The beginning of a new year is a great time to set new goals. New year's resolutions take advantage of the metaphorical clean slate and can propel us forward to try new things, reach specific benchmarks or reinvest in the things we enjoy. But they can sometimes be difficult to stick with.
I've resisted setting New Year's resolutions for the past few years. I found that I had given up or forgotten about them by mid-February, and when my initial efforts didn't result in meeting my goals, the disappointment stung. And I'm not alone -- that same Forbes study shows that only 13% of Americans' New Year's resolutions last four months or longer. Building long-term, sustainable habits, or turning a resolution from goal to reality, is hard.
That's why we've compiled these apps and services that will help keep you on track. No matter your resolution, these apps can help you manage your fitness, meet your financial goals and learn something new.
Mental health and physical fitness apps
Working on your physical and mental health are some of the more common new year's resolutions. Whether you're looking to pick up a new fitness regimen or make space for a daily meditation, these apps can help you create and maintain many different health and fitness habits.
For beginners, the Nike Training Club app checks a lot of boxes. It's free, with no subscription or equipment required. It has lessons in many different areas, including bodyweight exercises, high-intensity interval training, cross-training, yoga and core exercises. You can follow along with video demonstrations from Nike trainers. This app should have something for everyone, which is why CNET selected it as our best overall fitness app.
Strava is a great tool for helping you track your workouts. Strava is primarily built for runners, but it can also track your progress in cycling, hiking, yoga and other workouts. It turns your phone into a "detailed performance monitor," especially when used with smartwatches, GPSs or other wearables. Strava also lets you connect with your friends, and you can choose to share your favorite running routes and personal records. Strava is available for free, but you can try out a subscription with a 30-day free trial that gives you access to more advanced features like route planning, training dashboards and goal setting for $12 per month or $80 annually.
Calm is one of the most popular meditation and mental health apps. It has hundreds of audio recordings, including guided meditations, breathing exercises, mindfulness practices and bedtime stories. It also has many other resources available online for learning more about mental health. Calm offers an initial 14-day free trial and then is available for $70 annually.
Journaling has been found to be a helpful tool for recording, recognizing and managing your emotions. Day One gives you a personal, private space for keeping a journal, travel log, gratitude diary and more. With this free app, you can customize your journal how you want, adding multimedia elements like photos and videos. It also has writing prompts and templates if you're not quite sure where to begin.Â
Money and financial wellness apps
Any time is a good time to start investing in your financial health, but the beginning of a new year can present new opportunities. Whether you're saving up for a summer vacation, wanting to make progress on a loan or building a 2025 budget, these apps can help.
Rocket Money is CNET's top choice for budgeting apps and is a 2024 editor's choice award recipient. Our CNET reviewers noted how easy the website and app are to navigate, and it offers helpful features like bill alerts and monthly spending reports. You can update to the premium version for $6-12 per month (you choose how much to pay!) to unlock more saving tools like bill negotiation and subscription cancellation.
PocketGuard is a good option for a free budgeting app, especially if you're focused on debt pay-off planning. The app connects your financial accounts and helps you build a budget based on your expenses and spending habits. PocketGuard can also help you plan and save by flagging recurring charges, like monthly subscriptions you may not need anymore. Its paid plans for $13 per month include more advanced features like debt management tools and the ability to set multiple saving goals.Â
Experian
If you're looking for a little peace of mind, Experian is our top choice for credit monitoring. Your credit score is essential when you're applying for a credit card or loan, and because Experian is one of the three big credit bureaus, you can access your FICO score and Experian credit report for free whenever you need with the app. You can upgrade to the premium plan for $25 per month for access to credit score comparison across the three bureaus, subscription cancellation, bill negotiation and fraud alerts.
Invest in your hobbies and interests
The start of a new year is a chance to carve out time in your life to pick up an old hobby, learn something new or dip your toes into a new interest. These apps can hopefully help you bring a little color and fun to the new year.
Known for its neon green, chaotic owl mascot, Duolingo is one of the most popular language learning apps. The app offers more than 40 languages and is constantly adding more. The lessons cover varying levels of conversation, vocabulary and grammar for effective, holistic learning. It's a well-designed app that's fast, fun and simple to use. While you can use it for free, you can access more advanced features for $13 a month.
If one of your New Year's resolutions was to read more, Goodreads is a great tool to have in your back pocket. You can easily set up a free account and join its yearly reading challenge. All you have to do is set the number of books you want to read, and Goodreads will automatically track your progress as you mark books as "Read." You can also use the platform to find new books, create custom shelves and connect with fellow readers, authors and librarians.
If you're hoping to make your thumbs a bit greener, Plant Parent can help. This app can help you identify different kinds of plants, recommend care plans and even send you reminders when it's time to water, fertilize or repot. If your plant is starting to wilt or look funky, Plant Parent will also help you try to spot potential problems or diseases. Plant Parent is available for free, but for additional firepower and advice, you can upgrade to the premium plan for $30 annually.
The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.