With 2023 just around the corner, a new survey by Loqbox has revealed which resolutions its members are planning to make in the new year. As we exit 2022, a year where Covid restrictions were lifted and the cost of living crisis hit, it comes as no surprise that the majority of resolutions people are planning for 2023 relate to their finances.
A focus on building up savings and paying off debt top the list as 86% of Loqbox members told us they plan to reduce their spending next year.
Loqbox members planned 2023 resolutions
- Building savings 46%
- Paying off or reducing debt 18%
- Spending less on things which are not needed 14%
- Increasing earnings 11%
- Buying a house 6%
- Feeling more confident with money 2%
- Other 2%
In a bid to have a better financial life in 2023, survey respondents said they planned to cut back on things like leisure spending (46%), switching brands in the weekly shop (40%) , streaming services, switching brands for the big shop and switching utility providers to get a better deal (23%). Less socialising, changing travel habits and going on fewer holidays are also planned ways to cut back spending in 2023.
With leisure spending cutbacks including gym memberships and streaming services being a priority, 60% of respondents expect to save between £10 and £40 a month, while almost 15% said they would be £41 - £70 better off.
Despite an increase in living costs being cited as the main reason consumers may be cutting back on non-essentials like subscription services, nearly half of respondents have no plans to reduce their spending on products such as streaming services, music, or even their gym memberships.
Tom Eyre, Co-Founder and Co-CEO at Loqbox said: “It’s interesting to see that Loqbox members really want to make a change to their financial wellbeing in 2023, however, it’s concerning to learn that this could come with a cost to personal wellbeing. People are looking to save money by cancelling things like gym memberships and other subscriptions with only 1 in 5 making resolutions relating to personal wellbeing”.
Tom Eyre continued: “The change in wellbeing-focused resolutions is really interesting as we have seen a 14.8% year on year drop in resolutions relating to wellbeing, and a 23.7% drop in physical fitness focused resolutions, perhaps an indication that the cost of living crisis may be impacting people’s broader wellbeing for the future”.
When it comes to sticking to resolutions, almost 62% of survey respondents said they have broken those made in the past. A lack of willpower was cited by just over half of respondents who admitted to breaking resolutions, and 36% of people said that they lost interest.
With so many people planning to try and build savings and make cutbacks, Loqbox has a number of resources available for free including better budgeting, a guide on fun ways to make money for mortgage deposits, and for building long term good financial habits, information on the four pillars of money management.
Note to Editors:
The Loqbox member survey was conducted in December 2022 and was completed by 730 people.