How it works

The money

People give $1 a week. Each week's gifts go to the household drawn that week and are paid straight to the companies they owe. Advertisers pay $300 a month for a spot on the homepage, and that money runs the business. TMDP takes no cut of any gift, and the totals are posted every week.

I make my living from the ads, the podcast, YouTube, TikTok and ebook sales, never from your gifts.

The drawing

Every week, live on the podcast, we push the button. This week's household is picked by RANDOM.ORG's Third-Party Draw Service, an independent company that runs certified random drawings. Each drawing gets a permanent record that can't be changed. We post the record link on the homepage and the Families helped page, and you can type in the email you entered with to check that you were in it.

If you're not picked, your entry stays in for every week after. Once your household is picked, you're done, so the help keeps spreading.

Giving does not help you get picked. Entering is free, every entry has the same chance, and giving doesn't raise your odds or guarantee you'll be chosen.

Paying your bills

No one gets a check. You send us your bills, we verify them, and we pay the companies you owe directly, up to $300,000 per household.

Homeowners: we pay down your mortgage first, your biggest bill. Then you take what you used to pay each month and knock out your smaller debts.

Renters: we pay a year of your rent to your landlord, month by month. You put that rent money toward your smaller debts and come out debt-free.

The household drawn receives that week's gifts, up to their verified bills or the cap. If a week brings in more than they need, the rest goes to the next household drawn. If they can't verify their bills in time, that week's gifts go to the next household instead.

Taxes: a payoff may count as income to the household, depending on how the IRS views it, so plan for that. The payment processor may send a Form 1099-K, and we'll explain what we know about reporting it. Please talk to a tax professional about your own situation.

Not picked yet?

You don't have to wait for the drawing. Use the free budgeting tools to build a plan, and pick up one of our ebooks for the full step-by-step guide to living debt-free and simpler.

After you're picked

We check in on the show at 3, 6 and 12 months to see how you're doing. The goal isn't just paid bills. It's a peaceful, simpler life that stays debt-free.