The 10 Most Popular Posts of 2017

Heyo! Thanks for all my birthday wishes yesterday – still time to get me a gift if you’d like! ;)

Time for our yearly round up of the most popular articles from the year… A great way to speed read if you’re new to the site and/or have forgotten all about it :)

And boy did we cover a lot! From pensions to prison to poop, escorts, milkmaids, fidget spinners, mayonnaise jars,Β  bill comas,Β tooth fairies, magic thread, cults, crack, donuts, graveyards, the Titanic, and – wait for it – STDs (Sexually Transmitted Debt)!

When I say we get around, we really get around, haha…

And it may or may not be the reason* our stats took a hit for the first time in a decade ;)

But here are the numbers in all its non-scandalous glory:

  • Total posts published: 155 (2,369 total!)
  • Total page views for the year: 3,727,921 (21,634,547 total)
  • Total visitors for the year: 2,908,453 (16,068,193 total)
  • Total number of sites sold: one
  • Total new additions to the family: .5 (and growing!)

*The drop probably has more to do with me spending less attention to the blog this year, as well as bringing on way too many writers and confusing the crap out of people, haha… But I’m back now, and 100% focused on my one and only online baby! Thanks for not kicking me out of your lives altogether just yet – we got a lot more $$$ chatting to do!

The Top 10 Most Popular Articles From The Blog

Alright, so here’s the “top” articles published on BudgetsAreSexy solely based on *stats* from 2017…Β  I’ll probably follow it up with my all-time *favorite* posts on Friday to make sure you saw all the gems I personally loved (they never get as much play as you hope!), but for today we stick with the clicks.

Here are the most viewed articles, starting with the highest first:

hammock relaxing waterfall

#1) 10 Things I Didn’t Expect in Early Retirement — This is a post from John of ESIMoney.com that ended up going viral on the site, and rightfully so. Some great takeaways in this one, especially #1 and #10 on the list! (And love that none of my *own* articles ever get the most traffic here, haha… another reason to showcase my personal favorites later ;))

#2) 6 of My Favorite Money Hacks — Another guest post, this time from our Summer columnist, Carl from 1500Days.com who shared some of his tips on how he was able to amass $1.8 Million and retire early at 43. He beat John above by 9 years, but he also ended with half the $$$ he did ;) Not that anyone’s counting…

#3) Will New Financial App, Clarity Money, Kill Mint.com? — Woo! A post I wrote! And interestingly, one around an app review at that… Did Clarity end up actually killing Mint.com like it had prognosticated earlier in the year?? Have you even heard of Clarity Money?? You’ll have to check out the post to learn more about them, but I think we all know the answer to the debate here ;)

401k millionaire

#4) How I Became A 401(k) Millionaire — One of my FAVORITE guest posts of the year! If only because it shows how simple becoming a millionaire is if you allow time – and a few other factors – to just do their thing…Β  As told by Fritz from TheRetirementManifesto.com.

#5) Ten Moves That Will Skyrocket Your Net Worth — Another guest post from ESI Money! Going in for the kill with another “10” item’d post, kinda similar to Carl’s up above… And as you can see, anything around net worth and early retirement is popular around here, haha…Β  But apparently only from those who have already done it vs those of us still working at it like me ;)

#6) 9 Things I No Longer Do With My Money — Here’s a whole bunch of stuff I’ve learned about money since starting this blog over 9 years ago :) Focusing on all the stuff I *don’t do* vs always on the stuff I *do* (which is the easier parts to recognize).

brian winch cleanlots

#7) Side Hustle #71: Trash Picker-Upper ($30-$50/hr!) — One of my all-time favorite HUSTLES we’ve featured on the site! Brian Winch stops by to talk about “America’s simplest business” that he’s been doing for over 30 years now, after turning his $200 investment into a $650,000+ per year business (!!!). Pretty wild read whether you’re a fan of manual labor or not.

#8) My Top 7 Disagreements With Personal Finance Experts — Another guest article we’ve featured here, this time around by Ern of EarlyRetirementNow.com. He takes on a handful of widely accepted nuggets in the personal finance world and explains why he passionately disagrees. Including two of the “biggies” – the 4% safe withdrawal rate, and the power of emergency funds (*gasp*).

