01The research
What the fresh start effect is
In 2014, Hengchen Dai, Katherine Milkman and Jason Riis at the Wharton School published The Fresh Start Effect: Temporal Landmarks Motivate Aspirational Behavior in Management Science. The question: is New Year special, or do other dates work the same way?
They looked at three sets of real-world data. Google searches for “diet” rose at the start of a new week, month and year, and after holidays. Gym visits by 11,912 university students rose at the start of a week, month, year and semester, after school breaks and after birthdays. And people made more goal commitments on the website stickK right after the same kinds of dates.
Study 1
Google searches for "diet" rose after landmarks.
Study 2
Students were 33.4% more likely to visit the gym at the start of a week.
Study 3
More people signed up to pursue goals on stickK after landmarks.
Start of a semester
+47.1%
Start of a week
+33.4%
After a school break
+24.3%
Start of a month
+14.4%
Start of a year
+11.6%
After a birthday
+7.5%
Increase in the chance a student visited a university gym on a given day, against baseline. 11,912 undergraduates, September 2010 to December 2011. Source: Dai, Milkman and Riis (2014), Management Science, Study 2.
See the numbers+
| Landmark | Rise vs baseline |
|---|---|
| Start of a semester | +47.1% |
| Start of a week | +33.4% |
| After a school break | +24.3% |
| Start of a month | +14.4% |
| Start of a year | +11.6% |
| After a birthday | +7.5% |
The authors call these dates temporal landmarks: days that stand out and split time into chapters. Their explanation is that a new chapter lets you put past failures in the old one, and makes you step back and look at the bigger picture. Both make it easier to start.
The study measured when people start: searches, gym visits, sign-ups. It did not follow whether the new behavior lasted. That is the gap our data can say something about.
02What our data adds
The 1st of a month beats Monday
In the fresh start study, Monday was one of the strongest landmarks for getting to the gym. In our data, it made no difference to whether a habit lasted. Habits started on the 1st of a month were 2.6 times as likely to still be going in week 4 (17.0% vs 6.5%).
1st of a month
17.0%
Any other day
6.5%
A Monday
7.1%
Not a Monday
7.9%
n = 450 habits started on the 1st of a month, 729 on a Monday. Source: The Daily Pact Habits Report 2026.
Check-in days in the first month
4 days
started another day
6.6 days
started on the 1st
Still going in week 4
7.9%
not a Monday
7.1%
a Monday
No Monday edge. If anything, slightly lower.
Why would the 1st work and Monday not? Our data can't prove it, but a likely reason is that a month comes with a finish line. People who start on the 1st often run a 30-day challenge or a monthly challenge, so the end is clear from day one. A Monday comes back every seven days. Miss one, and the next is never far away, which makes it easy to keep postponing.
Weekday data points the same way. Check-ins peak early in the week (Tuesday has 17.2%) and drop to 11.6% on Friday. Monday to Wednesday hold 50.1% of all check-ins. The week gives a burst of energy that fades by Thursday, every week.
Last 180 days. Source: The Daily Pact Habits Report 2026.
Start-day numbers: n = 450 habits started on the 1st of a month and 729 on a Monday, from The Daily Pact Habits Report 2026. This is app data and an association: people who pick the 1st may also plan more. It is not a controlled trial.
03The flip side
A fresh start gets you started, not through week two
Even the best start date only moves a small share of habits. Across 4,404 habits, 86% of the habits that stopped did so in the first two weeks. The fresh start study found the same fade from the other side: gym visits fell as each week, month and year went on.
Each week only counts habits old enough to have reached it. n = 1,210 habits with 1-2 friends, 1,579 in groups of 4+, 1,615 alone. Source: The Daily Pact Habits Report 2026.
See the numbers+
| Week | With 1-2 friends | Group of 4+ | Alone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | 88.5% | 89.4% | 42.7% |
| Week 2 | 50.3% | 45.2% | 11.8% |
| Week 3 | 26% | 14.8% | 5% |
| Week 4 | 17.5% | 4.3% | 3.1% |
| Week 5 | 14.4% | 3.7% | 3% |
| Week 6 | 11.8% | 1.4% | 2.7% |
| Week 7 | 7.7% | 1.4% | 2.6% |
| Week 8 | 7.5% | 0.9% | 2.1% |
Alone: day 1
With others: day 6
Median day after starting. n = 2,555 habits with no check-in in the last 21 days (516 solo, 2,039 shared). Source: The Daily Pact Habits Report 2026.
