Martin's Blog

Press the rewind button and go way back – before Covid, before Brexit – to April 2015, then picture a devastatingly handsome man at home, on the sofa, talking about money with his wife. Well, he has nowt to do with this, but possibly on the telly in the corner, I was on-air at the time urging savers as usual to use their new tax-free cash ISA allowance – because 'money was nicer in an ISA'.

I set up MoneySavingExpert.com nearly 20 years ago – when arguably the modern web was still in its infancy. With an abundance of self-belief (something I had too much of then, as I realise now) I decided not to read any books, or follow prevailing wisdom on how a site should operate – and just do it my way.

It's hard to believe the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute (MMHPI) charity is now six years old. In that short time, it has established itself as the go-to place for politicians, regulators and firms for help on how to divorce the marriage made in hell that is debt and mental health issues.

I was invited on to BBC Radio 2 Vine's 'What Makes Us Human' programme. The brief: "Write then read out an essay on one unique element of humanity, interspersed with some autobiographical notes". That was followed by an interview with Jeremy. That didn't go where I expected to, and I found it emotionally tricky at times, but we discussed important issues, so feel free to listen to the full BBC Radio 2: Martin Lewis: What Makes Us Human interview

Ignore everything you've read in the papers. Ignore the political spittle that flies across Parliament. And in some cases, ignore what parents tell you too. There are more myths and misunderstandings about student finance than any other subject (my polite way of saying there's a lot of bull spoken). So in this blog is my updated 2021/22 version of the must knows, with links to far more info.

In 2016, I founded the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute (MMHPI) charity – in a very short time, due to the hard work of the team, it has established itself as the go-to place for policies to divorce the marriage made in hell that is debt and mental health issues.

When it comes to finances, numbers are key – whether it's what you earn, your credit card balance or the interest rate on your mortgage, small changes can add up to a big difference. Yet there's one number you shouldn't pay too much attention to – your credit score. I've bashed out a video and a blog to explain.

If you started university between 1998 and 2011 in England or Wales, or since 1998 in Scotland and Northern Ireland, you'll have a Plan 1 student loan. While much is written about whether those with savings should overpay the current English Plan 2 student loans, there's little out there about Plan 1. I wanted to change that, so here's a video explaining how to decide...