You might have heard of some “expert” recommended savings benchmarks — 1x your salary by 30, 3x by 40, and so on. But here’s the big problem that I see when doing financial plans for my clients here at Blueprint: those numbers might be steering you in the wrong direction.
Today I’m not just going to show you the recommended savings benchmarks, I’m going to pull back the curtain and show you why they often don’t work in the real world, and what really matters if you want to meet all your financial goals.
Savings By Age 30
Fidelity’s rule of thumb says that by age 30, you should have about one year of your salary saved. So if you’re earning $60,000, the target is roughly $60,000 in savings.
In reality, most Canadians under 35 fall short: the median savings is just $36,500 for singles and $62,700 for families.
Let’s see how this 1X your salary by age 30 rule of thumb works with Justin.
Case Study: Justin at 30
Justin came to us at Blueprint wanting to know if he was on track. He’s 30 years old, a high school teacher earning $60,000, and he spends around $45,000 a year. He’s managed to save $50,000 in a TFSA and $10,000 in an RRSP. On paper, he’s right on target with Fidelity’s benchmark: about one year of salary saved by age 30.
But here’s the catch: every dollar of Justin’s savings was sitting in a high-interest savings account earning just 2.4%. When we plugged his numbers into our financial planning software and ran it out to retirement, the results weren’t encouraging. His savings would run out by age 72 — just a few years into his retirement.
But here’s the power of planning and strategy. If Justin makes just one adjustment—investing his savings to earn around 5% a year instead of leaving it in cash—his money now lasts until age 83. That’s an extra decade of financial security, from a single small change.
What This Means for You at 30
- Don’t panic if you’re behind. You’ve got time, and small changes now compound massively over decades.
- Focus on habits. Regularly contributing to a TFSA or RRSP matters more than hitting an exact dollar figure.
- Invest for growth. Cash feels safe, but it won’t get you to retirement. Even a modest, diversified portfolio can greatly change your outcome.
What I really want you to take away is this: benchmarks like “one times your salary by 30” are not the finish line. They’re just checkpoints — a quick way to see where you stand today. The real measure of success is whether your money will actually carry you to your long-term goals. And that requires flexibility and careful planning, and making adjustments as your life, career, and priorities evolve.
Savings By Age 40
By 40, Fidelity suggests you should have about three times your salary saved. So if you earn $120,000, the target is roughly $360,000.
In reality, most Canadians are far from that. The median single in their 40s has about $81,500 saved, while families sit around $139,000. Better than the 30s, but still far short of what’s needed to fund a 25+ year retirement.
Your 40s are also when life gets expensive — mortgages, kids, and career demands all competing for your income. With less time to save, this is the decade to track your net worth closely, stay intentional, and put a real plan in place.
Case Study: Justin at 40
Justin came back to us at Blueprint for another plan. By 40, he’s now an assistant principal earning $120,000, married with a young child, and his expenses have grown. Still, he’s saved well, earning about 5% annually, and has hit the three-times-salary benchmark.
But when we ran his numbers through our financial planning software, his money still ran out by age 76. His goal is to retire at 65 and live well into his 90s, so the benchmark alone wasn’t enough.
Why the Benchmark Falls Short
Even though Justin looked “on track,” he wasn’t set for his actual goals. This is where planning makes the difference. We can now explore options and run different scenarios like:
- Adjust his investments to target a higher return?
- Adjusting some of his spending and saving today
- Delaying retirement slightly, or reducing spending in retirement
If you want to know what you should focus on in your 40s and 50s to have a great retirement, check out this video I made on the topic.
I hope you’re starting to notice a trend here: while benchmarks are useful checkpoints, they don’t tell the whole story, as Justin has highlighted here. Personalized planning and strategies shows the real trade-offs needed to stay on track.
👉 At Blueprint Financial, this is exactly what we do — from choosing the right accounts to designing investment strategies with our portfolio manager partners. If you want to see how small adjustments today can create a big difference in your future, check out the link below to book a discovery call.
Savings By Age 50
By 50, the rule of thumb says you should have about six times your salary saved — so if you earn $150,000, the target is roughly $900,000. In reality, the median single Canadian has only $152,100 saved, while families are at $274,700.
