Free Calculator

RRSP Growth & Refund Calculator

Your RRSP contribution generates a real tax refund at your actual marginal rate — and that refund is worth meaningfully more if you invest it too, instead of spending it. This shows exactly how much more.

Starting RRSP balance

Contribution amount, per period

Contribution frequency

Annual growth rate, %

Years

Your annual income (before this contribution)

Province

Spending the refund vs. reinvesting it

Same contributions, same growth rate. The only difference: what happens to the tax refund each contribution generates.

The refund isn't free money — it's a tax deferral, not an elimination. RRSP withdrawals in retirement are taxed as regular income. This calculator shows the refund and growth honestly, but doesn't model the eventual withdrawal tax, since that depends on your income and bracket decades from now, not something worth guessing at here. For the full picture including that, see the retirement drawdown.

Where the refund number comes from

The refund is the difference in bracket tax on the income you entered, before and after the deductible contribution. A contribution that crosses into a lower bracket is not all refunded at the top rate. This is a planning figure: it uses the brackets and leaves out credits, so a filed return will not match it dollar for dollar. Room is estimated as 18% of the income you typed, up to the 2026 dollar cap. The CRA calculates room from last year's earned income, plus anything you haven't used.

Want your real contribution room, employer matching, and this refund math all connected to your actual numbers?

Open this in Your Numbers →

Deciding between a TFSA and an RRSP first? Read the real answer, not "it depends" →