How to make sure you get the right version of The Simple Path to Wealth

As most of you already know by now, as of May 20, 2025 there is a new, updated version of The Simple Path to Wealth available. Indeed, it has already reached #7 on the New York Times Best Sellers List.

If you buy the book at Barnes & Noble or any local bookstore, you’ll automatically get the new edition.

But, somewhat confusingly, the original is also still available on Amazon.

This is your guide to make sure you are buying the version you want

There are four different formats of the book:   

A hard cover, a paperback, an E-book, and an Audible version. 

On Amazon there are four buttons allowing you to choose between them.

However, only two of these are currently the new edition. The other two are the original. 

Here’s which is which:

    • The Hardcover is the new edition.
    • The E-book is the new edition.
    • The Paperback is the original.
    • The Audible version is the original.

The new edition is expanded and updated, and frankly I think it is the better book.

That said, The Simple Path itself is the same in both. So if you just want to know how to make this Path work for you, either will serve you well. 

The paperback has the advantage of being less expensive and the audio version provides that unique experience.

So, why aren’t all four the new edition?

Paperback:

While we have asked Amazon to stop printing and selling the original paperback, their policy is to keep it for sale until the existing inventory has been exhausted.

Once that supply is gone, only the new edition hard cover will be available. In a couple of years, as is traditional in the publishing world, my publishers will produce and offer the new edition in paperback.

Audio:

My contract with Audible runs through 2027 and this gives them the rights to sell the original audio version until then.

Once that contract has run its course, we will be free to produce an audio version of the new edition.

However, I may or may not be the one narrating it.

I mention this because so many have told me how much they like hearing it in my voice.

While I would like the new edition to also be in my voice, recording an audio book is a large and fairly unpleasant task. It is one I simply may not be up for when the time comes. We’ll just have to wait and see.

Hopefully this short guide will help ensure the version you order is the version you want.

Whichever version you read or listen to, I also hope it resonates with you and sets you on the path to your own rich, free life!

********************************************

Addendum:

Here’s my conversation about the new edition with James Clear

Here’s a sample of his insights and why I subscribe to his newsletter:

I’m usually asleep from 5am to 6am, but when I wake up early I tend to enjoy it. Start the day slow. Watch the sunrise. Get a few things done before everyone else wakes up.

Meanwhile, I am often awake from 10pm to 11pm and I find that I tend to use the time poorly. Passively watching TV or scrolling on a screen. Late night snacking. Overthinking things that are unimportant.

Trading the last hour of the night for the first hour in the morning would be a pretty high value trade for me.

Which hours of your day tend to return the most value and which ones tend to return the least?

********************************************

Should you be so inclined, you can sign up for

The Simple Path Newsletter here.

Subscribe to JL’s Newsletter

Important Resources

  • Talent Stacker is a resource that I learned about through my work with Jonathan and Brad at ChooseFI, and first heard about Salesforce as a career option in an episode where they featured Bradley Rice on the Podcast. In that episode, Bradley shared how he reached FI quickly thanks to his huge paychecks and discipline in keeping his expenses low. Jonathan teamed up with Bradley to build Talent Stacker, and they have helped more than 1,000 students from all walks of life complete the program and land jobs like clockwork, earning double or even triple their old salaries using a Salesforce certification to break into a no-code tech career.
  • Credit Cards are like chain saws. Incredibly useful. Incredibly dangerous. Resolve to pay in full each month and never carry a balance. Do that and they can be great tools. Here are some of the very best for travel hacking, cash back and small business rewards.
  • Empower is a free tool to manage and evaluate your investments. With great visuals you can track your net worth, asset allocation, and portfolio performance, including costs. At a glance you'll see what's working and what you might want to change. Here's my full review.
  • Betterment is my recommendation for hands-off investors who prefer a DIFM (Do It For Me) approach. It is also a great tool for reaching short-term savings goals. Here is my Betterment Review
  • NewRetirement offers cool tools to help guide you in answering the question: Do I have enough money to retire? And getting started is free. Sign up and you will be offered two paths into their retirement planner. I was also on their podcast and you can check that out here:Video version, Podcast version.
  • Tuft & Needle (T&N) helps me sleep at night. They are a very cool company with a great product. Here’s my review of what we are currently sleeping on: Our Walnut Frame and Mint Mattress.
  • Vanguard.com

Comments

  1. LUIS says

    JL – reading the revised version. Thanks for your efforts in producing this great book.
    Semper Fi,
    Luis

  2. Anthony Lindsey says

    Thanks for this information. The book is great. I bought 2 copies of the hardback book. The copyright date is 2016. This leads me to believe that I the versions I received are the original. I wanted to let you know that there look to be original hardback versions available on Amazon.

