# How much can I spend in retirement?

Start with what you expect to spend each year after tax. Compare two amounts using the same income and savings, then check how long the money lasts. This example tests $60,000 and $65,000; it does not find the highest amount you can spend.
## Made-up worked example

These saved engine results demonstrate the tool; they are not a plan for you. All amounts CAD. Starting inputs: province ON. Alex, born 1966-06-15, earns $90,000 a year before retirement. RRSP $550,000; RRIF $0; TFSA $100,000; non-registered $50,000 with cost basis $40,000; cash $10,000. CPP $12,000 a year at 65, starting at 65. OAS starts at 65, using 40 residence years. Retirement age: 65 in both versions. Yearly household spending after tax: $60,000 in the baseline; $65,000 in the alternative, in 2026 dollars, excluding contributions. No extra contributions. A negative after-tax position is an end-of-plan gap, not money left for family.

| Version | First projected shortfall | End-of-plan position after tax (2026 dollars) | Final year |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Made-up Alex: spend $60,000 | 2055 | -251001 | 2061 |
| Made-up Alex: spend $65,000 | 2050 | -511281 | 2061 |

The example uses a fixed assumed annual return, not a simulated path of market ups and downs. CPP is held as entered; earlier retirement may reduce the actual CPP amount.

### Assumptions and source evidence

- A first projection for one or two Canadian adults: employment, a defined-benefit pension, CPP/QPP, OAS, RRSP/RRIF, TFSA, non-registered investments and cash. No corporations, property, debts, children, benefit-entitlement history, LIRA/LIF or planned extra contributions. GIS, Allowance and refundable benefit payments (including Ontario GAINS and Trillium) are not included; missing benefits can make a projected shortfall look larger. Review eligibility and payment history before changing spending. Quebec employment requires explicit confirmation of Quebec payroll contributions; cross-province employment is outside this first-calculation scope. Excluded situations need additional facts and supported-case review.
- Inflation 2.1%; invested return 5.0% nominal each year; uninvested cash 2%. These are assumptions, not forecasts. Invested accounts use 40% fixed income and 60% equity for tax treatment. Pension splitting and the standard withdrawal/contribution order are enabled. No extra contributions were supplied; surplus uses that order and the stated contribution room.
- Alex: OAS uses 40 years of residence; opening TFSA room 0 CAD and RRSP room 0 CAD.

Engine version: a5245196fe9c440cac227184b300f58f54e073958c8bd49c259815cd391dec13
Tax-rate fingerprint: cf34ad9e08777f2c1f6b0429a2842c2db35669bccffda07886ee8a3081fc868f
Calculation input fingerprint: 57b0180e8a136b3025fb705540e5b8c9d856061fcb1302c4f62057ead041187b


Canonical page: https://planner.glacierfinancial.ca/guides/retirement-spending-canada

## Steps

1. Start with after-tax spending. Use what the household spends in a year, excluding savings contributions. The example starts at $60,000 in 2026 dollars.
2. Change one amount. The alternative uses $65,000 a year in the same dollars. Income, accounts, retirement age and benefits stay the same.
3. Inspect every year. Compare spending coverage and after-tax estate, then inspect the years when savings or cash run short. The figures depend on the assumptions.

## Facts needed

- Annual household spending after tax, in today’s dollars
- Birth dates, province and retirement ages
- Income, pensions, CPP/QPP and OAS details
- Savings by account type and owner
- Return and inflation assumptions

## Access

The example and basic calculator need no account. A spending comparison tests the amounts you enter; it does not promise a safe spending level or automatically find the highest amount.

## Limits

- This first calculation excludes property, debts, corporations, children, LIRA/LIF and planned extra contributions.
- GIS, Allowance and refundable benefit payments are excluded. Missing benefits can make a projected shortfall look larger.
- Returns and inflation are assumptions. A projection is not a promise or a personal recommendation.
## Made-up input template

https://planner.glacierfinancial.ca/guides/retirement-spending-canada/template.json

This is a glacier-calculator-v1 input artifact with assumptionsAccepted:false. Review the inputs and obtain explicit confirmation before calculating. It is not a saved private plan or a result.

## Continue

Open this made-up example: https://planner.glacierfinancial.ca/calculate?guide=retirement-spending-canada

## Message for an AI assistant

Help me compare two annual retirement spending amounts in Canada using Glacier Planner. First read https://planner.glacierfinancial.ca/guides/retirement-spending-canada/index.md and https://planner.glacierfinancial.ca/docs/agents/skill.md. The guide’s example is made up, not my plan. Ask whether I want that demonstration or my own numbers. Read the current public calculator contract at https://planner.glacierfinancial.ca/api/calculate. Ask for missing facts, check the supported scope and get my explicit confirmation of assumptions before calculating; never accept them for me. For the demonstration, the input template is https://planner.glacierfinancial.ca/guides/retirement-spending-canada/template.json. Show the returned spending coverage, shortfall year, after-tax estate and assumptions. Keep this line with the answer: projections and education, not personalized investment advice. Give me the returned input artifact to keep. Do not sign me up, enable payment or make a saved-plan connection without my approval.

Want personal help? https://glacierfinancial.ca/fit-call
The software does not include personal advice. Opening this guide does not send financial details or enrol anyone in marketing.

Projections and education, not personalized investment advice.