What are your 2026 money resolutions?
Many of us will be glad to see the back of 2025 from a financial perspective, what with economic uncertainty, painful tax bills and rising living costs all hitting our pockets hard.
The good news is that there are plenty of things you can do to ensure that this New Year sees a whole new financial you. Here, we take a look at some of the money resolutions you might want to consider making to help boost your bank balance in 2026…
Review your mortgage
Your mortgage is likely to be your biggest monthly outgoing, so make sure you aren’t paying more than you need to. For example, switching a typical £150,000 mortgage with a 25-year term from the average standard variable rate of 7.27% to a two-year fixed rate at 3.55% would save you a £3,972 annually. Remember, though that to qualify for the best mortgage deals, you need to have a large deposit to put down or a significant amount of equity if you’re remortgaging.
Earn more interest on your savings
The Bank of England base rate was cut to 3.75% in December, but that doesn’t mean you have to settle with earning paltry returns on your savings. You should regularly review your accounts to ensure your money earns as much interest as possible. For example, a savings pot of £5,000 could earn more than £200 extra interest a year if it was earning a market-leading 4.5% easy access savings rate compared to if you left it languishing in an account paying just 0.5%.
Cut credit card interest
If you’ve piled pounds onto your plastic over the past few months and face the prospect of steep interest charges, act as soon as possible and transfer your balance to a card which charges 0% on balance transfers for an extended period.
For example, switching £2,000 worth of debt on a card with an average APR of 24.9% to the market-leading Barclaycard extended balance transfer card, which offers a 0% introductory rate for 36 months, would save you £429 in interest over a year, even once the 3.45% balance transfer fee is factored in.
Shop around for insurance
Never just accept the renewal quotes offered by your home and motor insurance companies. Consumers who use a comparison website to switch their insurance provider can typically save as much as around £500 a year on car insurance and about £200 on home insurance, although the actual savings you’ll be able to make will depend on your individual circumstances and claims history.
Slash energy bills
You should regularly check that you are on the right gas and electricity tariff. You may be able to make savings by moving to a fixed rate dual fuel online direct debit deal. By switching to the best online tariff instead of staying on the average standard energy tariff, customers could save up to around £200 over 12 months, with some fixed deals costing over 10% less than the current price cap.