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Small Steps to Strengthen Your Financial Foundation for 2026
By Coach Jon

Quicken Simplifi is designed to be flexible, allowing you to pivot when your circumstances change. By leveraging three key features: Watchlists, Savings Goals, and Recurring Series, you can build a financial plan that isn't just about tracking the past, but proactively planning for the year ahead. Here is how to use these features to adjust your strategy for 2026.

Use Watchlists to Combat "Lifestyle Creep"

When your income or expenses change, it is easy for spending to drift upward. Watchlists allow you to monitor specific spending areas without capping them hard, making them perfect for variable expenses.

• Monitor Inflation-Prone Categories: If you have noticed the cost of utilities or groceries rising, create a Watchlist for them. Set a target based on your new average, not last year's.
• Track New Circumstances: Did you return to the office after working remotely? You likely need a new Watchlist for "Commuting" or "Gas." By isolating this expense, you can see exactly how this lifestyle change impacts your bottom line.
• Projected Spending: Use the Watchlist's projection feature to see where you will land by the end of the month. If the projected amount shows you going over your target, you can adjust your behavior immediately rather than waiting for a surprising end-of-month bill.

For more detailed information and steps on how to use the Watchlists feature, be sure to visit our support article here:  https://support.simplifi.quicken.com/en/articles/3472367-using-watchlists

Audit Your Recurring Series

A "set it and forget it" mentality is dangerous for your wallet. The New Year is the time to audit your recurring series to ensure they match your current reality.

• End Old Series: Did you pay off a car loan or cancel a streaming service last year? Don't just delete the recurring transaction; use the End Series option. This preserves your historical data going forward, but the series itself is no longer active.
• Adjust for Price Hikes: Insurance premiums, rent, and subscription costs often go up in January. You can navigate to your All Recurring settings and edit your recurring series to reflect their current amounts. This ensures your data is accurate for the coming year.
• Plan for Annual Bills: If you have annual subscriptions due this year, create a Recurring Series for them now. Set the frequency to "Yearly" so you aren't blindsided when the due date arrives.

For more detailed information and steps on how to manage Recurring Transactions, be sure to visit our support article here:  https://support.simplifi.quicken.com/en/articles/3625912-managing-recurring-transactions

Monitoring Your Savings Goals

Savings Goals in Simplifi are not just for vacations; they are a tool for managing financial resilience.

• The "Withdraw for Something Else" Option: If you need to dip into a savings goal to cover an unexpected emergency, Quicken Simplifi allows you to return all or part of your contribution(s) back to your spending funds. When using this option, you'll see that the funds are removed from the saved so far amount and added back to the left to save amount of the Goal.
• Savings Goals Contributions: You can view your contributions for the current month directly in the Goal itself. For the past months, check the Savings Goals section of your Spending Plan! This will help you see how much you need to save going forward in the new year.
• Don't Delete Your Goals: Although you can delete a Savings Goal at any time, it's important to note that doing so will also delete all past contributions, which can impact the Spending Plan. If a Savings Goal is showing as "completed", it's best to leave it in the 'Completed' section versus deleting it.

For more detailed information and steps on how to monitor your Savings Goals, be sure to visit our support article here:  https://support.simplifi.quicken.com/en/articles/3676756-using-quicken-simplifi-s-savings-goals

Summary

The New Year isn't just about making resolutions; it's about building a system that supports them. By setting up Watchlists, auditing your Recurring Series, and being flexible with your Savings Goals, you can create a Quicken Simplifi setup that is sure to help you for the upcoming year.

Question of the Month

Looking ahead to 2026, what is one unexpected expense from last year you want to be better prepared for this year?

Release Note Highlights

Both the Quicken Simplifi Web and Mobile Apps—as well as Quicken Business & Personal—have received several exciting enhancements! Here’s what’s new:

• You can now customize your Dashboard in the Web App, with additional customization improvements rolled out on the Mobile App as well.
• Account registers are getting a refresh, featuring a customizable layout and advanced filtering options.
• A new Mileage Tracker is now available in Quicken Business & Personal, with mileage automatically linked to the Taxes Report.
• New Spending and Income tabs have been added to account registers, making it easier than ever to understand your finances at a glance.
• We’re currently testing new Beta Reports that will pave the way for more robust reporting in Quicken Simplifi.

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December Leaderboard

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fooblahblah: 23 points

“Our leaderboard showcases top contributors for the month. Thank you for all of the insight, feedback, and knowledge you share.”

@Coach Jon's article provides very good advice for how to bring Simplifi up to date for the new year.

I was also very glad to see his clear explanations of the problems that result from deleting Recurring Series and Savings Goals. I hope that this information will be incorporated into the body text of the articles that he links regarding those features.

It would be great if people could read those clear warnings when they are learning how to use the features, rather than finding them in the support discussions after something has gone wrong.