RRSP Balance by Age in Canada (2026): How Many Even Have One?
Among Canadians who hold registered retirement savings, the median runs from $15,000 under 35 to $120,000 at 55 to 64. About a third of families hold none at all, and every balance below is conditional on holding one.
Two numbers sit behind every benchmark table like this one, and most pages publish only the second. The first is how many people hold the thing being measured. The second is how much those people hold. Quote the second without the first and you have described a group without saying who is in it.
How many Canadians hold registered retirement savings?
64.5% of families and unattached individuals, as of 2023. The share peaks at 70.0% in the 55 to 64 band.
That is a materially better picture than the American one, and it holds at every age where the two surveys can be compared.
Canada: Statistics Canada, Survey of Financial Security 2023, table 11-10-0016-01. United States: Federal Reserve, Survey of Consumer Finances 2022, Table 6. Only the four age bands that line up across both surveys are shown, because Canada reports a single 65-and-older band where the US splits it in two.
The gap widens with age, reaching 13.0 points in the 55 to 64 band. Part of that is structural: Canadian registered savings carry forward unused room indefinitely, so a late start is recoverable here in a way it is not under an American contribution limit that expires each year.
The comparison stops at the share holding an account. Balances are not directly comparable across the two, because the surveys use different years, different currencies and different definitions of what counts.
RRSP balance by age
Here is the middle of the distribution, among the families who hold an account. Balances peak in the 55 to 64 band at $120,000 and then fall as drawdown begins.
Statistics Canada, Survey of Financial Security 2023, table 11-10-0016-01, read from the table's CSV on 22 September 2026. RRSPs, RRIFs, LIRAs and other registered retirement savings, in 2023 constant dollars, for those holding the asset.
| Age group | Share holding | Median | Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 35 | 54.7% | $15,000 | $57,500 |
| 35 to 44 | 64.6% | $33,000 | $88,600 |
| 45 to 54 | 69.6% | $72,600 | $173,500 |
| 55 to 64 | 70.0% | $120,000 | $266,000 |
| 65 and older | 64.7% | $102,200 | $248,700 |
| All ages | 64.5% | $60,000 | $178,300 |
Median and average are both conditional on holding the asset. Statistics Canada's own wording is "for those holding asset or debt".
The average sits well above the median at every age, by a factor of about 3.0 across all ages. That is what a long upper tail does to an average, and it is why the median is the figure to measure yourself against.
The pension this table cannot see
Statistics Canada counts employer pension entitlements separately, under private pension assets. None of it appears in the figures above.
This is the biggest reason the table can mislead an individual reader. A nurse, a teacher or a public servant with a strong defined-benefit pension may hold a modest RRSP and be in better shape than someone with twice the balance and no pension behind it. The table is measuring one account type, not retirement readiness.
It also cuts the other way. If you have no workplace pension, your registered savings are carrying more weight than the median family's, and sitting at the median means something different for you than it does for them.
Add up every account before you compare
The figures above are per family across all registered retirement savings, so your comparison has to be a total rather than one statement.
- Every RRSP, including ones at institutions you no longer use.
- Any LIRA, which is where a former employer's pension goes when you leave and take the commuted value.
- Any RRIF, if you have already converted.
- A spousal RRSP, which belongs to the annuitant rather than the contributor.
What is not in this total is your TFSA, which Statistics Canada counts as a separate asset. Whether you should be filling one before the other is a different question, and our guide to the three registered accounts works through it.
What decides the balance
Contribution room is rarely the binding constraint in Canada, which is the practical difference from the American system.
Your RRSP room is 18% of last year's earned income up to a dollar limit, and unused room carries forward with no expiry. Most people have far more room than they use, so the limit is not what is holding the balance down. The 2026 contribution limit guide works out what room you actually generate, and why the headline dollar figure applies to almost nobody.
For the American version of this comparison, including why recordkeeper averages like Vanguard's count accounts rather than people, see average 401(k) balance by age.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average RRSP balance by age in Canada?
Among families who hold registered retirement savings, the median is $15,000 under 35, $33,000 at 35 to 44, $72,600 at 45 to 54, $120,000 at 55 to 64 and $102,200 at 65 and older. Averages run two to four times higher because a small number of large balances pull them up.
How many Canadians have an RRSP?
About 64.5% of economic families and unattached individuals held RRSPs, RRIFs, LIRAs or similar registered retirement savings in 2023, according to Statistics Canada. That leaves roughly a third with none, and the share peaks at 70% in the 55 to 64 band.
Is my RRSP balance normal for my age?
Compare against the median for your age band rather than the average, and remember both are conditional on holding an account at all. Also add every account you have: RRSPs at different institutions, a LIRA from a former employer and any RRIF all belong in the same total.
Does this include my work pension?
No. Statistics Canada counts employer pension entitlements in a separate category called private pension assets. Someone with a strong defined-benefit pension can show a small RRSP balance and still be well prepared, which is the single biggest reason this table can mislead an individual reader.
Do Canadians save more for retirement than Americans?
More Canadians hold a retirement account. Canada is ahead in every comparable age band, by about 5 points under 35 and 13 points at 55 to 64. Balances are harder to compare directly because the two surveys use different years, different currencies and different account definitions.
How much should I have in my RRSP at 40?
There is no established figure. The rules of thumb you will see quoted as a multiple of salary are published by financial firms as guidance rather than derived from data. The median for the 35 to 44 band is $33,000 among those holding an account, which describes where people are rather than where they should be.
Why is the average so much higher than the median?
Because the distribution has a long upper tail. In the 55 to 64 band the average is $266,000 against a median of $120,000, a ratio of about 2.2 to 1. The median describes the family in the middle; the average describes no family in particular.
How old is this data?
The Survey of Financial Security was fielded in 2023 and released on 29 October 2024, in 2023 constant dollars. It runs every few years rather than annually, so it is the most recent reading rather than a live one.
Researching and writing about Canadian personal finance since 2026.
Last reviewed September 2026 · How we research
“RRSP Balance by Age in Canada (2026): How Many Even Have One?.” Vault Nerd, https://www.vaultnerd.com/ca/learn/rrsp-balance-by-age, updated September 2026.
- Statistics Canada, Survey of Financial Security 2023, table 11-10-0016-01: assets and debts by age group, RRSPs, RRIFs, LIRAs and other, share holding and median and average value for those holding, in 2023 constant dollars, read from the table's CSV on 22 September 2026
- Statistics Canada, Survey of Financial Security 2023, released 29 October 2024
- Federal Reserve Board, Survey of Consumer Finances 2022, Table 6, for the United States comparison
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