5 Money Habits to Break in 2025 (You’ll Save More!)

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Are you tired of feeling like your money disappears before the end of the month? You're not alone. Many people are stuck in financial cycles that keep them living paycheck to paycheck, not because they don’t earn enough, but because of poor money habits. As we head into 2025, it’s time to take control of your finances and make smarter choices that help you save more and spend less.

Below are five money habits to break in 2025, and practical tools (including Rakuten) that will help you save instantly.

💸 1. Impulse Shopping Without Earning Cashback
One of the most damaging money habits people have is impulse shopping, especially online. It’s tempting, a flash sale here, a 50% discount there, but these quick buys add up fast. What’s worse? Most people don’t even use cashback or reward tools while shopping online.

💡 How to Break This Habit in 2025:
Instead of quitting online shopping cold turkey, start using Rakuten, a free cashback platform that literally pays you to shop.

🛍️ Here’s how it works:

Sign up for Rakuten using this link, it's free.
Browse stores like Walmart, Macy’s, Target, Sephora, and over 3,500 more.
Rakuten gives you cashback on every qualifying purchase.
Example: Spend $100 on Nike and get $10 cashback. Simple.

✅ Pro Tip: Add the Rakuten browser extension so it alerts you whenever you're on a site that offers cashback.

🚫 2. Paying for Subscriptions You Don’t Use
Do you really need Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, AND HBO Max? How about that meditation app you haven’t opened in months? Many people don’t realize they’re losing hundreds per year on unused subscriptions.

💡 How to Break This Habit in 2025:
Use a budgeting tool like Rocket Money (formerly Truebill). It automatically:

Finds and lists all your recurring subscriptions
Cancels the ones you no longer need
Negotiates lower bills on your behalf
It’s like having a money-saving assistant in your pocket.

 
🪙 3. Not Tracking Where Your Money Goes
If you don't track your spending, you're likely overspending. From small coffees to late-night food deliveries, tiny purchases can silently kill your budget.

💡 How to Break This Habit in 2025:
Start using a budget tracking app like You Need A Budget (YNAB) or EveryDollar.

Here’s what they help with:

Allocating every dollar you earn
Tracking your categories (food, bills, fun)
Setting goals and measuring progress
Most people find they can save an extra $200–$500/month just by getting visibility into their spending.

 
💼 4. Letting Your Savings Sit in a 0.01% Account.
Keeping your emergency fund or savings in a regular checking account or a low-interest savings account is costing you. Inflation eats away at your money’s value when it’s not growing.

💡 How to Break This Habit in 2025:
Open a high-yield savings account with an online bank like CIT Bank or Marcus by Goldman Sachs. These accounts typically offer 4% or more in annual interest compared to your bank's 0.01%.

That means:

$1,000 = $0.10/year in a regular bank
$1,000 = $40+/year in a high-yield savings account
It’s passive income, for doing nothing.

 
🧾 5. Ignoring Discounts and Promo Codes
If you hit “checkout” without looking for a promo code or cashback deal, you’re overspending, plain and simple.

💡 How to Break This Habit in 2025:
Again, this is where Rakuten comes in strong. In addition to cashback, it often applies the best available promo codes for thousands of stores automatically at checkout.

No more:

Copy/pasting random codes
Searching Google for “XYZ coupons”
With Rakuten’s browser extension, the discounts find you.

📌 Sign up here for free: https://www.rakuten.com/referral/default.do#

 
🎯 Bonus Tip: Stack Your Savings
Want to supercharge your savings this year? Use these strategies together:

Shop online → Activate Rakuten → Earn cashback
Use Rocket Money to cancel old subscriptions
Set up auto-transfer to a high-yield savings account
Track every dollar with a budgeting app
Let Rakuten apply promo codes on top of sales
Small changes = big results over time.

📊 Real-Life Example: How One User Saved Over $500 in 3 Months
Let’s break down how a typical user might save:

Habit Broken
Monthly Savings
Tool Used
Canceled 3 unused subscriptions
$45/month
Rocket Money
Earned cashback via Rakuten
$30/month
Rakuten
Switched to high-yield savings
$15/month
CIT Bank
Tracked spending and cut extras
$100/month
YNAB
Used promo codes via Rakuten
$20/month
Rakuten
 
➡️ Total: $210/month = $630 in 3 months

And that’s without increasing income,  just smarter money management.

 
🔁 Final Thoughts: 2025 Is the Year to Build Wealth
The truth is, most people don’t need to hustle harder, they just need to be smarter with what they already have.

By breaking these 5 habits and using tools like Rakuten, you can finally start seeing more money stay in your account, month after month.

👉 Ready to start?
✅ Get cashback on everything you buy:
Join Rakuten here, it’s free