Your 50s are often peak earning years, but they’re also when many people recognize they’re behind and have less time to recover. This is the decade for decisive action: boosting contributions, tightening spending, and making every dollar work harder. Compound growth is running out of runway, and smart tax strategies become critical to stretching your savings and keeping retirement within reach.
Let’s go back to our example with Justin. By 50, he’s worked his way up to become the principal of his high school, earning $150,000 a year. He and his family spend about $100,000 annually, and he’s managed to save up roughly $900,000—right on target with six times his salary.
When we run his updated plan through our software, things look pretty good. He’s projected to have enough money to last until age 86. But at Blueprint, we like to plan conservatively up to age 90, so we’ll tweak his plan to give him that extra margin of safety.
What does tweaking look like? It might mean managing his RRSP withdrawals more strategically, shifting some savings into his TFSA to reduce future taxes, or slightly trimming household spending by just a few thousand a year. Even delaying retirement by a year or two could be enough to extend his plan by a full decade.
His net worth is also looking strong—crossing into seven figures in his 50s, and peaking over $2 million in his 60s. But the key lesson here is that Justin’s financial stability at 50 didn’t happen by accident. It came from building strong habits in his 30s, adjusting in his 40s, and staying disciplined during his highest-earning years.
These savings benchmarks are like knowing the average travel time on a GPS. It’s a good estimate, but a real financial plan accounts for your specific traffic, detours (like kids or a mortgage, job setbacks, marriage or divorce), and your desired destination.
Savings By Age 60
By 60, the rule of thumb suggests you should have around eight times your salary saved. But at this stage, it’s not just about growing your money — it’s about protecting it. The focus shifts toward reducing taxes, planning your estate, and making space for the bucket list experiences you’ve been working toward all these years.
Even after decades of saving, most Canadians fall short of the benchmark. The median single has about $270,000, and families around $490,000. On paper, that might seem like a solid nest egg, but stretched over 25 to 30 years of retirement, it can run thin fast, especially once you factor in inflation, rising healthcare costs, and longer life expectancies.
That’s why the 60s are all about strategy: when to start CPP, how to draw down your accounts, and how to invest for longevity without taking unnecessary risks.
Justin has come to us once again, for his final financial plan at the age of 60. He’s now reached the top of his career as a Chief Superintendent, earning $250,000 a year. His family spends about $130,000 annually, and he’s built up around $2 million in savings—right on target with the benchmarks.
With careful planning, Justin can see exactly how much he can spend, when he can retire, and how long his money will last. His plan funds him past his goal of age 90, giving him the confidence to enjoy life instead of worrying about running out.
His net worth also tells the story—peaking in the multimillions in his early 60s and then gradually declining as he draws on it. And that’s by design.
Now it’s about using those savings strategically: managing RRSP withdrawals to cut taxes, shifting more into his TFSA, structuring his estate so his family inherits efficiently, and setting aside money for travel, experiences, and giving back.
Retirement, after all, shouldn’t just be about surviving—it’s about living well after a lifetime of hard work.
If you want to save more on taxes in retirement, check out our free guide with 5 proven strategies to keep more of your money.
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https://blueprintfinancial.ca/retirement-tax-saving-guide
Why These Numbers Can Be Misleading
Justin’s story is just one example, and the truth is, no two Canadians need the same number to retire.
For some, a work pension covers most expenses, so saving six or eight times your salary isn’t necessary. Others may rely on home equity — downsizing later in life can unlock hundreds of thousands. Some plan to retire abroad, where costs are lower. Others expect to spend less in retirement than they do now.
Timing can also change everything. Retiring at 55 versus 70 can swing the math by millions. And so do life choices — buying a home, raising kids, or even chasing a dream career path can completely reshape what “enough” looks like.
That’s why these benchmarks are best seen as checkpoints, not finish lines. They’re a quick gut check, but the only number that truly matters is yours — the one that lines up with your lifestyle, your timing, and your goals.
Knowing how much to save by each age isn’t just trivia—it’s your roadmap to a comfortable retirement. The real win comes when you align your savings with a plan that fits your life. At Blueprint Financial, that’s exactly what we help Canadians do every day.
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