This Is What People’s Budgeting Habits Looked Like in 2024

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According to the Financial Headstart survey conducted by GOBankingRates, 9.3% of respondents stuck to their budgets 100% of the time this year. In the survey, 7.8% of women and 11.46% of men admitted to being diligent about their finances.

We will break down people’s budgeting habits in 2024 and provide advice for those looking to improve their money management in 2025.

Here’s What People’s Budgeting Habits Looked Like In 2024

Here are some interesting insights on people’s budgeting habits in 2024 from the survey:

• 5.7% of people never stuck to a budget. 
• 17.1% of survey participants didn’t have a budget. Surprisingly, over a quarter of those 65 and over admitted to not having a budget. Almost a fifth of women (17.97%) and men (15.85%) admitted to not having a spending plan.
• When it comes to sticking to a budget 100% of the time, the age group with the highest compliance rates was 65 and over (15.72%), while those 55 to 64 only fully committed to their budgets 5.62% of the time.
• When it comes to never following a budget, 8.33% of those between the ages of 35 and 44 admitted to being in this situation. 
• About one-third of those (29.63%) between 18 and 24 followed a budget 25% of the time, signifying that they had at least attempted to create a financial plan. 

How To Improve Your Budgeting In 2025

How to improve your budgeting in 2025 if you’re unsatisfied with how 2024 went when it comes to your financial planning. 

1. Commit To Getting Serious About Budgeting 

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“This may sound basic, but many people talk about needing to ‘get on a budget,’ but relatively few actually do it,” said Austin Kilgore, a consumer finance expert with Achieve. The most crucial step to gaining control of your budget is to commit to getting serious about creating a spending plan. 

While it’s common to mention the concept of following a budget, sitting down to create one is a different task. If you want to make serious changes in 2025 to your finances, you’ll have to start by committing to track your spending so that you finally follow a budget. 

2. Figure Out Where Your Money Is Going

“It’s not enough to have a general idea of where your finances stand,” said Rod Griffin, senior director of Consumer Education and Advocacy for Experian. “If you’re making assumptions about how much money you really have, you might find yourself miscalculating, overspending or taking on debt.”

You may want to start by keeping track of expenses for the next month or so to figure out your true spending habits. This will also help you create a realistic budget that you can actually follow. You’ll want to thoroughly review your income and expenses to determine how much you’re spending on certain categories. You may find that you have some problem areas with your spending or expenses that could be removed. 

 3. Set Clear Financial Goals

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“A budget will work infinitely better if it’s tied to what’s important to you in your life, not just a set of numbers,” said Kilgore. Most people won’t be able to stick to a budget if they don’t have clear financial goals that they’re striving towards because saving money for no reason can get boring.

A few examples of financial goals include:

• Save up for a downpayment in one year.
• Pay down your credit card debt by the summer. 
• Plan for a major trip next year.

All that matters is that you set clear financial goals to have a reason to commit to your budget in 2025. Since the study found that 5.7% of respondents never followed their budget, there’s a chance that you created a spending plan that didn’t include clear money-related objectives. 

4. Accept That Your Spending Habits Won’t Be Perfect

The survey found that just under a quarter of respondents followed their budgets half of the time. The good news is that there’s nothing wrong with this as long as you’re aware of the mistakes that you’re making. You won’t always be able to hit a perfect 100% with your spending habits, but the goal is to strive towards making slow improvements. 

“While it is important to stick to your budget as much as possible, life happens,” said Griffin. “It’s crucial that you don’t look at budgeting as all-or-nothing.” The goal is to create a spending plan that you can realistically follow. This doesn’t mean everything will always go according to plan because life can throw unexpected expenses at us. 

Griffin added, “A budget is a financial tool that creates a roadmap to achieve your goals. Like other parts of life, sometimes there are detours and you have to adjust your plan.” 

5. Use Simple Budgeting Tools

If you’re struggling with sticking to a budget or a spending plan, you may want to find tools that make it easier. “You may prefer an app, spreadsheet, or old-fashioned pencil and paper. What’s most important is to use what’s most comfortable to you so that you’ll stick with it,” Kilgore elaborated.

If you want to follow your budget 100% of the time like 9.3% of the respondents claimed to do so, you’ll want to find tools that you’re comfortable with to simplify the process so that you can eventually make budgeting feel effortless.