There is no need to wait until an arbitrary date on a calendar to make positive changes in your financial life, but if you are looking to improve your finances in 2026, there are some small (and large) changes you can make. It’s important to be realistic: if you set your sights too high, you could get discouraged if you don’t achieve your goals. These six financial changes shouldn’t be out of reach for anyone, but are significant enough to make a big difference in your financial life.
1. Plan your expenses in advance
The beginning of the year is the perfect time to plan for any major expenses you expect in 2026. Maybe you will need a new roof or porch, your HVAC unit might be in its final year, or it could be time for a new vehicle. Whatever large expenses you anticipate in 2026 (or next year), start saving in advance to avoid depleting your emergency fund or using credit card debt. Popular budgeting apps such as YNAB make it really easy to plan for these large, irregular expenses.
2. Make a plan to pay off high-interest debt
If you have any high-interest debt, there’s no better time than now to make a plan to eliminate it. Mathematically, it’s always better to start with your highest-interest debt and work your way down. If you can pay off all of your high-interest debt this year, that’s great, but don’t get discouraged if it will take you longer to eliminate your debt. Check your balances so you know exactly how much debt you have (it’s not uncommon for those with debt to not know exactly how bad the problem is) and budget as much as you can towards paying off your debt.
In the Financial Order of Operations, the only steps before paying off high-interest debt are covering your highest insurance deductible and getting your employer match in your retirement account. After that, everything should be put towards paying off your debt until it is gone.
3. Consolidate forgotten retirement accounts
Remember that 401(k) you had with your first job 15 years ago? Whatever happened to it? There are about 32 million forgotten or left-behind retirement accounts in the US, and many of those accounts are probably not invested appropriately or have high expenses and fees.
If you think you may have a lonesome retirement account out there somewhere, it’s worth taking some time this year to consolidate your accounts. Chances are rolling them into your current employer retirement account or IRA could give you access to better investments and lower fees and expenses. Check out our free download for help deciding what to do with your old retirement account. Even if those forgotten accounts are better off on their own, it would be wise to take a look at their investment allocation and adjust as necessary.
4. Check on your student loans
If you have any federal student loan debt, make sure your loans are current and you are enrolled in an appropriate repayment plan. Some repayment plans have been eliminated and eligibility for loan forgiveness has been further restricted. In January, the Trump administration plans to start garnishing wages for those who are behind on their student loans. It is estimated that around 5 million Americans with student loans will have their wages garnished starting this month, and millions more will be at risk in the coming months. If you have any federal student loan debt, it is imperative that you make sure your loans are current or you risk having your wages garnished.
5. Live below your means
Spending less than you make is a basic financial goal, but one well worth mentioning. 26% of Americans say they spend more than they make, and 56% of the country has at least some difficulty paying all of their bills. If you are one of the millions of Americans struggling to live below your means, it is not easy to spend less or make more, which you already know. Check out this article I recently wrote for some tips on how to get ahead financially and break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle: “How To Build Wealth With an Average Income.”
6. Don’t forget to enjoy yourself
It’s not financially sustainable to live like a miser on ramen noodles and only spend money on the essentials. Set aside some money to spend on yourself this year. It could be as small as budgeting for a daily coffee or as big as planning your once-in-a-lifetime dream vacation. If you are saving what you know you need to be saving for retirement and are on-track elsewhere in your financial life, you owe it to yourself to splurge a bit on what you enjoy.
The beginning of the new year is a great time to make positive changes in your life, financial or otherwise, but it should come as no surprise that most New Year’s resolutions fail. To give yourself a greater chance at making changes in your own life, it’s important to set specific, realistic, and achievable goals. Ease yourself into your resolutions instead of going from 0 to 100 once the clock strikes midnight. And if you aren’t as successful as you wanted in January, there’s no need to wait until next year to try again.
