Best sites for comparison shopping
BeatMyPrice.com. Once you've found an online price, log in here to see whether anyone else has found it cheaper. Or you could just type in what you'd like to spend and see what's out there. Either way, you might find a better deal.
BeatThat! If you find a better deal than what this comparison-shopping site finds, you can submit it and make some money. The site's blog talks less about specific products and more about the world of online shopping, making it a good place to get an overview before heading out into the world of deals.
DiscountMore.com. This search engine pulls up not only the top online stores, from Amazon.com to Target, but also scrapes hits from other search engines, including PriceGrabber.com and MySimon.
Best sites for saving and investing
Bankrate.com. Bankrate started out by tracking interest rates and now has a wealth of articles on most finance topics.
Findacreditunion.com. Credit unions offer better rates on savings and on loans than most banks. If you're not already a member, this handy tool helps you find credit unions you may be eligible to join.
Morningstar. Research stocks, bonds, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and other investments with the site's free content. A subscription gets you access to premium content, including analysts' reports.
Financial Engines. For $39 a quarter, you can get personalized investment advice to help you plan for retirement and pick the right funds for your 401(k), IRAs and other retirement accounts.
Best sites for paying for college
FinAid. This is an indispensable site for anyone hoping to navigate the choppy waters of financial aid, with some of the best information available anywhere on student loans.
Savingforcollege.com. When 529 college savings plans were created, accountant Joe Hurley was an early evangelist. He explains how they work, the details of each plan and how to choose the right one for your family.
Best sites for managing your credit
AnnualCreditReport.com. This is the government-run clearinghouse to get your legally mandated free credit reports -- you get one per year each from Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. Accept no imitations.
CardRatings.com. This site does more than highlight some of the best available credit card offers. It also advises users on how to best manage their credit, pay off debt and deal with credit crises. LowCard$.com and Index credit cards are good to check, too.
Credit.com. Two of my favorite credit experts, John Ulzheimer and Gerri Detweiler, contribute to this site, which educates users about all things credit-related.
CreditCards.com. Former Bankrate.com editor Dan Ray has added smart, timely content to what was once just a collection of credit card offers. You can search for those here too, of course, but also check out the breaking news stories, the advice and the expert Q&As.
CreditMattersBlog.com. Run by a former Wall Street reporter and soon-to-be lawyer, this blog tracks changes in the credit markets and has broken more than a few stories, including the one about American Express paying some customers $300 to close their accounts.
myFICO. If you're going to pay for a credit score (as opposed to a credit report, which you should never pay for), you might as well get a FICO, which is the scoring formula most lenders use. This is where you can buy FICOs for Equifax and TransUnion. (The third credit bureau, Experian, no longer sells FICO scores to consumers.) The site also has a lot of great information about how your scores are figured, what interest rates your scores qualify you for and how to improve your scores.
Best sites for real estate and mortgages
ThinkGlink.com. Ilyce Glink writes about all kinds of personal-finance matters, but her particular strength is real estate. Articles, Q&As and videos educate you about everything from buying your first house to swapping commercial property with a 1031 exchange.
Mortgage Professor's Web Site. Jack Guttentag is one of my go-to sources for mortgage insights, and his site helps consumers navigate the confusing world of home loans. Plus he has a chart of wholesale mortgage rates that's updated daily so you can see whether you're getting a good deal on your home loan or refinance.
HUD.gov. Wondering how to buy your first home? Concerned you might lose the one you have? The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development offers links to housing counselors and a wealth of information about how to buy, and keep, your home.
Making Home Affordable. This government Web site offers self-assessment tools to determine whether you might be eligible for new loan modification or refinancing programs.
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