The best investing books: essential reads for every investor 

Although we live in an era where there are many information sources in different forms of media, books are still useful. When it comes to expanding a beginner’s knowledge about investing, there is still great value in learning from the right books. Fortunately, nowadays you can find some of the best investing books for beginners.  

There are many investing books to choose from – some were written by CEOs of highly successful financial institutions. Some of these books offer practical investment advice that has withstood the test of time.  

What are the best books to read about investing? Which of these investing books are best-sellers?  

InvestmentNews offers this guide on which books on investing to read, to help you succeed in building wealth for the long term.  

8 of the best books on investing 

These eight selections offer a range of approaches and styles, from exploring the psychology of money management to discussing financial empowerment strategies. Whether you’re a newbie or a seasoned investor, each book offers valuable lessons and strategies to sharpen your financial skills.  

1. The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel 

In 2020, this book by investing author Morgan Housel became an instant bestseller. The author combines storytelling skills with psychology theories to show how people tend to think about money and how it impacts their investment decisions. Beginning investors will find 19 short stories of how people relate to and manage money. These short stories illustrate important behavioral aspects to investing that are often ignored.  

The Psychology of Money is unlike the usual book offering financial knowledge. It exposes readers to the “inner money game”, which can be essential for beginning investors to understand before they start on investments.  

2. The Little Book of Common Sense Investing by John C. Bogle 

This book should be part of every investor’s library, especially if they plan to get into stock investing. Author John “Jack” Bogle has the unique distinction of being the late founder of The Vanguard Group and the creator of the first index mutual fund. He was also a very good friend and colleague of Warren Buffett, the “Oracle of Omaha”.  

In the book and in some personal interviews, Bogle would often recommend:  

• investing with purpose 
• maintaining a long-term horizon for investments 

• reducing internal fees as much as possible  

Bogle was also a serious advocate of dollar-cost averaging, a method of consistent, patient investing.  

This book is a valuable addition to any investor’s library. It’s one of the few investing books that teaches readers the differences between sound investment and speculation.  

Readers are advised, though, that the book has some bias favoring a particular investment. One of the conclusions the book makes is that low-cost index funds – Vanguard’s stock in trade – are a viable move for most investors. 

3. Poor Charlie’s Almanack: The Essential Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger 

Another longtime friend of Warren Buffett was Charles Munger, affectionately known as Charlie, who also wrote a book about investing. Readers shouldn’t be fooled by the self-deprecating title of the book.  

Many savvy investors consider this is a gem of investing advice written by Warren Buffett’s right-hand man in founding and managing Berkshire Hathaway.  

Charlie was widely considered one of the sharpest minds in business and finance. His book is largely based on the talks he gave between 1986 and 2007.  

Munger passed away in late 2023, 34 days before turning 100.  

4. The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham 

This book has been considered by many financial experts to be the only book anyone needs to learn the basic principles of investing. Although The Intelligent Investor was first published in 1949, it still deserves a spot on every aspiring investor’s bookshelf, as this book gives timeless advice on long-term investing and value investing. 

Graham’s principles are soundly based on personal experience. He witnessed the stock market crash of 1929, which inspired him to co-author a research book, Security Analysis. While Graham is renowned for being the “father of value investing,” he is probably more famous for his role as the mentor of Warren Buffett.  

It was Graham’s principles of stock analysis that Buffett used to build investment management giant Berkshire Hathaway, making him probably the most successful investor of all time.  

5. The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey 

First published in 2013, investment guru and YouTube star Ramsey famously espouses eliminating all forms of “bad debt” in his book, including:  

• student loans 
• mortgages 
• car loans 
• credit cards 

Ramsey preaches seven “baby steps” to practice for attaining financial stability and peace of mind. This investment expert is praised by many for helping them get out of crushing debt and improving their personal finances.  

This book can be an excellent foundational resource for improving one’s balance sheet that works well with the other books on this list. Not everyone agrees with Ramsey’s aggressive anti-debt philosophy, but his advice is still considered very practicable and helpful. 

