Editorial Standards

How I Write and Check This Site

Who writes Simple Money Advice, where my numbers come from, how the calculators work and how the site makes money. If you see something on a page that doesn't line up with this, let me know.

Who writes it

I'm Michael Azzolina, a CPA with an MBA. I've spent more than 15 years in corporate finance, mostly in financial planning and analysis, at public companies, family-owned businesses and venture-backed startups. I write or review every article and calculator on this site, and if something is wrong, that's on me.

The personal stories are mine. In some of them I've changed small details to protect the privacy of people and businesses I've worked with. They're there to show how things played out for me, and your situation could go differently.

Where my facts come from

When I state a rule, a limit or a statistic, I check it against whoever sets it or measures it. The sources I use most:

Tax rules and limits: the IRS (irs.gov), including its yearly inflation adjustments.
Social Security and Medicare: ssa.gov and medicare.gov.
Banking, credit and consumer protection: the FDIC, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Reserve.
Prices, wages and inflation: the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Market history: Professor Aswath Damodaran's long-run return data at NYU Stern, and the SPIVA reports from S&P Dow Jones Indices comparing active funds with index funds.
Investor education: the SEC's Investor.gov.

Each article lists its main sources at the bottom. Where I'm giving my own opinion, I say so.

How the numbers work

I use the same assumptions across the site so the examples can be compared with each other. If a page uses something different, it says so on that page.

Long-run stock return

7% average annual return after inflation, unless a page says otherwise. The S&P 500 has averaged roughly 10% a year since 1928 before inflation and roughly 7% after (Damodaran, NYU Stern). That's a long-run average. There have been stretches of several years where real returns were negative.

Today's dollars

Since the 7% is after inflation, projected balances are shown in today's dollars, roughly what the money would buy now.

Compounding

Monthly. Contributions go in at the end of each month, and the annual rate is divided by 12.

Taxes and fees

Growth examples leave out taxes and investment fees unless I say otherwise. Both would lower the results.

Debt comparisons

Loan and card rates are quoted before inflation, so I compare them with the market's roughly 10% before-inflation average. I treat anything above about 10% as high-interest, and roughly 6% to 10% as a gray zone where reasonable people land in different places.

Tax figures

Current-year federal brackets, limits and thresholds from the IRS. State and local rules vary, and I usually leave them out.

Rounding

I round to make results easier to read, usually to the nearest dollar or thousand.

Every projection on the site is hypothetical. It shows how the math works under the assumptions listed, and I can't tell you what any investment will actually do.

Calculators

I build the calculators myself, and they run in your browser. The numbers you type in aren't sent to me or saved on a server. If you use "Share these results," your inputs go into the link so the person you send it to sees the same numbers, so only send it to people you'd be comfortable showing those numbers to.

Each calculator explains its assumptions and limits under "How this is calculated." Before a calculator goes live I check it against examples I've worked by hand, and I recheck it when tax figures change.

I use Google Analytics to count visits and to see how the tools get used, for example when someone saves a chart or shares a result. Those counts don't include the values you enter. The privacy policy has the details.

Reviews and updates

Every article shows a "Last updated" date. I go through tax brackets, contribution limits and other figures that change every year each January, and again whenever the law changes. I also try to reread every article at least once a year to check the facts and fix broken links. Live data, like the market returns page, updates on its own and shows the date it was pulled.

Corrections

If you find a mistake, please send it to me. I fix factual errors as soon as I can. If a fix changes a number or a conclusion, I add a note to the page saying what changed and when.

How the site makes money

The site runs ads through Google AdSense. Advertisers have no say in what I write about, and they don't see anything before it's published.

I don't use affiliate links, and I don't take sponsored posts or paid placements. If I mention a company or a product, it's because it helps explain something, and I'm not paid for it. I also don't sell courses or coaching. The articles, calculators and newsletter are free.

If that ever changes, I'll update this page and the disclosures page before it happens.

AI tools

I use AI tools to help with research, first drafts, editing and double-checking math. Nothing gets published without me. I check every article, number and calculator against its sources before it goes live, and I'm responsible for all of it.

This isn't advice

Everything here is general education. It isn't investment, tax or legal advice, and it isn't tailored to you. I'm a CPA, but reading this site doesn't make me your accountant or advisor. For decisions about your own money, talk with a licensed professional who knows your whole situation, like a fee-only fiduciary financial planner or a CPA.

Last updated October 2026.