This RRSP calculator shows two numbers at once: the tax refund a contribution can trigger this year, and what steady contributions could grow to by retirement. Enter your balance, yearly contribution, years, expected return and marginal tax rate, then compare scenarios. The sections below explain the 2026 federal brackets behind the refund and where simple calculators go wrong. This page is general education, not financial advice.
How does this RRSP calculator work?
The calculator adds your yearly contribution at the end of each year and compounds the balance once a year at the return you enter. It opens with a sample plan: a $10,000 starting balance plus $10,000 a year for 30 years at 7%, which ends at about $1,020,730. Of that, $310,000 is money you put in and about $710,730 is tax-deferred growth.
The refund cards multiply your yearly contribution by the marginal tax rate you type in. The preset buttons are rough shortcuts for a combined federal and provincial rate; for a sharper refund estimate, enter your own rate using the brackets below. The “lifetime refunds” card simply adds the same refund up for every year, so it assumes your income and tax rate never change.
RRSP tax refund calculator: how much will you get back?
Your RRSP tax refund is roughly the contribution multiplied by your combined federal and provincial marginal tax rate. The federal part for 2026 is 14% on taxable income up to $58,523, 20.5% from $58,523.01 to $117,045, 26% from $117,045.01 to $181,440, 29% from $181,440.01 to $258,482, and 33% above $258,482, per the CRA’s current-year rates page. Per the same page, provincial or territorial income tax applies in addition to federal income tax, and each rate applies only to the income inside its bracket, and the provincial rates that apply are set by your province or territory of residence on December 31, 2026.
The deduction is claimed on line 20800 (RRSP deduction) of your return. “Refund” is shorthand: the contribution lowers the tax you owe, and the saving shows up as a refund when more tax was withheld during the year than you end up owing.
Federal tax saved per contribution, when the whole contribution stays inside one bracket:
| 2026 federal bracket | Rate | $1,000 contribution | $5,000 contribution | $10,000 contribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $0 to $58,523 | 14% | $140 | $700 | $1,400 |
| $58,523.01 to $117,045 | 20.5% | $205 | $1,025 | $2,050 |
| $117,045.01 to $181,440 | 26% | $260 | $1,300 | $2,600 |
| $181,440.01 to $258,482 | 29% | $290 | $1,450 | $2,900 |
| over $258,482 | 33% | $330 | $1,650 | $3,300 |
Source: CRA, current year tax rates and income brackets (2026), checked September 29, 2026. Provincial or territorial tax saved comes on top of these federal amounts.
In plain terms: if your taxable income stays inside the $58,523.01 to $117,045 bracket even after the deduction, a $10,000 contribution saves $2,050 in federal tax before the provincial saving is added. At the top of the scale, a person with at least $292,292 of taxable income who contributes the full 2026 limit of $33,810 saves $11,157 federally.
Does an RRSP contribution change your tax bracket?
A large RRSP contribution can move part of your income into a lower bracket, and only the dollars below the bracket line get the lower rate. That is the most common way a one-rate RRSP refund calculator overstates the refund.
Example with 2026 federal rates: taxable income of $65,000 and a $10,000 contribution. The first $6,477 of the deduction comes out of the 20.5% bracket and saves $1,328. The remaining $3,523 comes out of the 14% bracket and saves $493. The federal saving is $1,821, not the $2,050 a single-rate estimate would show.
To model this in the calculator, run it twice: once with the contribution that brings your income down to the bracket line at your current rate, and once with the rest at the lower rate. You can also contribute now and hold off on the deduction. For contributions you do not deduct, the CRA says to report them on Schedule 7; you can leave them in the plan and deduct them in a later year, which helps if your income is about to rise into a higher bracket.
RRSP contribution calculator: checking your 2026 room
For 2026, you can deduct up to 18% of your 2025 earned income, capped at the $33,810 dollar limit, plus unused room from earlier years. The full CRA rule is: unused room carried forward, plus the lesser of 18% of last year's earned income and the annual RRSP limit, minus your pension adjustment. The 2027 dollar limit is $35,390, and 2025’s was $32,490.
Two numbers matter more than the headline limit:
- Your own deduction limit. It appears on the RRSP Deduction Limit Statement, and the CRA points to the RRSP Deduction Limit Statement on your latest notice of assessment or reassessment, Form T1028, or your CRA account to find it. Workplace pension members usually have less room because of the pension adjustment.
- The over-contribution penalty. The CRA charges 1% a month on contributions that exceed your RRSP deduction limit by more than $2,000. The calculator does not know your room, so check it before entering a large yearly contribution.
The RRSP contribution limit guide walks through the room calculation line by line, and the RRSP deadline guide covers the contribution window: the deadline is on or before the day that is 60 days after the end of the tax year, which for the 2026 tax year works out to March 1, 2027.
How much will your RRSP be worth at retirement?
