Editorial Policy

Our mission

CentSmart publishes plain-English personal finance writing for ordinary readers. Our mission is to make the durable fundamentals of money management — budgeting, saving, debt payoff, and investing basics — accessible to people without a finance background and free of the marketing-driven hype that dominates the genre.

Editorial independence

Our editorial decisions are made independently of our advertisers. Ad placements are handled by third-party ad networks, and our writers and editors have no visibility into which advertisers appear on which pages. No advertiser may pay for favorable coverage, and we do not accept sponsored content, paid reviews, or affiliate commissions in exchange for recommendations.

How articles are produced

Every article on CentSmart is written by a human author and reviewed by at least one editor before publication. We do not publish AI-generated articles. Authors are credited on each piece, and articles include a publication date.

Sourcing and fact-checking

We rely on primary sources where possible — government data, regulatory filings, published academic research, and statements from institutions. Where we cite a statistic or a study, we verify it directly rather than relying on secondary reporting. When sources disagree, we acknowledge the disagreement rather than picking the more dramatic figure.

Corrections

We take accuracy seriously. If we publish a factual error, we will correct it promptly, mark the correction on the article, and note what changed. To report a possible error, email corrections@centsmart.example.

Updates and freshness

Personal finance is a moving target — interest rates change, contribution limits change, tax rules change. We review our most-read articles at least annually and update them as needed. Major updates are reflected in a “Last updated” date at the top of the article.

What we do not cover

We do not publish content on speculative trading strategies, individual stock picks, cryptocurrency speculation, or any topic that requires us to predict short-term market movements. We believe these topics are better served by specialized publications and are outside the scope of our editorial mission.

Reader feedback

We welcome questions, corrections, and topic suggestions from readers. The best way to reach us is through our contact page.