Want to spend less, save more, and improve your financial situation this year? Saving money is a perfect new year’s resolution – especially if you make smart goals.
Make and maintain a budget
Put money into savings regularly
Spend smarter
Consolidate debt
Save small and often
Put impulse purchases on ice
Cancel subscriptions
Refinance your car
Get creative
Get financially wise
Take a closer look at each of these New Year’s resolutions about money and decide which one(s) might be right for you and your unique financial picture.
Read on to find out what each of these resolutions means and how it can help you be smarter about money this year.
But first, what do we mean when we talk about setting smart goals and making smart resolutions?
That’s right, “smart” is more than it seems – in this case, it’s an acronym!
When it comes to getting your financial ship sailing smoothly, SMART goals are the way to go – they’re a proven system for improving your odds of actually ticking to your resolutions.
Specific means, instead of making a general resolution like, “I will save money,” you choose a way you’re going to save money. Let’s say it’s “I will cancel one streaming subscription.”
Measurable means it’s something you can track. Instead of “I will save money,” you might say “I will find a way to spend $100 less each month.” Measurable can mean choosing a number or simply checking a box. A goal that is too abstract, like “I’ll figure out my finances this year” is less likely to be achieved than something measurable like, “I will read a book about managing my finances this week.” Even better if you can track your savings over the year in cold, hard numbers!
Achievable means it’s something that can be done, and has been done before. (This is also sometimes written as “attainable.”) Instead of saying “I will cut my spending in half by the end of the week,” which would be quite difficult for most people, you want to choose goals that would generally be considered within reach.
Realistic is like achievable or attainable, but adds another layer – is it realistic for you? Some people can save money by getting rid of a vehicle or canceling services, but if you’ve already pared down your subscriptions or your family needs two cars because of work schedules, you might not be able to reach even a goal that might seem attainable to another person. A realistic goal is one you can achieve with the time and resources you have available to you and that you’re willing and able to commit to.
Timebound, or timely, means that your goal has a set timeline. It means giving yourself a deadline or dates on which tasks will be done. That means you should go beyond “I will cancel one streaming subscription” and put it on a timeline: “I will audit all my subscriptions and recurring charges by January 15th and choose at least one to cancel by the end of the month.”
The absolute best thing you could do for your finances would be to choose a few of these money-related resolutions and put together a specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timebound schedule of specific actions to take and when you will take them, with the goal of saving a specific amount of money.
Start your financial recovery by creating a budget.
If you do just one thing this year to improve your finances, building a budget should be it. In order to have a healthy financial picture, you need to know how much you’re making, how much you’re spending, and what you’re spending it on.
One of the biggest and most common money mistakes is avoiding taking a close look at your finances. For many people, financial struggles can be scary, but looking your budget in the eye and getting a handle on it is the only way to start fixing things.
Make putting money in your savings account a priority.
The easiest way to save money is to simply force yourself to do it. Some people set up automatic transfers. Some create bills for themselves so their savings payments get made with other important bills. Figure out how much you can realistically hold onto in a given month (this goes back to those SMART goals!), and make it happen.
There are many different ways to calculate how much you can save and should be saving, but a popular rule of thumb is the 50/30/20 rule: you should be able to spend 50% of your income on needs (like housing, transportation, food, and utilities), 30% on wants (like going out, entertainment, and recreation), and 20% on savings (and paying down debt, if you have any).
Generally, if your household needs are taking up more than 50% of your household income, it can start to feel like money is tight, and you may want to take a look at your essentials to see if you can make more money or reduce spending on the necessities – like by lowering your car payment, keeping a closer eye on your utilities spending, or changing to a less expensive phone or internet plan.
On the other hand, if you find that the 50/30/20 rule leaves you with a little spare money in your pocket, saving is number one on the list of smart things you can do when you have extra cash.
Take a look at where you’re spending your money and find areas where you can save.
Budgeting and really getting granular about your spending is the best way to start seeing opportunities to spend less by spending smarter.
Spending smarter means paying attention to the bigger picture and finding ways to save in the long run, like buying something you purchase regularly in bulk or in a larger size. They say that being broke is expensive, and that’s true – it’s easy to lose a dollar over time to save a penny now when money is tight.
This also means not overpaying when you don’t need to – become a coupon person, start meal planning, and negotiate lower rates where you can – and start cutting out purchases that really aren’t doing anything for you (can you bring a snack from home, for example? Are there places where you’re wasting cash without even thinking about it?).
Use a debt service to consolidate bad debt.
