My Rich Nerd,

How long would it take to become a millionaire by investing one McDouble per day?

Let’s call it $3, before someone angrily emails me a receipt from an airport. I chose this burger because you’d have to be McCrazy to think you need thousands of dollars to start building wealth.

Step one: Go all in on Tesla. Kidding. Putting everything into one company ties your financial future to a single business. That’s a lot of trust to place in one corporation. Instead, consider VTI, Vanguard’s total U.S. stock market ETF. One purchase gives you exposure to thousands of companies, including Nvidia and Apple. Its annual expense ratio is 0.03%, or about $3 per $10,000 invested.

Let’s not forget, you can still lose money when the market falls. Diversification means one company going bust doesn’t take your entire portfolio with it. You’re spreading your money across thousands of businesses instead of making your retirement depend on your ability to identify the next Nvidia in a Reddit thread.

For retirement money, a Roth IRA can make the deal sweeter. You invest money you’ve already paid taxes on, and qualified withdrawals are tax-free. Regular contributions can generally come out anytime without taxes or penalties. To withdraw earnings tax-free in retirement, you generally need to be at least 59½ and meet the five-year rule. Income and contribution limits apply, and you need eligible earned income.

Now for the burger math. VTI returned an annualized 9.48% from its 2001 inception through June 30, 2026, with distributions reinvested. For this illustration, we’ll assume a steady 10% annual return.

Calculations start at $0, with the daily equivalent invested at each month-end and a 10% effective annual return. Distributions are reinvested; no withdrawals, taxes, or additional fees are modeled.

At $10 a day, after 35 years you’d have roughly $1.03 million. You contributed about $128,000, while investment growth supplied the other $906,000. Your returns earned returns, which then earned more returns.

But before you order celebratory fries, there’s inflation. Assume prices rise 3% a year. In 35 years, that $1.03 million would buy roughly what $367,000 buys today. “So what the fuck? I waited 35 years to become a discount millionaire?” Unfortunately, yes.

But leave that same $10 a day in an account earning nothing, and you’d have $127,750 after 35 years, with purchasing power of only about $45,000 today.

And returns matter. At 7% instead of 10%, the $10-a-day path takes about 44 years. No calculator can tell you exactly what the market will deliver. What you can control is how much you invest and how consistently you do it. Start with an amount you can afford, automate it, and increase it as your income grows. Your first $3 a day doesn’t have to be your forever contribution.

Thanks,

Imran