In every partnership, there is a person who stacks the dishwasher like a Scandinavian architect and a person who stacks the dishwasher like a racoon on meth.

I use Micheal and Ben as my internet filter. Very smart sensible guys! Thanks! keep up the good work

Stop with VC and bond talk. Not how u grow interest or entertain. The audience is home gamers, please more ETFs or crypto that’s not from fidelity.

This can be entertaining, but lately I I just skip it. I can only handle a few minutes of it at a time now. The hosts tend to go on tangents, so the flow isn’t great. They also give uninformed opinions too often. I typically don’t care for their guests on the talk your book episodes either. Michael Batnick is officially annoying. I was never a fan of his on The Compound and Friends, because he is obnoxious and inconsiderate of others. Overall, I would not recommend this podcast.

Been enjoying you guys for years now, looking forward to many more. Cheers

Thoroughly enjoy the podcast. Very rational and relatable guys. Highly recommend.

Couldn’t get through two episodes. Can’t believe the ratings here.

Two smart and relatable finance experts who explain high end macro trends while keeping the listener grounded on their personal investing strategies. Ben is who I strive to be and Michael is who I am, except for the movie takes...

Listening to this feels like you’re hanging out with the boys

Ben and Michael are the best. Very entertaining and provide sound advice.

These guys are still using X. Time to move on.

Their takes are terrible. Actual finance information is basic. Occasionally listened now avoid completely.

This feels like a weekly casual conversation with your fellow advisors. I’m an analyst and don’t talk to advisors as much as I used to, so this is a great way to catch up on what’s impacting the RIA world.

The best finance podcast out there. Entertaining and informative. It’s a must listen every week.

Always great information from hosts and guests, and the folks at The Compound & Animal Spirits are all pretty funny in their own ways. The conversational nature of the episodes and often hilarious banter between Michael and Ben make it one of my favorite shows. I’d wager hanging out with them would be a blast.

For a lengthy review of both Animal Spirits and The Compound and Friends see the TCAF review I wrote today. The summary is both are great. The 2 best financial podcasts and 2 of the 3 best in any genre. Great work every week by Michael and Ben.

I listen to almost every podcast. A mix of this and All In podcast is a perfect mix of finance podcasts.

I’ve been listening to these guys for a couple of years now, since before the pandemic. I’m no whiz with financials, just a regular guy who is interested in such things. I look forward to both their shows every week. The Wednesday one cracks me up all the time. And I learn things and sometimes I may not know exactly what they’re talking about but I get the direction their pointing. I do note my taste in movies and TV programs they critique is very different from there’s. And that’s part of the fun. I hope they continue to put out quality episodes for years to come.

Him constantly cutting off Ben gets tiring. Ramit episode was hard to listen to, as the guest is condescending, looks down on people not from coastal cities or those who don’t share his progressive political views; no wonder Michael seemed to like him a lot. And too much talk about their personal lives which I don’t care about.

Very hot takes and constant humor from two very knowledgeable professionals.

Very relatable content and humor

This is an excellent finance/markets podcast. It is a must weekly listen.

Love this podcast. Long time listener, first time reviewer. Great delivery and great content. I enjoyed this week’s movie lists. Sean has much better taste in movies than Mr. Batnick. Case in point: Bone Tomahawk.

an entertaining podcast by a couple of finance “bros”:. They’re fairly smart for financial planners, which is a low bar. They need to incorporate more climate change and finance topics, as this is the single most important factor that will effect companies, the market and the world economy over the near to long term. They frequently have guests that range from borderline charlatans to financial wizards. Always entertaining, sometimes informative - I listen every week.

Can you please publish the same day you are recording. Isn’t there some software that will publish it automatically. Day old podcast is like old news.

You guys somehow manage to keep me totally informed and simultaneously totally entertained. Great banter. I look forward to your podcast every week.

This is the best investing + lifestyle podcast out there despite Ben almost ruining the magic of Christmas for my daughters 2 min into last week’s episode. Look no further for keeping yourself up to date with the markets, Michael’s neighbor’s current home asking price, and Michael’s latest contractor interactions. Keep up the good work gentlemen!