Roughly 80 percent of Americans carry some debt, whether that’s from a mortgage, student loans, credit cards, or otherwise. While student loan and real estate debt is generally considered good debt, high interest debt like credit card debt is not – it’s expensive to carry and rapidly rises.
Consolidating debt with a high annual percentage rate (APR) can help you save money in the short and long term, by reducing the amount of interest you pay and helping you get to a place where the monthly payments are more manageable.
Make the choice to save money wherever you can – and try to make it fun for yourself.
While small choices might not feel like much – like choosing the tomato paste that’s on sale or learning to maximize your fuel efficiency – making a habit of spending less and feeling good about it can help you change your financial picture over time. Lots of people get a rush from finding the best deal!
If you’ve found yourself spending a lot on little treats or impulse purchases, you might be getting the dopamine hit that makes shopping addictive. Giving yourself a treat budget and challenging yourself to make the most out of it can turn saving into a fun and rewarding game. The more you can give yourself a little dopamine hit for making good financial choices, the more likely you are to stick with it in the future.
Unless it’s an emergency (like needing medicine), never make a big purchase on the same day you thought of it.
Speaking of impulse purchasing, another way to curb overspending is to take some of the fun out of it. If you’re thinking about making a large purchase or buying something you didn’t previously think you needed, sleeping on it can help you reconsider. There’s a rush associated with impulse buying, so stepping away and seeing how you feel after the rush wears off can give you a clearer look at the purchase and whether it’s right for your budget.
Review and cancel unnecessary subscriptions.
Subscriptions, subscriptions, subscriptions. It seems like everything now is a subscription! Unless you’re paying close attention, it’s easy to end up with automatic, recurring charges on your card that you don’t even know about.
There are services that can help you find all your recurring charges in just a few minutes – like Rocket Money, or many banks now offer it as a filter when you bank online. Take a good hard look at your subscriptions and figure out what you need or don’t, which if any are saving you time and money, and which (like streaming services) you might be able to rotate through over the course of a year instead of paying for consistently year-round.
Many subscriptions might even offer you a discount when you go to cancel or to return later, which – while not a solid plan for saving money – can also help you trim a few dollars out of your budget if money is tight.
Lowering your car payment is an easy way to make more wiggle room in your budget.
Most people can save money by refinancing their vehicle to better terms, because dealership loans typically include markups on their APR that leave car owners paying higher rates than they qualify for.
While this won’t work for everyone – if you have bad credit, got an exceptionally low rate during the pandemic, have already refinanced your loan, or don’t have a vehicle loan, this resolution probably won’t help you – many, many people qualify for a better rate on their car loan, and even those that don’t can change their loan terms to pay less monthly if money is tight.
Imagine and discover money-saving alternatives to things that cost you money.
Saving money sounds like it’ll be a boring slog, but if you come to it with a sense of adventure and discovery, you can spend less without feeling like you’re depriving yourself.
While what sounds fun to one person might sound like a nightmare to another, bargain hunting, DIYing projects, and reimagining routines can be both budget friendly and delightful if you find the right swaps to spark your imagination.
For example:
Going thrifting instead of clothes or furniture shopping
Swapping a picnic or DIY date night for a restaurant dinner
Going on a road trip instead of an international vacation
Agreeing to stick to homemade gifts or a gift budget
Learning to make a favorite meal or treat at home
Visiting a park instead of going to a gym
Learning to fix and mend beloved items instead of tossing them
Swapping paid activities for community activities, like volunteering or attending a free concert
Remember, you don’t have to make a hard and fast rule to only cook at home or never buy movie tickets. It’s harder to make and maintain big changes than small ones. If you swap one activity for a less expensive one per month, you’ll still be spending less – and hopefully finding new things to love!
Learn the ins and outs of money management to better understand and improve your financial picture.
Last but certainly not least, you could resolve to learn all about the different kinds of savings accounts, investing, and money management.
The average person is never taught about the different kinds of accounts, how they work, and how to know if you’re making the right moves for you to save for emergencies and retirement. If money has been tripping you up or you simply want to make the wisest moves you can with your money, a resolution to work on your financial literacy could go a long way.
Manage your money and make sure you have money for the things that matter most with these financial resolutions. Choose the ones that make the most sense for you and spend a few minutes to put together your SMART goals, and you’ll be well on your way to a 2026 better spent.
And if you’re ready to jump right in, start here by refinancing your vehicle with Auto Approve. Refinancing with Auto Approve is simple, fast, and effective – we help you shop around by connecting you with our network of top lenders and pairing you with one of our refinance experts to guide you through your options.