See the numbers+
| Alone | With others | |
|---|---|---|
| Median day of last check-in | day 1 | day 6 |
| Stopped on day 0 | 44.6% | 11.4% |
| Stopped in week 1 | 72.1% | 50.2% |
| Stopped by day 14 | 89.1% | 85.2% |
| Stopped by day 30 | 95.9% | 95.9% |
That is the pattern behind Quitter's Day, the second Friday of January, when New Year's resolutions are said to stall. A landmark gives you a push on day one. By day 8 the push is gone and you need something else: a small habit, a plan for a missed day, and people who notice. More on the timeline in how long it takes to form a habit.
04How to use it
How to use the fresh start effect for your next habit
Use the landmark for the start, and plan the rest around week two.
Pick a landmark.
The 1st of next month is the one our data backs. December 1, 2026 is a Tuesday, January 1, 2027 a Friday, and February 1, 2027 a Monday and a 1st at once. A birthday or a new job works too.
Set an end date.
Give it a finish line: the end of the month, or 30 days. A clear end is the likely reason the 1st beats Monday. When it ends, decide whether to keep going.
Start with one or two friends.
In our data, habits with 1-2 friends were still getting check-ins in week 2 50.3% of the time, against 11.8% alone.
Plan the week-two dip.
Decide now what you'll do on day 8 when it feels hard. Shrink the habit for a day instead of skipping it, and never miss twice in a row.
Start on the 1st, together
Daily Pact is a habit tracker for you and one or two friends: one tap a day, and your pact sees when you've done it. Pick the 1st, set the end date, and get through week two together.
FAQ
Questions people ask
What is the fresh start effect?+
The fresh start effect is the finding that people are more likely to pursue goals right after a temporal landmark, such as a new week, month or year, a birthday or a holiday. It was named by Hengchen Dai, Katherine Milkman and Jason Riis in a 2014 Management Science paper, which found that Google searches for "diet", gym visits and goal commitments all rise after these dates.
What is the best day to start a new habit?+
In Daily Pact data, the 1st of a month. Habits started on the 1st were still getting check-ins in week 4 17.0% of the time, against 6.5% for habits started on any other day, about 2.6 times as often. They also got 6.6 check-in days in their first month, against 4. This is an association in app data, not proof that the date itself causes it.
Does starting a habit on a Monday work?+
Monday gets you started, but in our data it didn't keep you going. Habits started on a Monday were still going in week 4 7.1% of the time, against 7.9% for other days, so no edge. The 2014 fresh start study did find gym visits were 33.4% more likely at the start of a week, which measures starting, not lasting.
What are temporal landmarks?+
Temporal landmarks are dates that stand out from ordinary days and split time into chapters. Some are shared by everyone, like New Year, the 1st of a month, the start of a week or a public holiday. Others are personal, like a birthday, a new job or a move. Researchers think they help people separate a new self from past failures.
Is January 1 a good time to start a habit?+
It's a good time to start, and a 1st of a month: in our data, habits started on the 1st of any month were 2.6 times as likely to still be going in week 4. But the same data shows 86% of habits that stopped did so within two weeks, which lines up with Quitter's Day, the second Friday of January (January 8 in 2027). Plan for week two before you start. Quitter's Day: when resolutions stall
Why would the 1st of the month beat Monday?+
Our data can't say for sure. A likely reason is that a month comes with a built-in finish line. People who start on the 1st often run a 30-day or monthly challenge, so the end date is clear from day one. A Monday restarts every seven days, which makes it easy to skip one and wait for the next.
How do I use the fresh start effect for a habit?+
Pick a landmark (the 1st of next month, New Year or your birthday), set an end date, start with one or two friends and plan for days 7 to 14. In our data, habits shared with 1-2 friends were still getting check-ins in week 2 50.3% of the time, against 11.8% alone.
Does the fresh start effect last?+
The motivation boost fades. In the 2014 study, gym visits declined as each week, month and year went on. In our data on 4,404 habits, 86% of the habits that stopped got their last check-in within two weeks. A fresh start helps you begin; something else has to carry you through week two.
Sources
- The Daily Pact Habits Report 2026: 4,404 habits by 1,605 people in 86 countries, March to November 2026. App data, not a controlled trial.
- Dai, Milkman and Riis (2014), The Fresh Start Effect: Temporal Landmarks Motivate Aspirational Behavior, Management Science 60(10), 2563-2582: three field studies: Google searches for "diet", university gym visits, and goal commitments on stickK
- The same paper as a PDF (Wharton faculty site): gym visit effect sizes are in Study 2, section 4.4
Start on the 1st, with a friend
Start your 14-day free trial. No credit card required.
5.0 from 13 App Store ratingsAvailable on iPhone & Android · 14 days free for new accounts