Top 3 Personal Finance Magazines of India.

Aha ! My favourite topic. Which is the best personal finance magazine in India ? In fact, how many are there in total ? I could not count beyond 5. So I thought I might as well write an article on this. Please note that we are talking about magazines which talk about personal finance end to end, so magazines which talk solely on stocks and mutual funds will not qualify for this assessment. I consider these magazines as the bible of all topics on personal finance and financial planning. Anyone wanting to know about investments, insurance, retirement, taxation, spending, giving and current affairs on finance ought to subscribe to these. Here is my top 3.
India’s Best Personal Finance Magazines : Outlook Money at No 1

 

This stands at number one according to me.I find Outlook Money a simple yet very informative and powerful magazine. A fortnightly issue, it spreads its articles across basics and  advanced personal finance topics. The areas it covers are stocks, mutual funds, fixed income investing, real estate, banking and insurance. The current news on finance and economy are crisp, simple and easy to follow. Outlook Money does an annual ranking of best mutual funds and stocks. Recently, it has started ranking Unit Linked Insurance Products (ULIPs) which by no means is a small feat in itself.

With an extra dose on Spending, Giving, Consumer Protection and a practical financial plan for an ordinary investor thrown in, it has it all. Outlook Money is a must have for every beginner and advanced investor. The articles from the staff writers are awesome. It even carries reviews of books and blogs. The “How to buy” section on consumer durables is very practical.

Look out for the detailed queries on insurance and banking. Their staff writers boast of famous names like Parag Parikh, Mohit Satyanand and Monica Halan among many others. Recommendations on stocks and mutual funds are a regular with Outlook Money. Their round tables on topics on personal finance feed into the magazine to give a first hand information on what leaders in the financial space are thinking. A very appealing design of pages and lovable font makes it even more attractive. A strong recommendation for anyone starting out on learning personal finance.

India’s Best Personal Finance Magazines : Money Today at No 2

 

A monthly magazine, Money Today is a thick bundle of knowledge and joy – I rate it a No 2. It contains practically everything that Outlook Money has. In fact, some of the issues have been completely marvellous and it comes closer to Outlook Money on the quality of its content. Like Outlook Money, it carries sections such as current affairs, mutual funds, stocks, banking, real estate, fixed income investing and insurance. It has a Q&A section, a section on careers, reviews of  books and consumer durables.

The practical financial plan it carries compares with the ones from Outlook Money. Money Today also does an annual issue on best stocks and mutual funds. It even runs model mutual fund portfolios in every issue to showcase how they are performing against their benchmark indices.

I like the frequency being monthly, it comes with comprehensive content and you get enough time to read before the next issue lands at your doorstep. In that sense, Outlook Money is like a premature baby, arriving before you really want it. A must have magazine if you are a starter or a voracious reader in the personal finance space.

India’s Best Personal Finance Magazines : Money Life at No 3



Another magazine that attempts to empower the investors on personal finance is Money Life at No 3. This magazine is a fortnightly issue and covers almost the same Money Lifeareas as the above two magazines do. The articles are very informative, meticulous and knowledgeable. Authors like Sucheta Dala and Debashis Basu pen the articles, so you can be rest assured that they will be very well written. Money Life also carries an annual review of best mutual funds and stocks which are a must read. Books and car reviews are a regular feature. The Money Life Foundation workshops feature very frequently in the magazine.

But it does seem to me that its stock heavy – there are quite a few pages that get devoted to stocks. Sure, a lot of folks like the stock market  but I wish those pages could get devoted to other areas of personal finance. Money Life does not carry a financial plan of an individual as the other two magazines do nor have I seen a Q&A section yet.

I also wish the design and font can go through an over lift to make it more attractive. I get to this magazine the last.