What Changed When These 3 People Got Honest About Their Money Habits

About 50% of Americans said their finances worsened in 2025. And even though economic factors remained their top financial concern, 63% were determined to enter 2026 with clearer financial goals and better money habits, according to a Credit Karma survey.

Making lasting money moves comes down to more than the amount of money in your savings account; it’s about recognizing a habit, setting a realistic goal, and changing your behavior.

At the end of 2026, we’re showing receipts. Here’s what real people did this year to fix their finances.

Sara: “The purchasing wasn’t the problem; it was a symptom.”

“In 2026, I made it my goal to spend less online, but also figure out why I was doing so much online spending,” says Sara, a 33-year-old project manager living in Brooklyn 

Instead of setting an unreasonable goal or trying to quit cold turkey, Sara tried to identify the root of her overspending. In 2026, she’s spent almost half as much shopping online as she did last year.

“I wasn’t necessarily spending a ton, but I had too much stuff. Orders would show up at my door, and I’d immediately regret it,” she recalls.

Sara is among the 28% of Americans who cited emotional impulse purchases as a top financial regret in 2025.

She started 2026 with a simple goal: notice when she turned to online shopping. The pattern emerged almost immediately.

“I’ll admit it now, I was using online shopping as a stress reliever,” Sara reveals. After a long Zoom call or stressful presentation, Sara found her attention drifting towards online resale apps, where she’d reason that shopping second-hand wasn’t as bad as buying new.

Once she figured out why she was impulse spending (stress from work), she set about correcting the behavior. Instead of browsing Depop after her weekly status call with her boss, she tried taking a walk, playing a round of solitaire on her work computer, or getting up from her desk for a drink.

“Solitaire surprisingly won out,” Sara admits. “Winning a quick game before returning to work feels like more of a treat than bidding on vintage tees ever did.”

While she hasn’t stopped her second-hand browsing, Sara’s doing it with intention. The packages still arrive, but the sense of regret doesn’t.

Ethan: “I wanted to save, but I wasn’t making it easy.”

Last year, Ethan really wanted to build his emergency savings. But between monthly bills, unexpected expenses, and more, he didn’t make much progress.

Not saving enough was Americans’ biggest financial regret in 2025, the Credit Karma survey revealed.

“This year, I wanted to get serious about my emergency fund,” explains the 36-year-old lawyer living in Ohio. “For me, that meant making saving as simple as possible. The minute a paycheck hits my checking account, I’m tempted to spend it.”

So, Ethan made saving easy. He set up a recurring transfer each payday, moving 15% of his income into his savings account. “What I couldn’t see, I couldn’t spend,” Ethan says.

This strategy was a complete 180 from the past, when he’d wait until the end of the month to earmark savings, taking any leftover cash in his checking account and putting it into savings.

“Automating my goal made everything easier. I didn’t even have to think about saving; it was already happening,” Ethan says. By leaving just enough in his checking account to handle monthly spending, Ethan hasn’t been tempted to dip into his savings account.

With a simple automation, Ethan will end the year with over $10k in his savings account.

Abby: “I had to talk about my debt to actually deal with it.”

“I wasted years thinking I could deal with debt on my own,” admits Abby, a 34-year-old social media manager in Philadelphia. “I kept it a secret from everyone, when talking about it would’ve helped.”

Abby counts herself among the 21% of Americans who said accumulating too much credit card debt was a top financial regret in 2025.

Before 2026, Abby had made some serious inroads in paying down her credit card debt. From multiple payments a month to low-interest balance transfers, she was making progress. But it seemed every year came with an unexpected expense she just didn’t want to say no to.

“Looking back, it’s silly,” she says. “I’d agree to expensive vacations and festivals with friends because I didn’t want to clue them in on my finances.”

Adding expensive purchases to her revolving balance only made matters worse. On top of that, her credit card debt felt like a shameful secret she was keeping from friends.

When she saw her remaining balance at the end of 2025, Abby vowed to do things differently in 2026. That included coming clean to her friends and family.

“It wasn’t easy, but it did feel like a huge weight was lifted,” she says. Once she started sharing, she learned some of her close friends were carrying debt. Abby felt like she could speak up when trips were too expensive or excuse herself from costly nights out.

“I realized my friends and I could have fun watching paint dry,” she jokes. It wasn’t the expensive outings that made them close. Now, Abby and her friends find more affordable activities, and she has a phone full of accountability buddies who help her stay on top of repayment.

“If I stay on track, I’ll have everything paid off early next year,” she says.

What do your 2026 finances say?

Your 2026 financial review might not show a perfect budget or a fully funded retirement account. But it could show fewer impulse purchases, a growing emergency fund, or a credit card balance that’s finally within reach of zero.

Before setting another round of goals, look at what changed and what you’re getting stuck on. Your spending habits may already have all the answers.

Next up: Looking ahead, the holidays are a common time for spending to creep up. So here’s how to talk about holiday spending before the season starts.