How do you use this Coast FIRE calculator for Canada?
- Enter your age, the age you want to stop working entirely, and your yearly spending in retirement in today's dollars.
- Enter your RRSP, TFSA and non-registered balances, and what you invest each month until you coast.
- Set your expected CPP at 65 and when you will start it, then OAS and any workplace pension.
- Open Assumptions to change the return, inflation and withdrawal rate, then read the timeline and the stress tests.
Everything recalculates as you type. Share a scenario with the link button or download the projection as a CSV.
What is Coast FIRE, and how is the number worked out?
Coast FIRE is the point where you can stop saving for retirement and let compound growth do the rest. You still work to cover your current costs, but you no longer need to put money aside. Your Coast FIRE number is the balance that reaches it:
Coast FIRE number = money needed at retirement ÷ (1 + real return)years until retirement
The money needed at retirement is where Canada differs from the textbook version. Without benefits, it is spending ÷ withdrawal rate, the 25× rule at 4% that comes from William Bengen's research on US markets[17]. With CPP and OAS, your savings only have to pay the full amount until benefits start, then the gap. Each year's gap is valued at the rate implied by your withdrawal rate, so the early, expensive years carry the same safety margin as the rest.
Worked example
Liam is 30 and wants to stop working at 60, spending $50,000 a year. He expects $10,300 a year of CPP at 65, close to the July 2026 average, and full OAS of $9,150 a year. With a 7% return, 3% inflation and 0.1% fees, his real return is 3.79%.
- Ignoring CPP and OAS, he needs $1,250,000 at 60, so his Coast FIRE number is $1,250,000 ÷ (1.0379)30 = $409,917.
- Counting both from 65, he needs $846,031 at 60: $239,764 to cover the five years until 65, and $606,267 to top up his benefits after that.
- His Coast FIRE number falls to $846,031 ÷ (1.0379)30 = $277,442.
If Liam has $277,442 invested today, he can stop contributing and, if returns match the assumption, have what he needs at 60. That is $132,475 less than the answer that ignores government benefits.
How much do CPP and OAS lower your Coast FIRE number?
It depends on how long you have to bridge before they start. Retiring at 65 means no bridge at all, while retiring at 50 means fifteen years of paying for everything from savings. Here is Liam's Coast FIRE number at 30 for different retirement ages:
| Retire at | With CPP and OAS | Savings only | Bridge at retirement |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | $473,372 | $594,430 | $612,465 |
| 55 | $366,636 | $493,626 | $445,126 |
| 60 | $277,442 | $409,917 | $239,764 |
| 65 | $204,108 | $340,403 | $0 |
Our calculation: $50,000 a year, 4% withdrawal rate, 3.79% real return, plan to 95, CPP of $10,300 and OAS of $9,150 from 65. Today's dollars.
Two things shrink the number as retirement gets later: there are more years of growth, and the bridge gets shorter. The gap between the two columns is what CPP and OAS are worth to a coaster, and it is large at every age, because benefits pay for decades.
Use realistic benefit amounts. The 2026 maximum CPP at 65 is $1,507.65 a month, but the average at 65 was $858.34 a month in July 2026[2]. Full OAS for ages 65 to 74 is up to $762.50 a month for October to December 2026, and $838.75 from 75[4]. Full OAS needs 40 years in Canada after 18; with fewer, you get years ÷ 40[6].
Does starting CPP and OAS at 70 help a coaster?
CPP drops 0.6% for every month you start before 65 (36% at 60) and rises 0.7% for every month after (42% at 70)[1]. OAS cannot start before 65 but rises 0.6% for every month you wait, up to 36% at 70[5]. Here is how those choices change Liam's plan if he still retires at 60:
| Benefits start | Needed at 60 | Of which bridge | Coast number at 30 |
|---|---|---|---|
| CPP at 60, OAS at 65 | $889,340 | $208,154 | $291,644 |
| CPP and OAS at 65 | $846,031 | $239,764 | $277,442 |
| CPP and OAS at 70 | $804,912 | $455,495 | $263,958 |
Our calculation with this page's calculator, same assumptions as above.
Waiting to 70 makes the bridge longer, so Liam's savings pay for more years up front, but the larger pensions then cover more of every year for the rest of his life. Under these assumptions his Coast FIRE number is lowest with CPP and OAS at 70: $263,958. Starting CPP at 60 helps in the early years but leaves a permanently smaller pension. The right choice also depends on your health and on whether you are comfortable spending down savings in your 60s.
What should you do with your RRSP and TFSA while you coast?
Coasting changes your income, which changes the accounts that make sense. Your new RRSP room each year is 18% of the previous year's earned income, up to $33,810 for 2026, minus any pension adjustment, and unused room carries forward[9][8]. TFSA room grows by the yearly limit ($7,000 for 2026) whether or not you work, and withdrawals are added back as room the following January[11].
- RRSP: contributions are deducted from your income, and withdrawals are added to your income in the year you take them[12]. A deduction is worth more in a high-earning year than in a low-earning coasting year, so unused room can be saved for a better year.
- TFSA: contributions are not deductible, but growth and withdrawals are generally tax-free[10]. That flexibility suits money you might need before CPP and OAS start.
- Deadline at 71: an RRSP must generally mature by the end of the year you turn 71, for example by moving to a RRIF that pays a yearly minimum from the following year[12]. The calculator's timeline marks this age.
The calculator treats all your accounts as one pot and does not model tax. Because RRSP and RRIF withdrawals are taxable, enter retirement spending that includes the tax you expect to pay on them. If your income in retirement will be high, remember that OAS is reduced by 15% of net income above $95,323 for the 2026 income year[7].
What return and inflation should you assume?
Coast FIRE depends heavily on the return you assume, because decades of growth do all the work. The Bank of Canada aims for 2% inflation, the midpoint of a 1%-3% range[13], and prices rose 3.1% in the 12 months to September 2026[14], so the 3% default is on the cautious side. For returns, US stocks returned 10.0% a year from 1928 to 2025[15], while Vanguard's 10-year forecasts are 4.8%-6.8% for US stocks and 5.3%-7.3% for developed markets outside the US[16].
Small changes add up over 30 years. At a 3% real return, Liam's Coast FIRE number would be $348,554; at 5%, it would be $195,753. The calculator's default gives 3.79%, between the two. If you plan a long retirement, also consider a 3.25%-3.5% withdrawal rate rather than 4%[18].
Is Coast FIRE risky, and why does the test use US data?
The main risk is a long stretch of poor returns once you stop contributing, especially near or just after retirement, when the order of returns matters most[19]. The calculator runs 2,000 Monte Carlo simulations and replays every retirement start year since 1928. Both tests use US stock, bond and inflation data, not Canadian data. Canadian markets have followed their own path, so treat the success rates as a stress test of your plan rather than a forecast for Canada.
If the success rate looks low, coast a few years later, keep a small monthly contribution going, or plan some part-time work early in retirement. When you are ready to see how much earlier you could retire by continuing to save, use the FIRE calculator for Canada. The Coast FIRE guide covers the idea in more depth.
Coast FIRE for Canadian couples
Enter combined balances and spending and the age of the partner who will retire last. Each partner has their own CPP, OAS, RRSP room and TFSA room, so add both CPP estimates and both OAS amounts. If one partner will keep working longer or claim CPP at a different age, model the more cautious case first. The methodology explains the formulas behind every number on this page.