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Free tool / Canadian dollars

Life insurance needs calculator

Add up what your family may need, then subtract the resources already available.

All amounts in Canadian dollars. Leave any field blank if it does not apply to you; blanks count as 0.

Enter the amount you want paid off. Leave blank if none.

Exclude the mortgage and any debts included elsewhere.

The yearly shortfall your family would need covered, after other income. Exclude payments for debts you plan to pay off above.

Choose how long this support may be needed. Leave blank if no support is needed.

Total future costs not already included in annual support.

Your estimate for funeral and other one-time costs. Do not add debts again.

Optional. Only money your family can use for these needs; exclude your emergency reserve.

Optional. Coverage expected to be in force when needed. Workplace coverage may end when your job ends.

Your planning estimate

A clearer starting point.

Enter your numbers and select Calculate. Your result will appear here, with a breakdown.

An educational estimate, not a premium quote or approval decision. No inflation or investment returns are modelled.

How this estimate works

Mortgage + other debts + (annual household support × years) + education and care + final expenses − available savings − existing coverage.

If available resources exceed the costs entered, the result is zero. It never becomes a negative coverage amount.

A worked example

Illustrative example: $150,000 mortgage + $10,000 other debts + ($20,000 annual support × 10 years) + $20,000 education and care + $15,000 final expenses − $25,000 savings − $100,000 existing coverage = $270,000 additional estimated need.

What to keep in mind

Only count each cost and each source of money once. Use amounts that reflect your household, rather than treating the example as a recommendation. Revisit your estimate when your circumstances change.

These tools do not model inflation, investment returns, taxes or insurance underwriting. Actual needs and available coverage can differ. Existing insurance may have exclusions, waiting periods or expiry dates. An advisor can help you understand these limits.

Source and approach

The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada explains the purposes of life insurance, including income replacement, dependent support, funeral expenses and debts. We use those categories in our own simple needs-minus-resources formulas. FCAC's former toolkit worksheet is currently offline. The agency has not endorsed these calculators.