The decision library

The Rules.

Money is chess, not checkers — and chess has rules. Every entry here ends in a verdict, not a list of options. Tools compute yours from your actual numbers; written rules show you the reasoning.

Interactive — verdicts from your numbers
What should I do with my next $1,000?
The flagship. Enter your income, debt, savings, and goals — get your exact next three moves, prioritized, with the math shown. Pawn to queen, one move at a time.
?! Good move or blunder?
Thinking about buying something? Get a real verdict — good move, wait, or blunder — plus the true cost most people never calculate, including what the money could do instead.
What type of spender are you?
Guardian, Optimizer, Dreamer, or Firefighter. Find your money pattern, your blind spot, your biggest leak — and the one move that fixes it.
Written — the reasoning behind the rules
1. The $1,000 priority ladder
Buffer, match, debt, growth — the exact order your money should flow, why the order matters more than the amounts, and the one exception that overrides everything.
2. Pay off debt or invest?
The most-asked question in personal finance, answered with one comparison and three clean zones — above 10% pay it, below 5% invest it, and what to do in between.
♟ New rules are added as real users ask real questions. Want one decided? Use any tool, join the list, and reply to the weekly email with your question.