Apart from offering a book, Ramsey still offers investment advice via his YouTube channel. Investors are constantly seeking his counsel, which he often gives – sometimes bluntly. In this short video, for example, Ramsey tells a caller not to try turning a rundown house into a rental property since they don’t have enough money to renovate: 

6. The Only Investing Guide You’ll Ever Need by Andrew Tobias 

This investing book with the brash, straightforward title debuted in 1978. It has since been revised several times, with the latest version published in 2022.  

Best-selling author Tobias updates his book to include a section on the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as how investors fared during the Trump administration and in other prior major events. This is an excellent, comprehensive guide that teaches readers the fundamentals about various investments like:  

• stocks 
• bonds 
• mutual funds 
• us treasury bills  
• retirement accounts 
• exchange-traded funds (ETFs) 

Tobias also provides sound tax strategies and gives tips on finding the right brokers and how to deal with them. The author’s main thrust is to convince readers to invest mostly in ETFs and mutual funds, and never invest in them with more than 20% of their income.  

The book is an entertaining read, as Tobias dispenses practical, money-saving advice by narrating as everyone’s well-off uncle. Readers can get valuable tips for saving money from this book, like saving on vacations and wisely using their credit card. There are also unusual money-saving tips like buying wine by the case and opting for fake jewelry instead of the genuine stuff – get the book to know why. 

7. Beating the Street by Peter Lynch 

Apart from being an author of several investing books, Peter Lynch is a successful investor, mutual fund manager, and philanthropist. In one of his most popular books, Beating the Street, Lynch tells readers how even amateur investors can perform just as well, if not better than, Wall Street veterans.  

He also proposes that amateur investors can even beat the market and fare better than the large investment houses.  

Lynch’s book offers uncomplicated, sensible advice. He mainly advises investors to avoid investing in anything that you can’t explain to a fifth grader. He applies this and another seemingly controversial investment strategy, that of investing in undervalued companies which have higher growth potential.  

8. I Will Teach You to Be Rich by Ramit Sethi 

As audacious as the title sounds, Sethi’s book is a New York Times bestseller. This book mainly outlines a six-week program for younger investors to know the four pillars of personal finance:  

• banking 
• saving 
• budgeting 
• Investing 

Sethi shares useful strategies for erasing student loans and debt, saving and spending every month, and how to prepare for buying a house or car.  

The latest edition of this book includes stories from readers and insights on the psychology of investing. What appeals to readers most is how Sethi demonstrates how to make investments that grow with investors and their goals, while being able to spend their money without guilt. 

Are books on investing worth it?  

The no-nonsense answer: yes. Even those who are not practicing investors or financial advisors can benefit from reading these kinds of books. For one, books about investing can endow their readers with some degree of financial literacy.  

Investors who are more financially literate get a better grip on their money, improve their financial well-being and are less likely to fall for scams or get-rich-quick schemes.  

When you know more about investments, you know how to separate the good opportunities from the bad investment opportunities and are less likely to waste time and money on them. When fewer people are financially literate, their financial futures and the economy are all the worse for it. 

Another advantage of having even a few investment books is that they can offer a wide range of perspectives. By reading multiple books, investors can gain a well-rounded understanding of the different strategies and investment philosophies that abound. Investment books can help beginners find which strategies they are most comfortable adopting and exploring further. 

Learn from the best investing books 

Books about investing can offer several benefits – not least of them is knowing the most important, timeless investing principles that can increase investors’ chances of success. When choosing a book about investing, be sure to get those written by some of the most successful investors whose advice still applies today. But don’t be afraid to pick up books from newer, younger authors either.  

By having a mix of books by investment experts from the past (e.g. Jack Bogle, Benjamin Graham) and present (e.g. Ramit Sethi, Dave Ramsey), you are more likely to have updated information about the world of investments, increasing your chances of success.      

So, which of these are going on your bookshelf? Don’t limit your investment knowledge to these books. Get the opinions of experts on different investments and get the latest industry news on our pages.