Someone please tell Batnick part of the reason Musk bought Twitter was to expose the massive FBI and Democrat election interference. America is better for it.

these guys are just stupid

Investing through the prism of a left-wing, beta male liberal Short term, memory loss when it comes to the outrage of Twitter policies. Years of conservatives being stifled. Now, if you liberals get some of their medicine, and now there’s the faux outrage

This is my new favorite

Ugh Ben squealing about rising interest rates and constantly pushing the narrative that inflation is no big deal…really aggravating. I guess no problem when rates held around zero for a decade? Lately he even ventured into the “generational conflict” zone. Lazy thinking. So i’ll sum up podcast & save u the time: pro low rates forever, who cares how much prices rise because we’re wealthy, poor poor millennials boohoo, just keep buying stocks/crypto/masterworks/farmland or whatever else they pushing today.

I found the pod via the common sense blog which always seemed reasonable. The ads they shill for (art micrownership? Buy Tulips much?) really negate their validity as decent financial podcasters. I hope their poor clients aren’t subjected to that crap. Anyway, this is a bro show for those who think that their frat days were the best. I’m sure that there is a subset of 40 yo fratboys who like to invest in ridiculous bubbles, but I unsubscribed.

Was a fan until they went silent about blockfi shilling and blocked anyone who even liked a tweet asking them about it. Recommendations have gone way down hill since the 2018 days as well.

After the FTX implosion, I tweeted Michael and Ben asking for an apology for shamelessly shilling blockfi on multiple episodes of the pod. I wonder how many users lost money? One tweet was all it took for these two to block me for calling out their lack of DD. For that, they get a one star review. They are not podcasters of the people, rather just another weak and sensitive talking heads. Oh, and Michael says “not to brag” far too often.

Best finance podcast I’ve found to date. Keep up the good work, y’all!

Show has declined the last 12 months or so - Ben’s bleeding heart for more welfare has become hard to listen to- Compound and Friends has been awesome and is replacing Animal Spirits for me

I have a lot of respect for this podcast for rarely taking a break over the years. Even if someone is on vacation they figure out a way to get it done. This is the most American podcast. Europeans would have had no episodes during the month of August and taken December to mid January off as well. Not this show. Makes me want to eat a hot dog and watch one of the great recommendations at the end of the show.

I’ll respond to this the only way I know how. 1 star. Hope it was worth whatever he’s paying you.

The Wednesday episodes are fun, informative, and casual. I recommend. I would rate this 5 stars if not for the “Talking Your Book” episodes on Friday. It’s filled with charlatans (Type 1 and 2, Ben Carlson!) who found a way to effectively securitize a square centimeter of a Picasso that they want to sell to you or a piece of a classic car you’ll never see or enjoy. It’s mostly nonsense. Amazing how everyone in those episodes has found a way to get the benefits of {fill in benefit} while protecting their clients from {fill in downside}. Everyone has a barbell strategy and so on. Prudent listeners should just stick to the Wednesday episodes. I’ll bump my review to 5 stars when they get rid of “Talking Your Book”. Less is more.

I thoroughly enjoy listening each week. Educational and highly entertaining. Recommendations are genius.

This show used to be a good way to understand the markets and finance world, but has slowly gone downhill. There is way too much discussion on the the fad of the month, and overreacting to the market news of the week. Too many half baked ideas thrown out without much critical analysis. Also, neither host listens when the other is speaking, they are just waiting for their turn to talk.

I love these guys. No stuffy, relaxed and informative!!

Love this show. I am not a financial markets obsessive, but Michael and Ben keep me up to date each week with what I need to know, but no more. And I always enjoy the financial advice and book and pop culture recs.

Animal Spirits has grown into one of my favorite podcasts. I appreciate the balanced, non-exaggerated look at the market along with genuine and honest reflections on l family and life. Not to mention the best movie reviews out there. I’m literally watching severance because of Animal Spirits. I always talk about them to my wife and now she calls them my best friends. As a mid-30s male I am sure I am not alone in that sentiment.

Very informative show done by people who love this stuff. Just like the rest of us that listen to them. Having one person on the East Coast and the other in the Midwest, you’re able to relate to every day life across the entire country. Your takes on movies, books, and opinions are also informative. Short, sweet, and the point. You are definitely not wasting your time listening to this podcast. Time well spend. Definitely worth listening to.

I’ve been a longtime listener of Animal Spirits but haven’t listened in the last few months or so. The shilling for crypto and early stage tech investments really got overbearing after awhile, especially for a pod that I used to listen to for sound personal finance advice. All in all, the show just feels like it got First Take/Barstool-ified.

I’ve learned more from these guys than anyone else in 16 years in financial services. They just get it. Informative, funny and thoughtful.

but then it became a series of advertisements for fintechs, which are generally crypto-related businesses or related to illiquid investments in things ill-suited to retail investors.

Ben and Michael are great, even though Ben works for the Fed and Michael knows who Satoshi is.