never too late to start.
This book is a wonderful gift for all ages and still applicable even if you don't live in the UK. I live in Kenya and I still found many useful ideas that can be applied outside of the UK. One can tweak ideas learnt to fit into their country situation. I would recommend every parent buys this book as a valuable gift for their children within the first year of employment. Many people in their 40s, 50s, 60s will wish they knew this in their 20s but it's never too late to start.
December 28, 2018
An indispensable, accessible and actionable framework for financial freedom, for anyone who uses money. Pete Matthew generously condenses much wisdom from his many years' of advising and teaching on financial planning to provide an invaluable companion to his pioneering Meaningful Money podcast.
I doubt there are (m)any investments with a better return than the rewards I'll reap from buying and applying Pete's book. Thank you Pete!
I doubt there are (m)any investments with a better return than the rewards I'll reap from buying and applying Pete's book. Thank you Pete!
April 19, 2021
Feel x100 better when thinking about money because of this book, it explains so simply terms i have misunderstood for years, gives practical advice, budgeting tips and spreadsheet which I now use and love. As I progress, and save for emergency I will re-read the last section of this book on investment as I know parts of it will have gone over my head at the minute but will be super useful in the next year or so.
March 22, 2024
Content very well laid out and with an easy step by step approach and frequent summaries to help you stay on track throughout. He explains the jargon as he goes. I think the audio book version of this is the right choice since the author has a podcast under the same name.
Delivery spot on and he speaks with a nice easy flow which I find makes all the difference for audio books. I’d probably recommend going over the full book a second time to reinforce the points/plan of action.
Delivery spot on and he speaks with a nice easy flow which I find makes all the difference for audio books. I’d probably recommend going over the full book a second time to reinforce the points/plan of action.
June 10, 2025
This should be compulsory reading for all aspiring financial planners. It really does distil down the basics which should be considered when constructing any financial plan; be that with an adviser, on your own or with your loved ones.
A lot of value to be taken from this book for anyone and everyone.
Pete Matthew's has a way of taking the complex and making it seem so simple. Highly recommend, especially for those who are just starting to think about personal finance.
A lot of value to be taken from this book for anyone and everyone.
Pete Matthew's has a way of taking the complex and making it seem so simple. Highly recommend, especially for those who are just starting to think about personal finance.
April 10, 2019
Good book covering the basics of how to start saving and investing from a UK perspective. Not much new if you're spent some time over the years reading money saving expert etc, but nicely packaged in one place. Worth reading if new to personal finance but less to be gained otherwise. Still a nice quick read as a refresher though.
April 4, 2020
After reading the handbook cover-to-cover, I have a much clearer idea of what I should do to help me reach at least some of my future financial goals – like buying a house, living comfortably, and eventually, retiring comfortably.
http://amandahwithanh.com/2020/02/01/...
http://amandahwithanh.com/2020/02/01/...
February 27, 2024
I have read this book a few times and leant it out to a few others trying to learn more about money management.
Pete Matthew’s has made an easy to read and understand handbook and I would highly recommend giving it a chance as it helped me whenever I started. Laying great foundations of understanding if you are trying to enter reading more financial readings this is a great start
Pete Matthew’s has made an easy to read and understand handbook and I would highly recommend giving it a chance as it helped me whenever I started. Laying great foundations of understanding if you are trying to enter reading more financial readings this is a great start
June 10, 2019
A clear and concise guide to sorting your finances. The author explains things really well in a way that resonates with you a long time after you've put the book down. Part counselling, part educational, I have benefited from the practical advice and it has re-evaluated my relationship with money
September 28, 2020
The book I needed at this moment (and 5 years ago, honestly).
Perfect if you work in the UK although most of the principles would apply in most countries with a healthy economy, i.e, where you can save money at the end of the month.
This book is a must.
Perfect if you work in the UK although most of the principles would apply in most countries with a healthy economy, i.e, where you can save money at the end of the month.
This book is a must.
January 29, 2024
Would highly recommend this book to anyone who knows they should probably get their finances in order but not sure how or where to start. It breaks it down into very simple steps, written is simple jargon free language. His style of writing is warm and personable, much like his podcast.
May 27, 2019
Damn
This book is excellent. Covers the basics from the ground up.
This is from a complete beginner. This should really be taught in school!
This book is excellent. Covers the basics from the ground up.
This is from a complete beginner. This should really be taught in school!
December 4, 2019
Thank you for practical advice peter
I only leave review on good books & I can sincerely praise you for practical tips. Thank you very much pete I shall beyond fan from now on-:))
I only leave review on good books & I can sincerely praise you for practical tips. Thank you very much pete I shall beyond fan from now on-:))
December 13, 2019
A useful guide for getting started. As someone not from the UK I could still fire my motivation for financial change with this book. Easy to read 👍
February 8, 2020
Great money read
Informative and easy to digest and plan, a very helpful, practical tool to assess where you are, where you want to be and how to get there.
Informative and easy to digest and plan, a very helpful, practical tool to assess where you are, where you want to be and how to get there.
April 26, 2020
One of the few books I'd recommend to everyone, regardless of who they are.
June 21, 2021
Interesting read especially the first 8 chapters , would recommend this book for information on how to save and invest very easy to use and understand will be putting the book to practice.
October 1, 2021
An OK book, but more of 'the same' as some of the ones I ve read before. Nothing too spectacular or new. Not for me, at least
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews