New Year’s resolution statistics: What goals are Brits setting for 2026?

How many people will make New Year's resolutions for 2026 and what are the most common?

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By

Sophie Barber

&

Louise Bastock

Edited by

Holly Jennings

Updated

Fact checked

7 in 10 people in the UK will be making New Year’s resolutions for 2026 – an estimated 39.5 million people. Whether it’s a promise to get healthy, save more, try new ways to make money online or start a new hobby, read on to discover the most common goals Brits will set in the new year.

New Year’s resolution statistics: Highlights

  • 7 in 10 Brits (72%) will be setting themselves New Year’s resolutions for 2026, which is around 39.5 million people.
  • 3 in 10 Brits (31%) will make a money resolution for 2026.
  • 95% of generation Z (aged 18-28) will be making resolutions for 2026, compared to just 30% of the silent generation (aged 80+).
  • 2 in 5 generation Z (41%) and millennials (39%) will make a money-related resolution for 2026.
  • Londoners are the most likely region to make a New Year’s resolution, with 81% doing so.

How many people make New Year’s resolutions in the UK?

According to our survey, 7 in 10 Brits (72%) will be setting themselves New Year’s resolutions in 2026. That’s roughly 39.5 million people taking deliberate steps to better themselves as the year kicks off. This is slighty lower than last year, when 74% of the UK public were making a resolution.

Year Percentage making New Year's resolutions Estimated number of people
2026 72% 39.5 million
2025 74% 40 million
2024 66% 35 million
2023 58% 30 million
2022 54% 28 million
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What are the most common New Year’s resolutions in the UK?

The most common New Year’s resolutions in the UK for 2026 are related to health, with 35% of people keen to improve their physical and mental wellbeing. Money is the second most popular category for New Year’s resolutions, with 3 in 10 (31%) setting goals in this area, closely followed by 29% of people making family-related resolutions.

Career goals are not so much of a priority for Brits, with only 15% making this the focus of their New Year’s Resolutions. Love is also one of the least popular categories, but almost a quarter of Brits (23%) still intend to focus on this area.

Resolution Percentage
Health 35%
Money 31%
Family 29%
Self-improvement 28%
Travel 26%
Love 23%
Career 15%

How many Brits are making money resolutions this year?

Money is the second most popular New Year’s resolution for 2026, with 3 in 10 Brits (31%) making a financial resolution. This is a similar number to last year, when 32% of people made a money-focused New Year’s resolution.

The number of New Year’s resolutions by generation

Our data shows that the older respondents get, the less likely they are to make a New Year’s resolution. While a whopping 95% of generation Z (aged 18-28) and 97% of millenials (aged 29-44) will be making resolutions for 2026, this drops to 68% for generation X (aged 45-60), 45% for baby boomers (aged 61-79) and 30% for the silent generation (aged 80 and over).

Generation Percentage making New Year's resolutions
Gen Z 95%
Millenials 87%
Gen X 68%
Baby Boomers 45%
Silent Generation 30%

Millennials are the most focused on money in 2026, with 2 in 5 (41%) of respondents having New Year’s resolutions related to their finances, the most popular of all the categories for this generation. The picture is similar for generation Z, as 39% will also be making money-related resolutions.

The issue of money becomes less important for the older generations. 31% of generation X, 14% of baby boomers and just 9% of the silent generation gave money as a focus for their New Year’s resolutions.

The number of New Year’s resolutions by region

Londoners are the most likely to set a New Year’s resolution for 2026, with an impressive 8 in 10 (81%) making some kind of goal for the New Year. They are followed by residents in the North West of England and the West Midlands, with 76% setting a resolution.

Meanwhile, those in the South East and Yorkshire are less motivated to get involved with the New Year’s resolution hype – with 64% of the former and 66% of the latter setting goals for 2026.

Region Percentage making New Year's resolutions
Greater London 81%
North West 76%
West Midlands 76%
East Midlands 73%
Northern Ireland 71%
East of England 71%
Wales 70%
South West 68%
Scotland 68%
North East 68%
Yorkshire and The Humber 66%
South East 64%

Methodology

Finder commissioned Censuswide to carry out a nationally representative survey of adults aged 18+. A total of 2,000 people were questioned throughout Great Britain between 12 December and 15 December 2025, with representative quotas for gender, age and region. The online survey has a margin of error of ±2.2% at a 95% confidence level. Censuswide follows the MRS Code of Conduct, ESOMAR principles, and is a member of the British Polling Council.

Click here for more research. For all media enquiries, please contact –

Sophie Barber
Communications Manager

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To make sure you get accurate and helpful information, this guide has been edited by Holly Jennings as part of our fact-checking process.
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Sophie Barber is a senior content marketing manager for Finder in the UK. She has over 5 years experience in writing and publishing clear, concise and informative articles that help consumers make informed decisions. See full bio

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Sophie has written 99 Finder guides across topics including:
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Louise is an editor and spokesperson at Finder, specialising in a broad range of financial topics from first-time buyers to financial wellness. Her personal finance expertise has been featured in Closer Magazine, The Sun, The Daily Mail, The Independent and more, and she has appeared on ITV News. You can check out her work across 500+ videos on Finder's YouTube channel, which has over 3 million views. In her free time, Louise can be found performing in comedy clubs across the UK or figuring out how to justify having a hot tub in her garden. See full bio

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Louise has written 12 Finder guides across topics including:
  • Financial wellness
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  • Millennial money
  • UK top trends
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