  3. B says

    Have you considered training an AI with your voice so that it can do the complete recording?

    PS: JL, you have made a great impact in my financial literacy journey. Thank you! Mahalo nui!

  4. Vorlic says

    Thought I’d just write, JL, thanks in very large part to your lessons which we started following in 2015, I and my wife and two children are now living happily in the south of France after finally emigrating from the UK about a year ago. We’re now doing what we always wanted to do. Debt free, with FU cash and a strong portfolio. Over 60% savings rate for several years of that on just my own mildly above average UK salary. I suppose I should have contributed to your Pathfinders piece, but just never managed to put the time aside – you see, life is now so full of fun activities 😃

    I would have sent you this in an email again but I think you blocked me some years ago when I went off on one about a certain rich guy and a certain stock 🤣🤣🤗 (I haven’t changed my mind, but these days I would not bother bothering you with my ideas!)

    Very best regards
    Vorlic

  5. Keith Berger, MD says

    I’m annoyed. I just bought the audible version on Amazon about a week ago and had no clue (nor was given any) that there was an updated version. Funny thing, now I have to buy the book twice! It would be great if the authors gave a credit for people (there are undoubtedly others) who went on good faith and are now in my position.

    • MD says

      I can understand you being disappointed having to buy the same book twice and it is not fair to blame the author, JL for the mixup. That is upto Amazon and JL has no control over their website and how they sell. Consider complaining to Amazon and asking for a refund. Many times, they will refund if it was a misunderstanding like this.

      • Ryan says

        The audio book is brilliant and much the better as it’s read by JL Collins. I’d be happy with your purchase personally and grateful for the advice. I’ve listened to it many times!

  6. Kate Durrant says

    Hi JL! I came across your blog in my twenties, and thanks to you, now that I’m in my mid to late thirties my little family is now well on our way to financial independence. I’m enjoying the updated version of the Simple Path to Wealth. I also started a small personal finance group with some other women I’m friends with several years ago and we often talk about the principles I first came across here.

    Just out of curiosity, I was surprised to see that Mr. Money Mustache didn’t join the Zoom for the new release- any reason for that? It was great to hear from James Clear though- I really enjoyed reading Atomic Habits a couple years ago.

    Thanks again for sharing (and updating) your wisdom! It has made such a difference in our lives.
    -Kate

  7. Ellen Louise Guardiano says

    Truly enjoyed “Mariah International – All That Glitters…” post
    you shared in your most recent e-mail, J.L.!
    Chuckled all the way through!

  8. Ellen Louise Guardiano says

    Truly enjoyed “Mariah International – All That Glitters…” post
    you shared in your most recent Newsletter e-mail, J.L.!
    Chuckled all the way through!

  9. Think and Talk Money says

    I’ve been recommended the book on my blog and default to linking to the cheaper paperback option. Now that I know the newer version isn’t available in paperback, I’ll be sure to link to the hard cover.

    Really enjoying (re)reading the book! Picking up on things that I either had forgotten or didn’t pay close enough attention to when I read it the first time.

    I’d recommend anyone who read the book originally to pick up the new version and get the benefit of the time-tested lessons combined with all your new life perspectives.

    Thanks for the clarification about the versions, Uncle JL!

    Matt

  10. Jake G says

    I do hope you are up to recording the new edition. I have listened your reading of the first edition countless times when commuting. It remains a real pleasure.

    All the best to you and Mrs. Collins.

  11. Yun says

    I bought your book in the morning and finished by dinner time. Wish I had discovered the first edition and I wish I had made different choices. BUT, as you said, it is never too late. Thanks for making it simple and not being judgy. Consider me a new fan.

  12. Audra Russell says

    Unfortunately, I am reading the paperback. I guess I’ll go to the store and get the latest one. I’m on chapter 19. I do have a question. I just turned 55. I’ve been a homemaker since 1999. I have no retirement. I just started my own business last year and it is growing slowly but steadily. My husband works but is just starting to rebuild his retirement (don’t ask…just know it wasn’t my doing). My business only has one debt, a dump trailer I upgraded to because my utility trailer wasn’t able to handle the bigger jobs I was getting (I own a junk removal business). Vanguard has a steep entry point and I don’t want to delay building my wealth any further, so I have started investing with the Robinhood app. Is that not good? I know nothing about investing and in addition to your book, I have Mr. Bogle’s book and about ten other books that I am reading to understand investing and build my financial literacy. But if you could let me know if Robinhood is a good way to start, I would appreciate it.

