[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":117},["ShallowReactive",2],{"article:\u002Farticles\u002Fwhy-starting-early-beats-investing-more":3},{"article":4,"related":102},{"id":5,"title":6,"author":7,"body":8,"category":88,"description":89,"extension":90,"kind":91,"meta":92,"navigation":93,"path":94,"publishedAt":95,"readingTime":96,"reviewer":97,"seo":98,"stem":99,"trending":93,"updatedAt":100,"__hash__":101},"articles\u002Farticles\u002Fwhy-starting-early-beats-investing-more.md","Why Starting Early Beats Investing More","Lynktor Editorial Team",{"type":9,"value":10,"toc":81},"minimark",[11,16,20,32,39,43,46,52,56,78],[12,13,15],"h2",{"id":14},"two-savers-same-contributions","Two savers, same contributions",[17,18,19],"p",{},"Ava starts investing $200 a month at 25 and stops adding money at 65. Ben waits until 45, then invests twice as much, $400 a month, until 65. Both contribute exactly $96,000.",[17,21,22,23,27,28,31],{},"Assume both earn 7% a year, compounded monthly. At 65, Ava has about ",[24,25,26],"strong",{},"$525,000",". Ben has about ",[24,29,30],{},"$208,000",".",[33,34],"article-chart",{":labels":35,":series":36,"title":37,"unit":38},"[\"25\",\"30\",\"35\",\"40\",\"45\",\"50\",\"55\",\"60\",\"65\"]","[{\"name\":\"Ava: $200\u002Fmo from 25\",\"data\":[0,14319,34617,63392,104185,162014,243994,360211,524963]},{\"name\":\"Ben: $400\u002Fmo from 45\",\"data\":[0,0,0,0,0,28637,69234,126785,208371]}]","Balance by age, 7% annual return","$",[12,40,42],{"id":41},"why-time-does-the-heavy-lifting","Why time does the heavy lifting",[17,44,45],{},"With compound interest, returns earn their own returns. Early dollars have the longest runway, so they do most of the work. By 45, Ava's balance is already over $100,000, and that sum keeps compounding for another twenty years.",[47,48,49],"pull-quote",{},[17,50,51],{},"The first dollars you invest are the ones that compound the longest.",[12,53,55],{"id":54},"what-this-means-for-you","What this means for you",[57,58,59,66,72],"ul",{},[60,61,62,65],"li",{},[24,63,64],{},"Start with what you can."," A small amount today often beats a larger amount later.",[60,67,68,71],{},[24,69,70],{},"Automate it."," A monthly transfer removes the decision from every payday.",[60,73,74,77],{},[24,75,76],{},"Keep costs low."," Fees compound too, in the wrong direction.",[17,79,80],{},"Returns are never guaranteed, and real markets do not deliver a smooth 7% every year. The principle still holds: time in the market is the one input you cannot buy back.",{"title":82,"searchDepth":83,"depth":83,"links":84},"",2,[85,86,87],{"id":14,"depth":83,"text":15},{"id":41,"depth":83,"text":42},{"id":54,"depth":83,"text":55},"investing","Two savers put in the same $96,000. One ends up with more than twice as much. The difference is twenty years of compounding.","md","article",{},true,"\u002Farticles\u002Fwhy-starting-early-beats-investing-more","2026-09-02",1,"Lynktor Research Desk",{"title":6,"description":89},"articles\u002Fwhy-starting-early-beats-investing-more","2026-10-14","V5xBRIHvhu3oWkQYzsC52X_7YKdzL_dD_ycZJLk5ZlA",[103,107,112],{"title":104,"description":105,"path":106,"category":88,"readingTime":96},"The Hidden Cost of a 1% Fund Fee","A fee that looks small takes nearly a quarter of a portfolio over thirty years. Here is how the math works.","\u002Farticles\u002Fthe-hidden-cost-of-fund-fees",{"title":108,"description":109,"path":110,"category":111,"readingTime":96},"What the Fed Does With Interest Rates","How the Federal Reserve's policy rate reaches your mortgage, your savings account, and the stock market.","\u002Farticles\u002Fwhat-the-fed-does-with-interest-rates","economy",{"title":113,"description":114,"path":115,"category":116,"readingTime":96},"Roth vs. Traditional IRA: Which Fits You?","Pay tax now or later? How the two IRA types differ, and the question that usually decides it.","\u002Farticles\u002Froth-vs-traditional-ira","retirement",1793226378858]