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Vishesh Raisinghani
Updated Nov 7, 2025
Most Canadians would consider $1.54 million the “magic number” for retirement savings, according to a BMO survey. Unfortunately, many are falling short of that goal.
As of 2023, the median household net worth for people aged 55 to 64 was just $873,400, according to Statistics Canada.
Meanwhile, about 20% of adults over 55 have less than $5,000 in savings, the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan reports.
If you’re over 50 or 60 with no nest egg, typical wealth-building strategies like career changes, long-term investing and slow-and-steady savings likely won’t get you to your goal.
But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to retire comfortably. Here’s how to build wealth on a faster timeline.
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Save aggressively
With a short time frame, you’ll likely need to make bold moves to build up your savings. That could mean cutting back on spending, downsizing your home or even relocating to a more affordable area. Saving as much as 50% of your income may seem extreme, but it can help you reach a modest retirement goal faster.
According to SmartAsset, the median income of someone between 55 and 64 is about $1,563.13 per week, or $75,030 per year according to StatCan. Saving 50% of that gives you about $37,515 a year, or $3,126.25 per month.
Investing that $3,126.25 monthly in a low-cost index fund like Vanguard’s S&P 500 ETF (TSX: VFV) could help it grow significantly. The fund has delivered a 14.55% annualized return since its inception. If that performance continues, you could have $793,620 in 10 years.
Start by making contributions to tax-advantaged accounts, such as your Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) and Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP). These accounts can hold low-cost exchange-traded funds (ETFs) like the one above.
Consider opening a discount brokerage account, like CIBC Investors’ Edge, so you can enjoy low commissions on trades and no or minimal account maintenance charges, depending on the size of your portfolio.
Pay no account fees for RRSPs with a balance of $25,000 or more and TFSAs with a balance of $10,000 or more. For non-registered accounts, the platform waives maintenance fees if the account balance exceeds $10,000.
Build your portfolio with CIBC Investor’s Edge and get up to 100 free trades and over $200 in cash back.
That might be enough for a bare-bones retirement, depending on your lifestyle. But if you want more flexibility, you’ll need to boost your income as well as cut expenses.
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Side hustles
Starting a business or side hustle could help you increase your income enough to build a comfortable retirement within a decade.
It’s not an uncommon career choice. According to RBC, 51% of Canadians are considering starting their own businesses. While building a business has its risks, it also offers high potential and relatively low barriers to entry.
However, StatCan data shows that the "business survival rate for the goods-producing sector was 50.8%, compared with 35.2% for the services-producing sector" after 10 years in operation.
If going all-in feels like too much, a side hustle may be a better option. It’s more common and less risky. Nearly one in four (23%) of Canadians say they have a side hustle to supplement their income, according to H&R Block.
While a side hustle might not make you rich on its own, taking on high-skilled jobs like tutoring, interior design, public speaking or social media management could make a bigger difference.
For example, adding $1,000 more per month to your investments in Vanguard’s ETF could grow your 10-year nest egg from $793,620 to about $1,047,477.
If you’re saving some of your income from your side hustles, consider parking this cash in an account that pays you a higher interest rate than a regular savings account — so that your idle cash can continue to make you money.
For example, open a personal account with EQ Bank and in just a few minutes you get access to the best features of a chequing account combined with a high-interest savings rate.
When you fund your account and set up a direct deposit, you can earn 2.75% on every dollar deposited into the account.
The account has $0 monthly fees and no minimum balances. Plus, you can withdraw from any ATM in Canada — for free.
When you’re playing catch-up, every extra dollar counts.
Eliminate debt
The only thing worse than having no savings is having a negative net worth. Without a financial cushion, your loans and credit card balances are propped up by your income, putting you in a fragile financial position.
That’s why it's important to tackle your high-interest debt. Consider using the avalanche or snowball method to start knocking down your liabilities.
If you’re dealing with multiple high interest loans, consider consolidating your debt by taking out a single loan at a lower rate with Loans Canada. Instead of juggling multiple monthly payments, you'll have one predictable payment to manage each month.
This can both ease your interest costs and improve your credit score. You can shop for the most competitive interest rates on personal and debt consolidation loans, since Loans Canada specializes in comparing rates offered by different lenders.
You don’t need a minimum credit score or annual income to receive personalized loan offers.
If your debt is only a couple of thousand dollars and you want to clear it as soon as possible, consider looking into Mogo.
You can get a line of credit of up to $3,500, and the online pre-approval takes only 3 minutes. If you fill out their pre-approval form, you have no obligation to sign up for a loan, and it won't hurt your credit score.
The entire process — from pre-approval to funding — is completed online in minutes, so there’s no waiting days to be matched with a lender.
You can easily chat with specialists on the app, and you'll get alerts to remind you of your payments.
Sources
1. BMO: BMO Retirement Survey: Over Three Quarters of Canadians Worry They Will Not Have Enough Retirement Savings Amid Inflation (Feb 12, 2025)
2. Statistics Canada: Median family after-tax income by family type and age of oldest adult, Canada, 2019 to 2022
3. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan: 2024 Canadian Retirement Survey (Jun 20, 2024)
4. RBC: A significant number of Canadians have started or are considering starting their own business in 2024: RBC Poll (Sept 18, 2024)
5. Statistics Canada: Key Small Business Statistics 2023 (Feb 2, 2024)
6. H&R Block: Around a third (30%) of Canadian gig workers didn't plan to report all gig income this tax season; 71% had change-of-heart upon learning about new rules mandating gig platforms to share users' earnings with CRA, reveals new H&R Block Canada survey (Mar 5, 2025)
Vishesh Raisinghani
Freelance contributor
Vishesh Raisinghani is a financial journalist covering personal finance, investing and the global economy. He is the founder of Sharpe Ascension Inc., a content marketing agency focused on investment firms His work has appeared in Money.ca, Moneywise, Yahoo Finance!, Motley Fool, Seeking Alpha, Mergers & Acquisitions Magazine, National Post, Financial Post and Piggybank. He frequently covers subjects ranging from retirement planning and stock market strategy to private credit and real estate, blending data-driven insights with practical advice for individuals and families.
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