    • JL Collins says

      Hi Audra,

      First congrats on your business, it and you look awesome!

      Personally, I wouldn’t use Robinhood. This is more of a platform designed for traders.

      When you say ‘Vanguard has a steep entry point…’ I gather you mean the $3000 required initial investment amount for VTSAX. No worries, you can just buy VTI instead with any amount you care to start with. VTI is the ETF (exchange traded fund) version of VTSAX. Same portfolio, even a slightly lower expense ratio.

      For the mechanics of getting started, just give Vanguard a call and they’ll walk you through it. So will the folks at Fidelity, Schwab and the like. But you’ll have to ask what their total stock market index ETF is called.

      Congrats on starting your journey!

  13. Mark S says

    Greetings Mr. Collins!

    I hope this message finds you well. I have a quick question about TDFs.

    I am a late starter on getting my 403(b) going; I am 56 years old and, well, it is a long story. I am in education and am now perusing options for 403(b) plans. My school offers a credit union partner, a state plan (CalSTRS Pension2), and a lot of other options, including using Vanguard directly. I am thinking of going for VFORX (a TDF set for 2040, something I am guessing you already know) and bypassing the credit union (which levies a .73 fee for consultation and management, whether you make use of the service or not) and CalSTRS since I would be getting a product similar to what I am being offered through those two, but for lower fees.

    Any thoughts on this are very welcome!
    Mark

    • Shallyn L says

      Greetings Mark,

      You’ve zeroed in on the key issue: fees.

      When investment options are broadly similar—and most diversified Target Date Funds are—cost becomes the deciding factor. The .73% fee charged by the credit union is a significant and ongoing drag on returns, especially over time. Paying for “management” you may not even use rarely adds value.

      I’m also an educator who has chosen to go directly through Vanguard using a low-cost Target Date Fund (2055) to keep things simple and let more of my money work for me. Vanguard’s structure is designed to minimize expenses, and that advantage compounds quietly but powerfully over the years.

  14. BABURAJ LAKSHMANAN says

    Dear Mr. Collins,

    I hope this note finds you well. My name is Baburaj, and I recently finished reading The Simple Path to Wealth. I wanted to thank you sincerely for sharing such timeless wisdom in such a simple way.

    Your lessons on financial independence, low-cost index investing, and the peace of “F-you money” have changed my perspective on money and life. I work as a maintenance engineer in India, and your ideas helped me simplify my financial plan — focusing on long-term growth, reducing complexity, and valuing freedom over luxury.

    After reading your book, I’ve started investing regularly through SIPs (Systematic Investment Plans) in Indian index funds. I’m following your philosophy closely and wanted to ask a small question related to the Indian context:

    👉 For an Indian investor, do you suggest focusing on the Nifty 50 index (top large companies) or the Nifty 500 index (broader market) for the “simple path”?
    Also, could you share any general guidance on how to balance this with a debt investment component in India — something similar to your “bond” allocation idea in the U.S.?

    Thank you again for inspiring me and countless others to live with clarity and purpose.

    Warm regards,
    Baburaj
    India

  15. CH says

    Mr. Collins,

    Thank you so much for your book which I have read many times since first discovering in 2020. It has simplified my investing life and I truly think it is the most efficient/best way to invest!

    I recently heard you on The Diary of a CEO podcast and your thoughts on the meaning of life and the possibility of an afterlife. You are an intelligent and thoughtful man and I would strongly recommend a book by an extraordinary author/thinker/philosopher named C.S. Lewis called “Mere Christianity”. He was an atheist turned Christian who had profound honest thought on the meaning of life. If life indeed has no meaning he would reply “we should have never found out it had no meaning.”

    My hope is that you would find that life was meant to be simple, just like investing!

    With every best wish!
    CH

  16. Sehag says

    if you want the new, updated edition of The Simple Path to Wealth, you need to be careful which format you pick. The hardcover and e-book are the new version, while the paperback and Audible audio are still the original edition. Amazon still sells the old paperback until stock runs out, and the audio rights keep the original version until 2027. Content-wise, both editions cover the same principles, but the new edition is expanded and updated. So pick based on format preference and whether you want the latest updates.

