Resources — How the Stock Market Works
Welcome to the resources page for How the Stock Market Works. Everything below is curated to go alongside the guide.
Your Free Worksheet
The companion worksheet to How the Stock Market Works is yours to print and use as long as you need it. It includes a foundation check, account inventory, asset allocation plan, 90-day action tracker, an investor behavior contract, and quarterly review prompts.
Download the Stock Market Worksheet →
Already inside your purchased PDF as a clickable link.
Free Government & Official Investor Education
These are the most authoritative, non-commercial resources for individual investors. None of them sell you anything.
Investor.gov (SEC)
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's investor education site. Free tools, plain-language guides, scam alerts, and the BrokerCheck-equivalent for verifying any financial professional you consider hiring. investor.gov
FINRA — BrokerCheck
The financial industry regulatory authority's free database. Look up any registered broker, advisor, or firm to see their employment history, licenses, and any complaints or disciplinary actions. brokercheck.finra.org
SEC EDGAR — Company Filings
Every public company's required SEC filings, free. Annual reports (10-K), quarterly reports (10-Q), and major events (8-K). The actual source of truth for any company's financials. sec.gov/edgar
S&P Dow Jones — SPIVA Reports
The most-cited research comparing professional fund managers to index benchmarks. Free PDFs published twice a year. Read these once and the case for index funds becomes obvious. spglobal.com/spdji/en/research-insights/spiva
Bogleheads Wiki
Free, community-maintained reference for index-fund investing based on Vanguard founder Jack Bogle's principles. The "Three-Fund Portfolio" article is a classic starting point. bogleheads.org
Recommended Books
The Simple Path to Wealth — JL Collins
The most-recommended starter investing book of the last decade. Originally written as letters to the author's daughter. Plain-English, low-jargon, and the strategy is durable. Find it on Bookshop.org
The Little Book of Common Sense Investing — John C. Bogle
Written by the founder of Vanguard, who invented the index fund. Short, definitive, and the closest thing to required reading for any new investor. Find it on Bookshop.org
The Psychology of Money — Morgan Housel
Less about the math of investing, more about the behavior. Most investor losses come from psychology, not strategy. This book is the antidote. Find it on Bookshop.org
A Random Walk Down Wall Street — Burton Malkiel
The classic case for index investing, by a Princeton economist. Updated regularly since 1973. More technical than the others, but worth it for the depth. Find it on Bookshop.org
Note: Book links go to Bookshop.org. These are not affiliate links — we don't earn a commission. Find any of these at your local library for free.
Brokerage Options
We don't recommend a specific broker. The major low-cost options are all reasonable choices for index-fund investors:
- Fidelity — strong customer service, several zero-fee index funds, good for beginners. fidelity.com
- Charles Schwab — comparable to Fidelity, well-respected. schwab.com
- Vanguard — founded the index fund. Slightly clunkier app but the most index-focused. vanguard.com
All three offer Roth IRAs, traditional IRAs, brokerage accounts, no minimum to open, and zero or near-zero expense ratio index funds. Pick one and start.
Curated Video Lessons
How the Stock Market Works — CNBC
Clear visual explainer of exchanges, brokers, and order flow. Watch on YouTube
Index Funds and ETFs Explained — Ben Felix
Portfolio manager and CFA on why index funds dominate. Watch on YouTube
The Magic of Compound Interest — Two Cents (PBS)
Animated walkthrough of compounding. Watch on YouTube
Roth IRA vs Traditional IRA — The Plain Bagel
Honest comparison of the two main retirement account types. Watch on YouTube
Why You Should Almost Never Pick Stocks — Common Sense Investing
The math of why most stock-pickers underperform an index fund. Watch on YouTube
Continue Your Knowledge Stack
The rest of the Investing library and the Finance & Money library both build on this:
Browse Investing → • Browse Finance & Money →
Investing only works if your foundation — budget, debt, credit, emergency fund — is solid first.
This page is a free companion to the How the Stock Market Works PDF. All links above are to free or third-party resources. We do not earn a commission on any link on this page. This guide is education, not financial advice. Investing involves risk of loss. Last updated May 2026.