Car dealerships deploy tricks and traps to make as much money as they can from you. Here's what I learned when trying to buy a new car.

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, automakers began adopting an anti-theft technology that dramatically reduced car thefts. But why did it take so long?

The Marshall Project asked people in prison to track their earning and spending — and bartering and side hustles — for 30 days. Their accounts reveal a thriving underground economy behind bars.

It's a summer of macro at Planet Money. Celebrate hot econ summer with our playlist.

A blockbuster new study reveals a key factor explaining rates of upward mobility.

The tech industry is in turmoil. But there's at least one startup that is thriving these days, and it's one that's helping other startups lay off workers.

A team of economists offers America a new way to look at economic growth. It's a sort of GDP prototype that tracks the well-being of different income groups.

A new study finds American companies are using remote work as a way to avoid giving workers raises; so much so that it's helping to moderate inflation.

In post-Roe America, money is even more determinative of who can get an abortion and who can't. Abortion funds are trying to close the gap, but they are now forced to navigate a murky legal landscape.

A new book dives deep into the fascinating criminal world of tree theft and efforts to combat it.

The town of Orick sits just steps away from Redwood National Park. It has prime real estate for recreation and tourism, so why are its motels and restaurants shuttered and its residents impoverished?

A new study shows the simple math of why — absent radical measures — America's racial wealth gap won't be closing anytime soon.

Despite low unemployment, solid spending, and continued job growth, signs are flashing that the U.S. economy is headed for another downturn.

Will our Micro-Face comic book become the most collectible item ever created? Find the full Planet Money Superhero series here.

In a new book, Ben Bernanke explains how and why the U.S. Federal Reserve has evolved to play such an important role in the economy.