Her First $100K ranks on Inc. 5000 as personal finance sector expands

Tori Dunlap’s personal finance company, Her First $100K, has been ranked 3,046th on the Inc. 5000 list of America’s fastest-growing private companies. The business, which began as a blog with the goal of helping women achieve financial independence, has scaled into a multi-million dollar enterprise. To qualify for the list, companies must be US-based, privately held, and meet specific revenue thresholds, including $2 million for 2025.

The ranking reflects a significant expansion for Dunlap, who reached her personal savings goal of $100,000 by age 25 in 2019. This milestone served as the foundation for the business, which evolved from a side hustle into a global movement. Dunlap has stated that the platform aims to teach women financial concepts that the broader industry has historically made them feel excluded from understanding.

Her First $100K claims to have helped over five million women, offering courses, a podcast, speaking engagements, and Dunlap’s bestselling book, "Financial Feminist". The company’s growth strategy focuses on making financial education broader than mere literacy, encouraging women to negotiate salaries, pay down debts, and build savings to create more choice in their lives.

Dunlap’s approach challenges traditional personal finance advice that often emphasises individual spending control, such as the "latte factor", while overlooking structural barriers. Her model highlights systemic issues such as the gender pay gap and the "investing gap", noting that women often delay investing due to fear and live longer on average than men.

The Inc. 5000 list recognises the fastest-growing private companies in the US, which generated a cumulative $385 billion in revenue in 2025. Qualification requires companies to be founded and generating revenue by March 31, 2022, with a minimum revenue of $100,000 for 2022 and $2 million for 2025.

Studies cited by Dunlap suggest that more than half of women prefer to learn about money from other women, often due to fear of investing or feeling excluded by traditional financial gatekeepers. Her First $100K has positioned itself as a response to this demand, offering a perspective that pulls back the curtains on key investing insights.

Dunlap described the achievement as emotional and a testament to the company’s ability to change women’s lives. She has stated that her goal is to help followers get the funds they need to live the life they want, while simultaneously challenging the traditional gatekeepers of the financial industry.