Two accounts, opened before they turn ten, that change your child's entire financial life

As a pure investment, no — an index fund will usually beat it over 40 years. That is not what it's for. You're buying a guarantee: a policy your child owns for life, at a child's price, that they can never be declined for or re-rated on, with a cash value that grows tax-sheltered and can be borrowed against. If your only goal is maximum return, skip it and fund the RESP and a TFSA. If you want a floor under your family that no future diagnosis can take away, that's what this buys.

Your own RESP contributions come back to you tax-free. The government grant — up to $7,200 — is returned to Ottawa. The growth can be moved into your RRSP if you have room (up to $50,000), otherwise it's taxed as income plus a 20% penalty. It's also transferable to a sibling, and 'school' includes college, trades programs and apprenticeship-linked training, which is broader than most parents assume.

For the education piece, you shouldn't skip the RESP — the 20% grant is a guaranteed immediate return no ETF matches. For the long-term piece, a taxable account is fine if your child stays healthy and insurable. Roughly one in seven Canadians develops a condition by early adulthood that changes what insurance costs them, or whether they can get it at all. The whole life piece is insurance against that specific outcome, with a savings component attached.

It's driven by the coverage amount and how long you pay. Real families we set up typically run $50 to $200 a month for a 20-pay policy on a young child. Move the sliders above and you'll see the trade-off between coverage today and cash value later. Real numbers come from a carrier illustration once we know the child's age and health.

Both, and the split matters more than most people are told. The RESP should get enough to capture the full annual grant first — that's free money with a deadline. Whatever's left is where the insurance conversation starts. The planner above defaults to that order.

Grandparents can do both. You can be the RESP subscriber, or contribute to the parents' plan so the grant room isn't duplicated. On the insurance side, a grandparent can own and pay a policy on a grandchild and transfer ownership to them later, usually on a tax-deferred rollover. It's one of the cleanest legacy gifts available in Canada.

No. Plenty of families set up a plan for their kids with us and keep everything else where it is. We'd rather earn the rest later than ask for it up front.