Setting New Financial Goals Feels Powerful; Sticking to Them Can Be Tough

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01/05/2026 - 09:00 AM

For many Americans, saving is the new self-care

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- A new Wells Fargo survey finds nearly all U.S. adults planning a New Year’s resolution for 2026 are considering finances as part of their resolutions, with saving more money the top resolution among U.S. adults 25 years of age or older with a yearly household income less than $100,000.

Among those setting financial resolutions, confidence in achieving those goals in the coming year is high, with one-third very confident, half somewhat confident, and only one-in-seven less than somewhat confident.

Financial goal setting adds a feeling of financial control and makes it easier to say no to unnecessary spending for the majority.

Survey highlights include:

Slightly less than two-in-five (37%) Americans age 25+ with household incomes under $100K have or expect to have New Year’s resolutions for 2026. The other three-in-five do not have nor expect to have any New Year’s resolutions for 2026 (42%) or are not yet sure (22%).

Among those who have or expect to have New Year’s resolutions for 2026, almost all (97%) have already set or are considering financial resolutions as part of their 2026 resolutions. These financial goal-setters have fairly high confidence in achieving the goals in 2026.

Among those with 2026 New Year’s resolution plans, saving more money is the top financial resolution, garnering 70% selection.

After saving more money (70%), about half (49%) resolve to spend less or reduce expenses, while roughly two-in-five strive to improve their credit score (39%), pay off debt (38%), or start a side hustle or new income stream (35%).

Chris Starr, head of deposits at Wells Fargo, supports this mindset. Starr shares, “The findings tell us that when people feel in control of their money, it has a positive association with self-care, happiness, and freedom for most people, even though about half are at odds with spending versus saving. But life happens, and many adults can’t cover a financial surprise. A clear plan to manage spending and save where you can lowers stress and puts you in control of your money.”

Attitudes towards savings

While saving money has a favorable connotation in terms of attitude, consumers do feel a compromise between saving and spending.

More than four in five (81%) feel saving money feels like self-care versus 19% who feel saving money feels like self-denial.
The majority (72%) also feel saving money makes them happy as compared with 28% who state saving money means sacrificing happiness.
Saving money gives freedom according to 70% of respondents versus 30% who felt saving money limits my freedom.
Affordability to save is split between 56% who state they can’t afford not to save right now versus 44% who can’t afford to save right now.

Setting financial goals

The study found the majority (72%) of Americans age 25 or older with an annual household income under $100,000 feel tracking financial goals helps keep them accountable, as opposed to the 28% who state tracking financial goals feels so overwhelming they avoid it altogether.

A large portion (85%) agree (strongly + somewhat) they feel more confident when having clear financial goals.
Eight-in-ten (81%) agree having financial goals makes it easier to say no to unnecessary spending.
Another eight-in-ten (80%) agree that creating a budget helps them feel more in control of their finances.
Nearly two-thirds (64%) agree setting financial goals is easy — sticking to them is where they have difficulty.
Fewer than four-in-ten (39%) agree they find it challenging to align my personal goals with my family’s priorities, with 51% disagreeing (disagree strongly 22% + disagree somewhat 29%) and 11% responding this does not apply to them.

Starr acknowledges the difficulty in setting a New Year’s resolution and creating new financial goals but knows that goal setting increases confidence and helps reduce unnecessary spending for most. “Separate spend from save. To do this, open a dedicated savings account, turn on balance alerts, and auto‑transfer¹ a small amount each payday — say $25. It’s flexible, out‑of‑sight, out‑of‑mind, and will make you think: ‘I can do this.’”

¹Terms and conditions apply. Setup is required for transfers to and/or from other U.S. financial institutions, and verification may take 1–3 business days. Customers should refer to their other U.S. financial institutions for information about any potential fees charged by those institutions. Mobile carrier’s message and data rates may apply. See Wells Fargo’s Online Access Agreement for more information.

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About the survey

The findings are from a Wells Fargo survey, with data collection provided by Ipsos, conducted between November 6 - November 10, 2025. A sample of 1,369 adults aged 25 and older, residing within the United States, with an annual household income under $100,000 were surveyed online in English. The results of this research have a credibility interval of plus or minus 3.0 percentage points for all respondents.

About Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a leading financial services company that has approximately $2.1 trillion in assets. We provide a diversified set of banking, investment and mortgage products and services, as well as consumer and commercial finance, through our four reportable operating segments: Consumer Banking and Lending, Commercial Banking, Corporate and Investment Banking, and Wealth & Investment Management. Wells Fargo ranked No. 33 on Fortune’s 2025 rankings of America’s largest corporations. News, insights, and perspectives from Wells Fargo are also available at Wells Fargo Stories.

Additional information may be found at www.wellsfargo.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wellsfargo

News Release Category: WF-ERS