Emergency Fund Calculator
How big your emergency fund should be, how many months of runway you have right now, and how long until it's fully funded, with the interest a Canadian high-interest savings account earns you along the way.
If your income stopped today
How long your savings would cover your essential expenses after a job loss, week by week, on their own and topped up by EI. Regular EI pays for 14 to 45 weeks, after a one-week unpaid waiting period.
Fund growth to target
Your balance month by month with HISA interest, until it reaches your full target. Vertical lines mark when you pass 1, 3 and 6 months of essential expenses.
Milestone schedule
When you cross each level of runway at your current savings rate. The highlighted row is your full target.
| Milestone | Amount | Reached in | On (approx.) |
|---|
How this is calculated
Your target
The target is essential monthly expenses × target months. The income-stability presets set the months for you: two stable incomes need less cushion (3 months), while a single earner in a volatile industry or someone self-employed with lumpy pay needs far more (9–12 months). You can always override the months slider.
3–6 months vs. Suze Orman's 8–12
The classic personal-finance rule is 3–6 months of expenses. Suze Orman argues that this is too thin for most people and recommends 8–12 months, because job searches routinely run longer than three months and a market downturn often coincides with layoffs. Both views are built into the presets, pick the runway you can sleep on.
Months of runway you have now
This is current savings ÷ monthly expenses. It answers "if my income stopped today, how long could I last on savings alone?", before any EI.
Time to fully funded (with interest)
Your savings earn HISA interest while you fill the gap, which shortens the timeline. We solve the future-value-of-an-annuity equation for the number of months n:
n = ln( (target·r + PMT) ÷ (current·r + PMT) ) ÷ ln(1 + r)
where PMT is your monthly contribution and r = (1 + rate)^(1/12) − 1 is the monthly rate from your annual HISA rate. Interest compounds monthly and each deposit lands at the end of the month, so the fund is full in the first whole month whose balance clears the target: n rounded up. The metric, its date, the milestone table and the growth chart all use that same month. With a $0 contribution only interest can close the gap: the tool shows how long that would take, says "Never" when there are no savings or no interest to grow them, and stops looking after 50 years.
The progress bar and the growth chart
The progress bar is shaded by the same three tiers as the verdict: under one month of essential expenses is critical, from one month up to your target is building, and at or above your target is fully funded. Its ticks mark the 1, 3 and 6-month milestones below your target, or the target itself once you are past it. The growth chart draws the same month-by-month balance as the timeline above, with a line at your target and a vertical line at each milestone you pass. If you are already funded, it shows the next 12 months of interest on your balance with no new deposits.
Why cash, not investments
An emergency fund must be worth its full value on the exact day disaster strikes. Equities can be down 20–40% precisely when you're laid off, forcing you to sell low. Keep this money in a high-interest savings account (top rates near 2.75% as of July 2026) or a cashable GIC, liquid, principal-protected, still earning.
A laddered home for the cash
Keep about one month of expenses in your chequing account as an instant buffer, and the rest in a HISA or cashable GIC. Holding the fund inside a TFSA makes the interest tax-free, and the contribution room comes back the year after you withdraw. Reserve your RRSP and non-registered investments for long-term goals, not this.
The EI-aware job-loss scenario
Regular EI pays 55% of your average insurable earnings, up to this year's maximum insurable earnings of $68,900: at most about $729 a week, or $3,158 a month. The job-loss chart follows your savings week by week after your last paycheque. Your essential expenses come out every week. After a one-week unpaid waiting period, EI pays in for as many weeks as you qualify for, 14 to 45 depending on your insurable hours and your region's unemployment rate, so the runway is a range:
savings left = savings − weekly expenses × weeks + weekly EI × weeks of EI paid so far
EI counts only up to your essential expenses, so a surplus is never treated as saved, and the fund never refills once it is empty. The figures are gross: EI is taxable, and tax withheld from it shortens the runway somewhat. HISA interest earned while you draw the fund down is left out; over a few months it adds little. These are the permanent EI rules. Temporary federal measures sometimes waive the waiting week or add weeks for long-tenured workers, which would only lengthen the runway. It assumes you qualify: self-employed people can't claim regular EI on business income, because the voluntary program for the self-employed covers special benefits such as sickness and parental leave, not job loss.
What this doesn't model
Income tax on EI, the processing time before the first EI payment (Service Canada aims to pay within 28 days of a complete application, so keep at least a month in cash), severance, spousal income continuing during your job loss, or inflation eroding the target over time. It also assumes your contribution and expenses stay level. For the bigger picture see the budget calculator and savings goal calculator.
Common questions
How many months of expenses should an emergency fund cover in Canada?
The standard rule is 3 to 6 months of essential expenses. Aim lower (3 months) if you have two stable incomes, and higher if you are self-employed, on variable income, or a single earner in a volatile industry, 9 to 12 months. Suze Orman argues for 8 to 12 months for most people. The target here is set from your income stability, and you can override it.
Should I keep my emergency fund in investments or a savings account?
Keep it in cash-equivalents, not investments. An emergency fund's job is to be there in full on the exact day you need it, during a market drop, a job loss, or a broken furnace. Stocks can be down 20 to 40 percent precisely when you get laid off. A high-interest savings account (HISA) paying around 2.75% or a cashable GIC keeps the money liquid, principal-protected, and still earning something.
What counts as a real emergency?
A true emergency is unexpected, necessary, and urgent: a job loss, a medical or dental crisis, an essential home or car repair, or an emergency trip. It is not a vacation, holiday shopping, a planned purchase, or a predictable annual bill, those belong in a separate sinking fund or your regular budget.
Does EI count as part of my emergency fund?
EI helps but does not replace a fund. Regular EI replaces 55% of insurable earnings up to a 2026 maximum of $729 per week, for 14 to 45 weeks depending on your insurable hours and region, and there is usually a one-week waiting period plus processing delay before the first payment. Your fund bridges that gap and tops up the shortfall.
Where should I keep the money, one account or several?
A laddered approach works well: keep roughly one month of expenses in your chequing account as an instant buffer, and the rest in a high-interest savings account or cashable GIC. Holding it inside a TFSA keeps the interest tax-free and the room is recoverable the following year after a withdrawal.