Everyday planning
Debt Payoff Calculator
See how long your debts may take to repay and how much interest you may pay.
Financial calculatorsLearning resources and primary sources
Find the tools, explanations, books, and source material used throughout Dane Does Data Finance.
Independent examples, not endorsements.
Dane Does Data is not sponsored by, affiliated with, or endorsed by any company, product, or service listed here. These links are offered as example resources for further research—not as a recommendation that a particular product or service is right for you. Providers, features, fees, rates, and terms can change; review current information directly with each provider before making a decision.
Calculators
Long-term investing
VT Compounding Calculator
See how dividend reinvestment turned an earlier VT purchase into more shares.
Everyday planning
Time Funded Calculator
Turn a savings rate into the time required for each phase of the 15/3/2 strategy.
Historical starting lines
Career Start Calculator
Replay wages, saving, expenses, and monthly market returns from a selected career starting month.
Retirement planning
72(t) SEPP Calculator
Compare the three IRS methods for substantially equal periodic payments from a retirement account.
Retirement planning
Retirement Calculator
Explore how contributions, future income, expenses, withdrawals, and modeled returns may shape retirement.
Everyday planning
Net Worth Calculator
Add assets and liabilities to calculate today’s starting point and identify a useful next milestone.
Account structure
A practical money flow
Give every account one job
See how checking, emergency savings, an employer plan, a Roth IRA, and taxable brokerage can work together—from immediate access to long-term growth.
Quotes
FranklinCovey
Habit 2: Begin With the End in Mind
“Begin With the End in Mind” — define the desired result first, then align today’s decisions with it. Road trips are easier with GPS, and scavenger hunts are easier when you know what is on the list.
James Clear
You Do Not Rise to the Level of Your Goals; You Fall to the Level of Your Systems
Clear makes the point that every team wants to win the championship, but not every team trains the same way. Improve the system, and the results have room to follow.
Often attributed to Seneca
Luck Is What Happens When Preparation Meets Opportunity
The Seneca attribution appears to be modern rather than ancient, but the practical formula holds: preparation puts you in position to capitalize when opportunity appears.
Recommended Reading
JL Collins
A Simple Path to Wealth
JL Collins
JL Goes International, and to ETFs... Oh My!
Ramit Sethi
Money for Couples
Brian Preston
Millionaire Mission
External resources
Cash, accounts & contributions
Vanguard
Vanguard Cash Plus Account
An emergency-savings example with direct deposit, bill payments, and advertised PayPal and Venmo compatibility.
Alliant Credit Union
Alliant High-Rate Checking
An example checking account with debit-card access and a broad fee-free ATM network.
Alliant Credit Union
Does Alliant offer Zelle?
Alliant's current explanation of its payment-service options and Zelle availability.
Vanguard
Vanguard Brokerage Account
Vanguard's overview of taxable brokerage accounts, investments, taxes, and withdrawals.
Vanguard
Vanguard Roth IRA
Vanguard's Roth IRA overview, eligibility notes, withdrawal rules, and account-opening path.
Vanguard
Out of Sight, Out of Market: The IRA Cash Drag
Vanguard research on IRA contributions that remain uninvested in cash.
Internal Revenue Service
Retirement contribution limits
Current IRS contribution limits and Roth IRA income phase-out ranges.
Index funds & allocation
Vanguard
Vanguard Total World Stock ETF Portfolio Composition
Vanguard's portfolio composition details for the Total World Stock ETF (VT).
Vanguard
Vanguard Total World Stock ETF Performance
Vanguard's historical performance and fee details for the Total World Stock ETF (VT).
Fidelity
Fidelity Total Market Index Fund (FSKAX)
Fidelity's broad U.S. total-market index mutual fund.
Fidelity
Fidelity Total International Index Fund (FTIHX)
Fidelity's total international index mutual fund covering developed and emerging markets outside the United States.
Schwab Asset Management
Schwab Total Stock Market Index Fund (SWTSX)
Schwab's broad U.S. total-market index mutual fund.
Schwab Asset Management
Schwab International Equity ETF (SCHF)
Schwab's index ETF for developed equity markets outside the United States.
Schwab Asset Management
Schwab Emerging Markets Equity ETF (SCHE)
Schwab's index ETF for emerging-market equities.
S&P Dow Jones Indices
SPIVA Scorecards
Scorecards comparing actively managed funds with their benchmark indices across time horizons.
JL Collins
Selecting Your Asset Allocation
JL Collins on choosing an asset allocation and rebalancing it annually.
Retirement spending & income
Fidelity
Understanding Sequence of Returns Risk
An educational overview of sequence-of-returns risk near and during retirement.
Wikipedia
Trinity Study
Background on the historical research commonly associated with the traditional 4% withdrawal rule.
Bill Bengen
The 4% Rule: Bengen's Research History
Bengen explains his original 4.15% finding, the fixed inflation-adjusted withdrawal method, and his later 4.7% result.
William P. Bengen / Financial Advisor
Small-Cap Withdrawal Magic
Bengen explains how adding small-company stocks raised his historical 30-year withdrawal figure to about 4.5% in 2006.
Kitces.com
The Portfolio Size Effect and Using a Bond Tent to Navigate the Retirement Danger Zone
An explanation of retirement-date risk, sequence-of-returns risk, and bond-tent glidepaths.
TreasuryDirect
Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS)
How TIPS principal adjusts with inflation and how the securities pay interest.
Social Security Administration
Delayed Retirement Credits
How delaying retirement benefits affects the monthly payment.
Social Security Administration
Benefit Reduction for Early Retirement
The official monthly reduction formula for starting retirement benefits early.
Social Security Administration
Social Security Replacement Rates
Research defining replacement rates using benefits and earnings.
Social Security Administration
Get a Personalized Benefit Estimate
Find an estimate based on your own earnings history.
Mad Fientist
How to Access Retirement Funds Early
An overview of approaches for accessing retirement savings before traditional retirement age.
Internal Revenue Service
Substantially Equal Periodic Payments
IRS guidance for 72(t) substantially equal periodic payments.
Internal Revenue Service
Notice 2022-6
The IRS notice describing permitted SEPP calculation methods.
Market history & investing habits
The Money Guy Show
How to Win Financially in the Messy Middle
Additional perspective on the long accumulation period between foundational steps and financial independence.
The Money Guy Show
The First Rule of Investing Is a Lie
Additional perspective on continuing to invest consistently through changing market conditions.
Innovest
When Is the Right Time to Invest in the Stock Market?
An external analysis of First Trust's bull- and bear-market history chart and the case for time in the market.
Hartford Funds
Stocks Have Bounced Back Quickly Once They Reach a Bottom
The source cited for the strategy page's historical bear-market recovery figures.
Data & methodology
Early Retirement Now
SWR Toolbox v2.0
The historical monthly return and CPI source used in the retirement examples.
Dane Does Data on GitHub
Reproduce the 30-year strategy analysis
The script behind the strategy page's historical failure counts.
Bureau of Labor Statistics
Consumer Expenditure Surveys
The source tables used for the site's expense benchmarks.