Free RESP calculator
What will your RESP actually be worth the day they start school?
Enter your child's age and what you can put away each month. You will see the government grant you capture, the projected value at 18, and — the number most parents have never seen — how much free grant money you are leaving behind.
Run my numbersYour numbers
Your result
- Projected value at 18
- $71,057
- Your contributions
- $36,000
- Government grant captured
- $7,200
- Growth
- $27,857
- Years of school coveredAt $22,000 per year, living away from home.
- 3.2 of 4
You capture every dollar of grant available. By 18 the plan is projected at $71,057 — about 3.2 years of school.
Estimates only, built on the published federal RESP and Canada Education Savings Grant rules. Growth is an assumption you set, not a guarantee. Not advice.
The three numbers that decide an RESP
1. The grant you capture
Ottawa adds 20 cents on every dollar, up to $500 a year and $7,200 per child. It is the only guaranteed return in the plan, and it expires each year you do not use it.
2. The fee you pay
A one percent difference in annual fees compounds against the plan for eighteen years. See what each institution charges.
3. How it is invested
Most RESPs sit in whatever was sold at the branch on day one and are never looked at again. Compare yours against a managed portfolio.
Common questions
- How much do I need to contribute to get the full RESP grant?
- The Canada Education Savings Grant pays 20% on the first $2,500 you contribute each year, so $208.33 a month captures the full $500 basic grant. If you have unused room from earlier years you can claim one extra year at a time, up to $1,000 of grant in a single year, which takes about $416.67 a month.
- What is the maximum RESP grant per child?
- $7,200 of basic CESG over the life of the plan, per beneficiary. Grants stop after the year the child turns 17. The lifetime contribution limit is $50,000 per child, and there is no annual contribution cap.
- What growth rate should I use in the calculator?
- Use something you would actually be comfortable defending. A diversified balanced portfolio has historically landed in the 5% to 7% range before fees over long periods. The point of the tool is the comparison between choices, not a promise about any single number.
- What happens to an RESP if my child does not go to school?
- Grant money is returned to the government. Your own contributions come back to you tax free. Growth can be moved into your RRSP if you have room, or withdrawn and taxed at your rate plus a 20% penalty. A sibling can also be named in most family plans.