What it does
A Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) is the main way Canadian families save for a child’s college, university or trade school. The government adds money: the Canada Education Savings Grant (CESG) pays 20% on the first $2,500 you put in each year, so $500 a year, up to $7,200 per child. Lower and middle-income families get an additional CESG on the first $500, and lower-income families can get the Canada Learning Bond without putting in anything at all.
This calculator works out the grants year by year, including catch-up for years you missed, and grows the account until the child turns 17 or 18. To grow other savings, try the compound interest calculator; to find room in the family budget, the budget planner.
How to use it
- Enter the child’s age this year and when the money should be ready.
- Enter what you put in each year, plus any one-time amount now.
- Choose a yearly return and your family net income band for 2026.
- Tick the Learning Bond box if your family qualifies.
- Read the totals, the line about the $7,200 limit and the year-by-year table.
What each setting does
- One-time amount: a lump sum in the first year. Grants still follow the yearly rules, so a big lump earns at most $1,000 of CESG.
- Family net income: sets the additional CESG: 20% on the first $500 (up to $100) for the lowest band, 10% (up to $50) for the middle band.
- CESG already received: for an older child; it counts against the $7,200 and the catch-up room.
Worked example
You start at birth and put in $2,500 a year at 5%. The CESG adds $500 a year. After 14 years it has paid $7,000, and in the year the child turns 14 it pays the last $200, so the $7,200 limit is reached (14.4 years of full grants). You put in $45,000 by age 18 and the RESP grows to $86,597.
Start at age 5 with $5,000 a year and catch-up gives $1,000 a year for five years.
FAQs
What if my child does not go to school? Grants go back to the government; your own money comes back to you, and growth may be moved to an RRSP within limits.
Do the grants count toward the $50,000 limit? No, only your contributions do.
Are these rules current? Checked on canada.ca in November 2026; check the official source. Not financial or tax advice.
Where the numbers come from
- CESG: 20% of the first $2,500 a year, $500 a year, up to $1,000 a year with unused room, $7,200 lifetime, until the end of the year the child turns 17, and the rules for ages 16 and 17; additional CESG 20% or 10% on the first $500 by adjusted family net income: CRA, Canada Education Savings Grant, https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/individuals/topics/registered-education-savings-plans-resps/canada-education-savings-programs-cesp/canada-education-savings-grant-cesg.html (checked 2026-11-10)
- 2026 income bands for the additional CESG ($58,523 and $117,045) follow the 2026 federal tax brackets: CRA, Tax rates and brackets, https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/individuals/tax-rates-brackets/current-year.html (checked 2026-11-10)
- Canada Learning Bond: $500 the first year, $100 each later year up to age 15, $2,000 maximum, no contributions needed: CRA, Canada Learning Bond, https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/individuals/topics/registered-education-savings-plans-resps/canada-education-savings-programs-cesp/canada-learning-bond.html (checked 2026-11-10)
- RESP lifetime contribution limit of $50,000 per beneficiary: CRA RESP rules (estimate, check the official source).
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Last updated 2026-11-10.