# The Millionaire Next Door

Source: https://listme.name/books/the-millionaire-next-door
Website: https://openlibrary.org/works/OL1986060W

Book on the habits of wealthy households in America

The Millionaire Next Door is a book by Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko, first published in 1996. It describes the habits of wealthy American households, including how they spend, shop, invest and build wealth. Print editions are listed in the Open Library record, and an audio CD edition from 2020 is listed too.

The book opens with the question of why many people are not as wealthy as they expect to be, and it then describes the households that have built wealth in America. Its subject list covers what wealthy people drive, where they shop, how they invest and how they became rich. Its answers focus on everyday habits rather than on specific investments or products.

The book is written for general readers and has a clear US focus, so its findings apply most directly to the United States. It was first published in 1996, so it is older than the newer personal finance titles here. It describes household habits rather than offering a portfolio plan, so it works well alongside The Psychology of Money for readers who want to think about how behavior shapes wealth.

- Paid | Print/Audiobook
- Price: Print and audio CD editions sold by booksellers
- Checked: 2026-10-10

## Strengths

- Describes real household habits
- Plain-language account for general readers
- Print and audio editions

## Limits

- First published in 1996, so older than newer titles
- US-focused, so less useful elsewhere

## Rankings

- #8 of 12 in [best Personal finance and investing books](https://listme.name/best/personal-finance-and-investing-books), score 84.0: Describes the habits of wealthy American households, covering how they spend, shop, invest and build wealth. It is US-focused and older than most titles here, so it ranks below the books above it.

## Alternatives

- [The Psychology of Money](https://listme.name/books/the-psychology-of-money), score 92.0
- [The Little Book of Common Sense Investing](https://listme.name/books/the-little-book-of-common-sense-investing), score 91.0
- [A Random Walk Down Wall Street](https://listme.name/books/a-random-walk-down-wall-street), score 90.0
- [The Intelligent Investor](https://listme.name/books/the-intelligent-investor), score 89.5
- [The Simple Path to Wealth](https://listme.name/books/the-simple-path-to-wealth), score 88.0
- [The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing](https://listme.name/books/the-bogleheads-guide-to-investing), score 86.5
- [Your Money or Your Life](https://listme.name/books/your-money-or-your-life), score 85.0
- [Die With Zero](https://listme.name/books/die-with-zero), score 83.5