April is National Financial Literacy Month, but for many Americans, the celebration is missing the mark. While glossy infographics and viral challenges urge people to build budgets and cut back on coffee, experts say this narrow focus overlooks the much bigger—and more urgent—financial issues millions of people now face.
“We’re stuck in a loop talking about budgeting, credit scores and saving on coffee, while ignoring the other 80% of the financial picture,” says Michael A. Scarpati, CEO of RetireUS, a platform that provides financial guidance to federal workers and everyday Americans. “People need to understand taxes, insurance, asset management, income gaps, estate planning and how their benefits actually work especially if they’re all of the sudden thrown into retirement. But because of what’s trending online, they’re not even thinking about those things.”
Scarpati’s warning comes at a time when the stakes for financial literacy have never been higher. Thousands of federal workers have recently lost their jobs as part of widespread government downsizing, and many of them are discovering that navigating early retirement or benefit changes is far more complicated than any budgeting app can handle.
And yet, the most visible financial advice today often comes not from certified professionals, but from social media influencers—many of whom have little to no formal training in financial planning.
“Most of the influencers giving financial advice online aren’t licensed or registered. If they were, they wouldn’t be posting half of what they do due to strict regulations,” Scarpati explains. “That’s a huge red flag. The financial advice dominating your feed is likely coming from people who have no professional obligation to protect your best interest.”
From “how to retire by 30” videos to tax advice boiled down to a trending sound, financial content online is increasingly shaped by algorithms, not accuracy. The result is a growing population of Americans who think they’re financially informed—until they face a real-life crisis.
Scarpati warns that media literacy must now become part of the financial literacy conversation—especially as more people turn to social media influencers for financial advice.
That’s a shift that may not come quickly enough. According to recent reports, millions of Americans are underprepared for major financial decisions, from selecting the right health plan to managing retirement withdrawals or dealing with the tax consequences of cashing out a 401(k). And in many cases, those who are hit hardest are not young adults just learning the ropes—but mid-career workers and retirees navigating complex transitions.
At a time when layoffs, inflation, and benefit cuts are all part of the national economic story, the disconnect between flashy financial tips and real-world financial readiness is becoming harder to ignore.
The message this Financial Literacy Month? It’s time to broaden the definition.
Budgeting still matters. Credit scores still matter. But they are just a fraction of the story. Without a deeper understanding of the full financial landscape—especially how benefits, taxes, insurance, and long-term planning intersect—many Americans will continue to make decisions based on incomplete or misleading information.
And in a world where a single financial misstep can set a family back for years, that’s a risk the country can no longer afford to take.