22 New Year’s Superstitions From Around the World to Bring Luck in 2025

Cameron Jenkins
1

Keep Your Cupboard Fully Stocked

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Having your pantry or cabinets filled to the brim on New Year’s Day signifies good luck, and will help you and your family to avoid hardship in 2025. According to Southern Living, it is a popular southern ritual.

2

Walk Around With an Empty Suitcase

close up of a woman with a trolley on the street on the way to the hotel
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3

Throw Furniture From a Window

a man throws an old chair out of the window
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4

Eat 12 Grapes

young woman eating grapes
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Grabbing a healthy snack come New Year’s Day can do more than just kick-start your new year’s resolution. In many Latin countries, eating 12 grapes (one for each month of the new year) is thought to bring good luck.

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5

Keep Cash in Your Wallet

woman holding wallet with us $1 paper bills showing
Catherine McQueen

You may want to run out to get some cash ahead of New Year’s Eve. According to superstition, keeping a full wallet will bring financial stability and prosperity for the next 12 months.

6

Eat Collard Greens and Black-Eyed Peas

collard greens seasoned with salt pork and red onions and black eyed peas with chunks of spam  blue gingham tablecloth emphasizes country kitchen feel
Warren_Price

In the south, it is considered good luck to include a plate of collard greens and black-eyed peas as part of your New Year’s Eve meal. Both foods are believed to signify prosperity and well-being for the new year.

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7

Make Noise

friends at a party with confetti
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8

Leave Windows and Doors Open

open window in bedroom
ZenShui/Sigrid Olsson

Similar to the old adage “out with the old and in with the new,” leaving your doors and windows open on New Year’s Eve is said to let out the old year. With all the fresh air circulating, you’re sure to also welcome in the new year (and maybe a draft).

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9

Wear Polkadots

a portrait of a happy teenage girl wearing a polka dot dress standing in front of a yellow background
Phamai Techaphan

In the Philippines, it is considered good luck to wear anything with polka dots on New Year’s Eve. People who live there also surround themselves with other round objects like coins and even round fruit, like oranges, to welcome wealth in the new year.

10

Don’t Eat Lobster

lobster entree
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We know, a lobster dinner sounds delicious on almost any night of the year, but you may want to be weary of it on New Year’s Eve. Several cultures believe it to be bad luck to eat lobster because the crustaceans move backward. If you are looking towards the future and new beginnings, you don’t want anything to hold you back.

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11

Jump in the Air

happy young woman jumping in the air
Westend61

If you’re hoping to gain a little height in 2025, you may want to try this out. It is believed in the Philippines that if you hop up and down at midnight on New Year’s Eve, or try to jump in the air as high as you can, you can grow taller.

12

Break Dishes

high angle view of broken plates
Christine Welter / EyeEm

In several countries, it is considered good luck and a sign of friendship to break dishes and plates on the homes of those closest to you. If you wake up on New Year’s Day with a ton of broken dishware in front of your home, it’s safe to say that you’re well liked.

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13

Eat Soba Noodles

soba
flyingv43

People in Japan traditionally eat soba noodles on New Year’s Eve. According to the superstition, the meal will melt away the pain and difficulties of the previous year.

14

Don’t Clean Your Clothes

bedroom with clothes, books and cds thrown around
Yellow Dog Productions

If you’ve been avoiding doing laundry or sweeping, you may want to hold off a little longer. Some frown upon cleaning up and cleaning clothes during New Year’s Eve. It is thought that you could accidentally wash away or wipe away good luck headed your way.

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15

Share a Midnight Kiss

couple kissing on new years eve
Jupiterimages

A kiss at the stroke of midnight can be more than a sweet gesture to show your significant other how much you care. In ancient Rome and Scotland, the exercise was thought to help prevent a year of loneliness.

16

Clean the House

mother vacuum cleaning while carrying toddler son
Johner Images

If you aren’t into leaving messes around the house for the sake of good luck, this superstition may appeal to you. Many people around the world believe in starting New Year’s Day with a clean house in order to avoid carrying the old or dirt of last year into the new year.

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17

Burn Photos

cropped shot of young woman burning photo card of ex boyfriend
LightFieldStudios

An Ecuadorian superstition calls for burning photos of old memories in order to make way for the new things to come. The superstition requires that photos be burned before midnight so that they don’t make it into the new year.

18

Eat Vasilopita

a piece of vasilopita, the greek lucky new year’s cake
Phips69

You may be familiar with eating King Cake in celebration of Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday. But, a cake that is similar to the pastry that is also popular in New Orleans (it also carries a trinket inside), is known to bring good luck on another holiday. In Greece, the tradition of eating vasilopita on New Year’s Eve can bring good luck if you find the hidden coin in your slice.

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19

Eat Round Food

new year's day superstitions eat round food
Tanja Ivanova//Getty Images

For many cultures, eating round foods is believed to bring abundance and prosperity for the new year. In Europe and the United States, the tradition calls for 12 round fruits to symbolize each month of the year. But in countries like the Philippines, you’re supposed to eat 13, a number considered as lucky.

20

Wear White

new year's day superstitions wear white
Flashpop//Getty Images

In Brazil, people wear white, walk into the ocean and jump over seven waves for good luck at midnight on New Year’s. But even if you don’t jump into the ocean, simply wearing white can still (hopefully) bring good fortune.

Headshot of Cameron Jenkins

Cameron (she/her) is a staff writer for Good Housekeeping, where she covers everything from holidays to food. She is a graduate of Syracuse University, where she received a B.A. in magazine journalism. In her spare-time she can be found scrolling TikTok for the latest cleaning hacks and restaurant openings, binge-watching seasons of Project Runway or online shopping.

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