  17. Rose. K says

    Dear Mr. Collins,

    I am writing to express my deepest gratitude for your wisdom and for sharing “The Simple Path to Wealth” with the world.

    Since discovering your book, it has been a powerful wake-up call for me. Your teachings gave me the clarity to consolidate our years of effort and set our sights on FIRE. I was also deeply moved by your profound respect for Vanguard and the principles of Jack Bogle, which helped me understand the true essence of low-cost index investing. I even gave a copy of your book to my son, who is in his 20s, and he has already begun his own investing journey.

    Today, I am thrilled to share some incredible news. My husband is graduating from the company where he has dedicated 21 years of service, taking an early retirement package. Combined with his retirement benefit, our net worth has officially reached 100 million yen (approximately $638,000).

    In Japan, this achievement places us in the top 3.5% of households. Crucially, this capital provides us with rock-solid Financial Independence, fully covering our annual expenses according to your teachings. Although we were both ordinary employees without any executive titles, we focused on our careers and consistent investing to reclaim our freedom. Furthermore, we are completely debt-free. As a result, I am also “graduating” from my freelance career at the age of 48.

    Looking back at my 20s, I was a single mother with no job, facing a very uncertain future. However, discovering your teachings provided me with the clarity and the “Simple Path” I needed. By focusing on “F-You Money” and the power of index investing, we were able to transform our financial life and reclaim our freedom.

    Now, my husband and I have entered a new phase of life. We are committed to sharing the wisdom that guided us here with others, especially the younger generation, to help them find their own paths to freedom. We want to focus our energy on contribution and helping others achieve the same peace we have found.

    I am truly grateful to you for writing such a wonderful book. You are a true benefactor to our family, and your work has changed the trajectory of our lives forever. Thank you for empowering us to own our lives.

    Warmest regards,
    Rose. K (Tokyo/Japan)

  18. Joshua Young says

    Dear Mr. Collins,

    Just finished listening to your book on Audible. Truly great advise everyone should study and follow. I only wish I had found it sooner. The book should be mandatory read and taught in high school.

    Unfortunately I was not the best at managing my money. Too much debt, no patience, frugal spending, everything a person shouldn’t do.

    My goal now is to preach to my daughter how NOT to live life as I did. Just ordered your new revised book as a gift for her and will encourage, no nag her to follow your simple path to wealth. She’s in grad school now and at 22, she’s already 100x smarter than I and doing it right.

    Thank you for putting your knowledge and experience to paper to share with the rest of us. I sure appreciate it!

    Cheers!

  19. Dave says

    Thank you for writing such an informative book

    I ordered the new and revised edition of your book from kindle (as I already had the original).

    Sadly, when the download arrived, it was the original, so I wasted my money

    Just letting you know (I read your comments about the various editions, so I’m surprised)

  20. Beau Blake says

    Thank you so much you’ve saved my financial future at the age of 22. I had a Roth IRA that was only in mutual funds and I was paying over 9% in fees because I never thought that a family friend as a Money manager would take advantage of me, your book opened up so much to my eyes and I think you’re right there is no such thing as a good money manager on the bright side I have over $26,000 to move in my Roth IRA after switching to Vanguard to VTI. The next step of my journey is simply figuring out how best to take advantage of the tax advantaged accounts. But I’ve decided as a this night I will pursuing with full force F I money

  21. Alejandro Giordano says

    Dear Uncle Jim,

    I wanted to reach out and thank you for all the time and effort you put into The Simple Path to Wealth. Unlike most financial books that simply say “invest 10% of your money,” you took it further by giving real examples of where to invest but, more importantly, teaching us what to look for and HOW to do it efficiently.

    By putting your teachings into practice I was able to confidently step into the world of investing and budgeting, even after making the big purchase of my very first home. I then took it one step further and used your book as a major reference in a basics-of-finance class I created for my family after they jokingly told me I should “teach a class” so everyone else could buy a house too.

    I haven’t yet reached the heights you talk about in the book, but I’m constantly working toward them with your knowledge and guidance while bringing people along for the ride. My class has positively impacted 10 people so far, all of whom were recommended your book, and I hope to keep growing that number the way you did with me.

    Thank you for everything, and I hope you and your family are doing well.

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