Save and invest
Get the account order right first — it is worth more than any product you pick inside the account.
Who it is forAnyone with a surplus each month and no clear plan for where it should go.
- 01
Start from take-home pay
A savings rate measured against gross income overstates what you can actually move.
Do thisWrite down net monthly pay. Every target below is a share of that number.
Salary and taxIncome & tax - 02
Rank the accounts by what each dollar is worth
Employer match, then high-interest debt, then FHSA if you plan to buy, then RRSP or TFSA depending on your marginal rate.
Do thisFund in the order the optimizer produces until the surplus runs out.
Account optimizerSaving & investing - 03
Park short-term money where it cannot fall
Money needed inside three years does not belong in equities. A five-rung GIC ladder gives you access every year without giving up term rates.
Do thisKeep three to six months of expenses liquid before locking anything in.
GIC and savingsSaving & investing - 04
Project the long-term money honestly
A 0.65% management expense ratio is not a rounding error — over thirty years it compounds into a six-figure gap on a large portfolio.
Do thisCompare the same contribution at 0.05% and at your current MER.
ETF growthSaving & investing - 05
Make the contribution automatic
Savings that depend on a monthly decision lose to savings that happen on payday.
Do thisSet the transfer for the day after each pay deposit.
Budget plannerIncome & tax
The order matters more than the product
A 50% employer match is an instant, guaranteed return no index fund can promise. Credit card interest at 20.99% is a guaranteed loss of the same shape. Both outrank the choice between one broad-market ETF and another.
Run it on your own numbersAccount optimizerWhere your next dollar belongs: FHSA, RRSP, RESP, TFSA or the debt.