#9) Are You Financially Average? — One of our more recent posts when we compared ourselves to others, even though we always say not to ;) But you gotta have some fun every now and then, right?

#10) Use This Chart to Save $1,000 This Year! — And lastly, a kick-ass chart that I can’t take credit for, other than realizing how awesome it was and making sure to broadcast it to the entire world ;) Here it is below if you want to take it and run… (Well done again, Jamie!!)

money saving chartAnd there you have it! The most viewed articles on our site this year! Here’s the lists from prior years too if you want to continue binge-reading today… Should be more fun than doing any “real” work if you’re one of the only ones in the office this week ;)

(What happened to 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013? I have no idea…)

Back on Friday with my *favorite* posts from the year!! Hope everyone’s having a great week!

Which of these above did you like the most?

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34 Comments

  1. Laurie@ThreeYear December 27, 2017 at 6:07 AM

    I am clicking through all of these again! Ha. They definitely have great titles. And I have to say, even though we try not to compare ourselves to others, one of the first articles I clicked was “Are You Financially Average?” Thanks for another year of great content!! And happy late birthday!!!! :)

    1. J. Money December 27, 2017 at 7:03 AM

      Haha, thanks Laurie :) Glad you’ve been enjoying it!

  2. Jason@WinningPersonalFinance December 27, 2017 at 6:49 AM

    Looks like I have some reading to do today. Thanks for all the great content this year J$!

    1. J. Money December 27, 2017 at 7:04 AM

      Thanks for reading, man!

  3. Cubert December 27, 2017 at 7:16 AM

    Man, I came within just 15 page views of beating you out in 2017. Still have some work to do, apparently…

    Happy belated Birthday, J.! And congrats on another awesome year of original content that keeps the good people coming back for more.

    1. J. Money December 27, 2017 at 7:20 AM

      Thanks Cubert! It’s def. helped reading all of y’alls content too over the years for ideas, as you tend to run out of your own after a decade :)

  4. ESI Money December 27, 2017 at 7:18 AM

    So cool! Appreciate you letting me write those for you!

    Congrats on an awesome year all the way around…

    1. J. Money December 27, 2017 at 7:21 AM

      You keep writing gems like those and you’re welcome to guest post any time on the site haha…

  5. Lily | The Frugal Gene December 27, 2017 at 7:44 AM

    Why isn’t the net worth calculation post on here! Boo, that one was great and it took your blood, sweat and tears to write it out (hopefully not really)!!! :)

    1. J. Money December 27, 2017 at 9:56 AM

      Haha yup – never know what will take off and what won’t, but from the # of comments on that one it was def. popular at last for the week! I’ll see if it breaks my all-time *favorite* posts for the year for Friday’s post :) Still have to go down the archives list and pick ’em out…

  6. Leo T. Ly December 27, 2017 at 7:56 AM

    The trash picker-upper is my favourites as it demonstrates something important to everyone – you don’t have to be a genius to earn a great living. You just have to be really good at what you do and increase the earning potential of what you do.

    Happy holidays J$. All the best for 2018.

    1. J. Money December 27, 2017 at 9:57 AM

      Pretty much, yup!

  7. Mike @ Balanced Dividends December 27, 2017 at 8:22 AM

    Impressive numbers! It’s amazing to see the volume and number of views/visitors over the years – an even more impressive, consistent accomplishment.

    I only started reading ~5 months ago, so I have a lot of catching up to do…

    Thanks for continuing to share your thoughts.

    1. J. Money December 28, 2017 at 7:09 AM

      You can just go though all the “best of” and “top favorite” posts and be caught up at least w/ the gems here, haha… But thank you for all the kind words and for reading! :)

  8. Ms. Frugal Asian Finance December 27, 2017 at 8:36 AM

    Great list! I didn’t get to read some of the posts on the list but will get to it right now.

    Happy Holidays, J!

