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The Richest Man in Babylon

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"WHERE THE DETERMINATION IS, THE WAY CAN BE FOUND"

— George S. Clason, The Richest Man in Babylon (1926)

Introduction

The Richest Man in Babylon
 
Full titleThe Richest Man in Babylon
AuthorGeorge S. Clason
LanguageEnglish
SubjectPersonal finance; Saving and investment; Parables
GenreNonfiction; Self-help
PublisherPenguin Publishing Group
Publication date
30 June 1989
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (paperback); e-book; audiobook
Pages160
ISBN978-0-452-26725-1
Goodreads rating4.2/5  (as of 8 November 2025)
Websitepenguinrandomhouse.com

The Richest Man in Babylon is a 1926 personal-finance book by George S. Clason that dispenses advice through parables set in ancient Babylon; the material began as pamphlets widely distributed by banks and insurers and was collected as a book in 1926.[1] It packages recurring frameworks—especially the “Seven Cures for a Lean Purse” and the “Five Laws of Gold”—and foregrounds the “pay yourself first” approach.[2] The prose is deliberately plain and proverbial, using short parables to anchor habits of thrift, budgeting, and cautious investing.[3] By 2004, the book had sold more than two million copies.[4] It remains visible in investor reading lists, including The Wall Street Journal’s “The Best Books for Investors” (15 August 2014).[5]

Chapter summary

This outline follows the “original edition” reprint, which reproduces the classic contents order (Dauphin Publications, 2015; ISBN 9781939438638).[6]

🧾 1 – Foreword.

💭 2 – Man who desired gold.

👑 3 – Richest man in Babylon.

🧰 4 – Seven cures for a lean purse.

🍀 5 – Meet the goddess of good luck.

📜 6 – Five laws of gold.

🏦 7 – Gold lender of Babylon.

🧱 8 – Walls of Babylon.

🐫 9 – Camel trader of Babylon.

🗿 10 – Clay tablets from Babylon.

🎲 11 – Luckiest man in Babylon.

🏺 12 – Historical sketch of Babylon.

Background & reception

🖋️ Author & writing. George S. Clason was a Denver businessman and map publisher who founded the Clason Map Company and issued the first road atlas of the United States and Canada.[7] Beginning in 1926, he wrote pamphlets on thrift and financial success told as parables set in ancient Babylon; banks and insurance companies distributed them widely.[8] The most popular pieces were later collected as The Richest Man in Babylon, and Clason is widely credited with popularizing the injunction to “pay yourself first.”[9] The book’s recurring devices—especially the “Seven Cures for a Lean Purse” and the “Five Laws of Gold”—organize advice on budgeting, disciplined saving, prudent lending, and skill-building.[10] Its voice is intentionally plain and proverbial, “in simple everyday language.”[11]

📈 Commercial reception. By 2004, the title had sold more than two million copies.[12] Reprints have proliferated; Hawthorn issued a c.1955 edition.[13] New American Library also published mass-market editions in 1988.[14] The Wall Street Journal continued to spotlight the book on “The Best Books for Investors” list (15 August 2014).[15]

👍 Praise. The Los Angeles Times recommended the book as a “delightful set of parables that explain the basics of money.”[16] The Washington Post has called it “full of time-tested advice on saving and investing.”[17] The Wall Street Journal has highlighted it for story-driven lessons in personal finance.[18]

👎 Criticism. Commentators note that “pay yourself first” can be impractical for people with irregular incomes or very tight budgets and may need adaptation.[19] Researchers also argue the book’s implicit “save 10%” heuristic is often too low; Brookings recommends older starters target 15–20% to retire securely.[20] Housing analysts further caution that the book’s injunction to “make of thy dwelling a profitable investment” is not universally sound: a primary home is not reliably an investment.[21]

🌍 Impact & adoption. The Washington Post launched its “Color of Money Book Club” in 2002 with this title as the first selection (online discussion 23 October 2002).[22] The Wall Street Journal list noted above has kept it in circulation with new investor audiences.[23] University entrepreneurship resources also continue to recommend it as a concise primer.[24]

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References

  1. ↑ Singletary, Michelle (29 September 2002). "Investing by the Book". The Washington Post. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  2. ↑ Elkins, Kathleen (23 December 2015). "5 truths about money, from a 90-year-old personal finance classic". Business Insider. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  3. ↑ "Penguin Select Classics: The Richest Man in Babylon". Penguin Random House SEA. Penguin Random House SEA. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  4. ↑ "How-to-succeed books". EBSCO Research Starters. EBSCO. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  5. ↑ "The Best Books for Investors". The Wall Street Journal. 15 August 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  6. ↑ "The richest man in Babylon: original edition". Internet Archive. Retrieved 8 November 2025.
  7. ↑ "George S. Clason". Penguin Random House. Penguin Random House. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  8. ↑ "George S. Clason". Penguin Random House SEA. Penguin Random House SEA. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  9. ↑ Mangla, Ismat Sarah (20 October 2016). "The world's most popular money tip came from a map-maker whose business got crushed by the Great Depression". Quartz. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  10. ↑ Elkins, Kathleen (23 December 2015). "5 truths about money, from a 90-year-old personal finance classic". Business Insider. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  11. ↑ "Penguin Select Classics: The Richest Man in Babylon". Penguin Random House SEA. Penguin Random House SEA. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  12. ↑ "How-to-succeed books". EBSCO Research Starters. EBSCO. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  13. ↑ "The richest man in Babylon". WorldCat. OCLC. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  14. ↑ "The richest man in Babylon". WorldCat. OCLC. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  15. ↑ "The Best Books for Investors". The Wall Street Journal. 15 August 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  16. ↑ "Weekend Reading". Los Angeles Times. 16 July 1999. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  17. ↑ Singletary, Michelle (26 November 2006). "Give Books That Make a Difference". The Washington Post. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  18. ↑ "My Five Favorite Books to Help You Build Wealth". The Wall Street Journal. 27 March 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  19. ↑ "Are You Paying Yourself First? Here's What It Means and Drawbacks". Investopedia. 19 May 2025. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  20. ↑ Gale, William G. (26 June 2018). "The new math of saving for retirement may boil down to this one absurdly simple rule". Brookings Institution. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  21. ↑ Thompson, Derek (13 September 2013). "A House Is a Home—Not an Investment". The Atlantic. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  22. ↑ Singletary, Michelle (3 October 2002). "Book Club's First Selection". The Washington Post. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  23. ↑ "The Best Books for Investors". The Wall Street Journal. 15 August 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  24. ↑ "The Richest Man in Babylon". Regent University Entrepreneurial Studies. Regent University. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
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