Canadian retirement income planning
Optimize retirement spending, taxes and what you leave behind.
Model your household from retirement to life expectancy, compare CPP and OAS start ages, plan RRSP/RRIF withdrawals, preserve TFSA value, include large future expenses and test a tax-aware drawdown strategy.
✓ Browser-only storage✓ 2026 tax brackets✓ CPP/OAS timing✓ RRIF minimums
Step 1
Household
Step 2
Savings and investments
Current balances in CAD
| Account | You | How it is modelled |
|---|---|---|
| RRSP / RRIFTax-deferred | $ | Taxable when withdrawn; RRIF minimum rules applied. |
| TFSATax-free | $ | Withdrawals are not included in taxable income. |
| Non-registered investmentsTaxable portfolio | $ | Modelled as deferred capital gains; 50% of realized gains are taxable. |
| Adjusted cost base (ACB) ?For taxable portfolio | $ | Principal is not taxed again; only the estimated realized gain is included. |
| Cash / high-interest savingsAfter-tax cash | $ | Used without additional income tax in the model. |
| Other registered savings ?Optional | $ | Treated as RRSP-like for tax estimation; lock-in rules are not applied. |
| Annual RRSP contribution until retirementOptional accumulation | $ | Added at year-end before retirement. RRSP contribution tax deductions are not modelled before retirement. |
| Annual TFSA contribution until retirementOptional accumulation | $ | Added at year-end before retirement; contribution-room limits are not validated. |
Estate assumption. If one spouse dies first, registered assets are assumed to roll to the surviving spouse on a tax-deferred basis. At the second death, remaining RRSP/RRIF/other registered assets are estimated as taxable income, while TFSA and cash are treated as tax-free to the estate.
Step 3
Retirement spending plan
Enter annual household spending in today's dollars
Go-Go years
Travel, hobbies and higher activity.
Slow-Go years
Moderate lifestyle spending.
No-Go years
Lower discretionary spending.
One-time future expenses
Cars, gifts to children, renovations, major travel, health or other planned costs.
Step 4
Planning assumptions
Long-term assumptions can materially change the result
Government benefit timing
The optimizer tests these start ages and selects the highest-scoring household plan.
Planning estimate, not a tax return. The calculator models federal/provincial brackets, basic personal credits, OAS recovery tax and RRIF minimums. It does not model every Canadian credit, deduction, pension-splitting election, GIS, CPP survivor benefit, corporate assets, exact investment distributions, AMT, probate/estate administration tax or locked-in plan rules.
Step 5
Optimized retirement plan
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Run the optimizer to see your plan
Complete the prior sections, then calculate the optimized drawdown strategy.
Projected net worth
End-of-year balances by account type.
RegisteredTFSATaxable + cash
Annual spending and income sources
How planned spending is funded over time.
Year-by-year retirement report
All amounts are projected nominal dollars for each year.
| Year | Age | Stage | Spending | CPP | OAS | Other income | RRSP/RRIF draw | Taxable draw | TFSA draw | Cash draw | Est. tax | Registered left | TFSA left | Taxable + cash left | Net worth |
|---|
How it works
A retirement drawdown model built around Canadian accounts.
The optimizer projects annual household spending, grows each account, adds CPP, OAS and other retirement income, enforces RRIF minimum withdrawals, estimates income tax and evaluates multiple pension-start and withdrawal strategies.
It tests tax-smoothing approaches rather than blindly spending one account to zero. This can matter when large RRSP/RRIF balances create higher taxable income later in retirement or a larger taxable amount at death.
What the optimizer tries to balance
- Fund planned Go-Go, Slow-Go and No-Go spending.
- Avoid unnecessarily high taxable-income years.
- Respect RRIF minimum withdrawal requirements.
- Compare CPP at 60, 65 and 70 and OAS at 65 or 70.
- Preserve tax-free TFSA value when that improves the household outcome.
- Estimate taxes on remaining registered assets at the second death.
Canadian retirement planning FAQ
Important rules used by this calculator
When do I have to convert an RRSP to a RRIF?
Generally, an RRSP must be matured by December 31 of the year you turn 71. One common option is converting it to a RRIF. The RRIF minimum payment begins in the year after the RRIF is established.
How does starting CPP early or late change the amount?
The model reduces an age-65 CPP estimate by 0.6% for each month CPP starts before 65, to a maximum 36% reduction at age 60. It increases the age-65 amount by 0.7% for each month after 65, to a maximum 42% increase at age 70.
How does delaying OAS work?
The model can compare OAS beginning at 65 with a delayed start through age 70. Delaying after 65 increases OAS by 0.6% per month, up to 36% at age 70. It also models the automatic 10% increase beginning after age 75.
Does Canada have an inheritance tax?
Canada does not generally impose a separate inheritance tax on beneficiaries. However, a deceased person can have income tax triggered by deemed dispositions and by remaining RRSP/RRIF amounts, subject to rollover and other rules. This planner therefore estimates an after-tax estate rather than calling the difference an inheritance tax.
Is this financial advice?
No. This is an educational planning model. Tax law, benefit eligibility, family circumstances and investment taxation can materially change an actual result. Review important retirement decisions with qualified Canadian tax and financial professionals.
Methodology sources