  9. Miss Mazuma December 27, 2017 at 9:17 AM

    What a year!! I am super in awe of your consistency. Even when you took time off you still managed to find a new formula that worked for you. I gave up trying and the result is zero posts! ;)

    I am so excited for you all your big changes!! The new baby, first and foremost, but also freeing up your time and headspace for new endeavors. Here’s to a fabulous NEW YEAR!!

    1. J. Money December 28, 2017 at 7:45 AM

      Haha, thanks friend… Don’t forget this *IS* my main “job” though so I am more motivated than if it were just a side project ;) I’ve missed your thoughts DEARLY though in this community – I hope you come back, even if just once a month!! Pretty please, with a dollar bill on top?

  10. Amy @ Life Zemplified December 27, 2017 at 10:05 AM

    Such awesome posts! I got something from each one. Really liked Ern’s…makes you think.
    Another favorite is the announcement of your now .5 addition to the family :)

    1. J. Money December 28, 2017 at 7:47 AM

      Awwww, just a few more months to go and it’ll be a whole 1 addition to the family!

  11. Fritz @ TheRetirementManifesto December 27, 2017 at 10:07 AM

    #4!? No way! Thanks for making my day/week/month/year! (Yeah, I’ve gotta get a life, right?).

    1. J. Money December 28, 2017 at 7:48 AM

      Well I’ll tell you this – even if it didn’t make the Top trafficked list, it sure would have my Personal Favorites list :) Really really glad you were up for writing this out. Such a perfect example of how powerful 401ks can be! Or just consistent automated investing for that matter.

  12. Sean @ FrugalMoneyMan December 27, 2017 at 10:37 AM

    #4 is one that EVERYONE needs to read! 401(k)’s are one of the easiest methods for the average American worker to use to become wealthy. Understanding how investing in low cost index funds combined with compound interest working it’s magic over the course of decades, can leave anyone willing to understand it’s simplicity a millionaire (or MULTIMILLIONAIRE) at the end of their working years.

    I can’t wait to read the rest of those posts!

    1. J. Money December 28, 2017 at 7:49 AM

      Yup yup – pretty much!! Glad you agree!

  13. Brian Winch December 27, 2017 at 1:14 PM

    Wow! A great honor to make your top 10 at #7! Thanks and all the best in 2018.

    1. J. Money December 28, 2017 at 7:50 AM

      Yessirrr – one of my favorite hustles we’ve ever featured!

      And that old-school pic of you just made it 3x better, haha…

  14. Krystal @ Simple Finance Mom December 27, 2017 at 1:46 PM

    This is amazing! I remember most of these posts when they went live, and they are just as great today! Earmarking this for later…

    1. J. Money December 28, 2017 at 7:53 AM

      Thanks Krystal :)

  15. OMGF December 27, 2017 at 1:54 PM

    Wow! You were posting almost every other day. That’s a beast of a schedule. Smart idea to do a compilation of your greatest hits. I swear you have the best post ideas out there.

    1. J. Money December 28, 2017 at 7:54 AM

      hey thanks! we try to have some fun here!

  16. Jamie | Medium Sized Family December 27, 2017 at 8:51 PM

    This is me with my mouth dropped open!! I cannot believe my chart made your top ten. Fantastic. Thanks for running such an amazing blog, J! I always love to read your take on things. Here’s to an awesome 2018.

    1. J. Money December 28, 2017 at 7:55 AM

      Thanks friend!! One of my favorite ideas and graphics from the year – I was itching to get that puppy out there the second I saw it :) Keep sharing all your tricks!!! And write that #YearofNo guest post for me!! haha….

  17. ZJ Thorne December 27, 2017 at 10:34 PM

    May next year be just as interesting and have just as much variety!

  18. earlyretirementnow December 28, 2017 at 2:42 PM

    Thanks, J$! It was a great honor to write for your blog and an awesome belated Christmas Surprise to make it into the top-10 this year! Happy New Year from Big ERN!

    1. J. Money December 28, 2017 at 3:14 PM

      No problem :) Always fun to re-energize some of the older posts here too and get more discussions going! Already saw a cple more people on it sharing and agreeing with you :)