At an assumed 7% annual return, $10,000 a year for 30 years grows to about $944,608 before tax, from $300,000 of contributions. The table uses the same math as the calculator: contributions at the end of each year and annual compounding.
| Yearly contribution | 10 years at 7% | 20 years at 7% | 30 years at 7% |
|---|---|---|---|
| $5,000 | $69,082 | $204,977 | $472,304 |
| $10,000 | $138,164 | $409,955 | $944,608 |
| $20,000 | $276,329 | $819,910 | $1,889,216 |
The return is the input that moves these numbers most. At 5% instead of 7%, the same $10,000 a year for 30 years reaches about $664,388, roughly $280,220 less. None of these figures are guaranteed; they show how time and the assumed return interact, which is why running the calculator at more than one rate gives a more honest picture. The investment calculator runs the same math with monthly deposits and other compounding options.
Every dollar in these balances is pre-tax. Per the CRA, income in an RRSP is usually exempt from tax while the money stays in the plan, and you generally pay tax when you receive payments from it, so the after-tax value depends on your tax rate when the money comes out.
RRSP vs TFSA: which leaves more after tax?
An RRSP and a TFSA leave the same after-tax money when your tax rate is the same at contribution and withdrawal; the RRSP wins when your rate falls in retirement.
A federal-only illustration (provincial tax left out to keep the math visible): a $10,000 RRSP deduction in the 26% bracket costs $7,400 of after-tax pay. Put that same after-tax amount in a TFSA instead, and assume both accounts double.
- TFSA: $14,800, and withdrawals are not taxed.
- RRSP, withdrawn at the same 26% rate: $14,800, a tie.
- RRSP, withdrawn at the 20.5% rate: $15,900, ahead by $1,100.
The tie only holds if the RRSP refund is actually invested; spending it turns the RRSP side into a smaller account. The TFSA vs RRSP comparison covers the other factors, such as income-tested benefits, and the TFSA calculator projects the TFSA side.
How are RRSP withdrawals taxed?
RRSP withdrawals are added to your income for the year, and your financial institution withholds 10% on withdrawals up to $5,000, 20% on withdrawals over $5,000 up to $15,000, and 30% on withdrawals over $15,000 (5%, 10% and 15% in Quebec, where provincial tax is also withheld). That withholding may not be enough to cover the tax you owe at your tax bracket, so you may owe more when you file your return.
For example, a single $20,000 withdrawal outside Quebec has $6,000 withheld, and the full $20,000 is still taxed at your marginal rate when you file. Two CRA programs let you withdraw without the withdrawal counting as income, as long as you repay on schedule:
- Home Buyers’ Plan: up to $60,000 for a first home, repaid over 15 years. The Home Buyers’ Plan guide covers the conditions.
- Lifelong Learning Plan: $10,000 a calendar year, up to $20,000 each time you participate, repaid generally within 10 years.
By December 31 of the year you turn 71, you have to withdraw the money, transfer it to a RRIF, or use it to buy an annuity. The RRSP explained guide covers spousal RRSPs, RRIF conversion and the rest of the rules.
Common RRSP calculator mistakes
- Using your average tax rate. The refund depends on your marginal rate, the rate on your last dollars of income, which is higher than your average rate.
- Leaving out provincial tax. The federal table above is only part of the saving; your province or territory adds its own rate.
- Ignoring bracket lines. A contribution large enough to cross into a lower bracket saves less per dollar on the part below the line, as the worked example shows.
- Treating the refund as a gift. The deduction defers tax. Withdrawals are taxed later, so the long-run gain depends on your rate at withdrawal.
- Counting a refund on borrowed money as pure profit. Interest on an RRSP loan is not deductible — the CRA lists interest on money borrowed to contribute to an RRSP among the amounts you can't deduct, so the net gain is the refund minus the interest.
- Entering more than your room. Contributions that exceed your deduction limit by more than the allowance attract the monthly tax described above.
Where to open an RRSP
Any bank, credit union, trust company, insurer or brokerage can hold an RRSP; the CRA says you can set one up with a financial institution such as a bank, credit union, trust or insurance company. What changes between them is fees and what you can hold. Wealthsimple’s self-directed accounts include TFSA, RRSP, FHSA, RESP, LIRA, RRIF, non-registered (cash and margin), and corporate accounts, with $0 commission on listed Canadian and US stocks and ETFs. Broad ETFs such as XEQT (MER 0.19%) and VFV (MER 0.08%) are common RRSP holdings; the XEQT review and VFV review cover their trade-offs.
One RRSP-specific detail: under the Canada–US tax treaty, dividends and interest paid to a retirement plan are exempt from US tax, as long as the plan is operated exclusively to provide pension, retirement or employee benefits, and the US Treasury's technical explanation of the 2007 Protocol uses a Canadian RRSP as its example of a retirement arrangement described in that exemption. The exemption covers US dividends the RRSP itself receives, such as from US-listed shares or ETFs held directly; a Canadian-listed ETF that owns US stocks, such as VFV, receives those dividends as the fund, not as a retirement plan. A TFSA gets no such treatment: foreign dividends paid to a TFSA could be subject to foreign withholding tax, per the CRA's TFSA guide.
For a side-by-side of providers, see the best RRSP accounts in Canada and our complete Wealthsimple guide.
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Related RRSP guides
- RRSP contribution limit: how your exact room is calculated
- RRSP deadline: the 60-day contribution window
- RRSP Home Buyers’ Plan: withdrawing for a first home
- TFSA vs RRSP: which account to fund first
- Best RRSP accounts in Canada: where to open one