Turning 45 tends to make retirement feel less like a “someday plan” and more like a number on a calendar. With roughly two decades left in the workforce, it is a natural time to check how your savings compare with those of other Canadians.
Recent data from Statistics Canada and the Canada Revenue Agency give a useful benchmark. It also reveals something interesting: most Canadians are leaning hard on one registered account while leaving the other mostly untouched.
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The RRSP dominates retirement savings
According to a report from Optiml:
- For Canadians aged 45 to 54, the Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) holds far more money than the Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA).
- The average RRSP balance is $150,300, while the median is $70,000. A handful of high earners with large balances pull the average up, so the median gives a more honest picture of where the typical 45-year-old actually stands. If your RRSP is close to $70,000, you are right in line with most Canadians your age.
- The average balance is just $22,700, despite cumulative contribution room now topping $109,000 as of 2026. Many people are using barely a fifth of their available space.
Why TFSA contributions get left behind
RRSP contributions reduce taxable income right away, making them an easy sell during peak earning years. Employer matching programs provide RRSP contributions with an additional boost.
The TFSA offers no upfront tax break, so the appeal is less obvious at first glance. But that is also its biggest strength. Every dollar of growth and every withdrawal in the TFSA stay completely tax-free for life.
Most Canadians treat the account as a glorified savings vehicle for emergencies rather than a long-term investment tool, a habit that could prove costly in hindsight.
Own quality stocks in the TFSA
If your TFSA balance looks closer to the $22,700 average than you would like, the fix is to increase contributions while gaining exposure to quality dividend stocks.
One such Canadian dividend stock is Royal Bank of Canada (TSX: RY). Over the last 20 years, the blue-chip Canadian bank stock has returned 1,290% to shareholders after adjusting for dividends.
It means a $5,000 investment in RY stock back in July 2006 would be worth close to $70,000 today.
In fiscal Q2, Royal Bank reported adjusted earnings of $5.6 billion, its second-highest quarterly performance on record. Its return on equity stood at 17.2%, supported by a 13.5% common equity tier-one ratio. Capital Markets posted record net income driven by strong results in both Global Markets and Investment Banking. Wealth Management delivered strong results across North American advisory and asset management. Lastly, Commercial Banking generated a return on equity above 17%
RBC has also been increasing the amount of cash it returns to shareholders. The bank’s total payout ratio rose from 51% in 2024 to 65% in the first half of 2026, and it just raised its dividend by $0.12 from the prior quarter, a 14% year-over-year increase.
That combination of earnings growth and rising payouts is what makes a stock worth holding inside a TFSA for the long run, since both the dividend income and any share price appreciation come out completely untaxed.
Our view: RBC remains one of the more reliable core holdings for Canadian investors building long-term wealth inside a TFSA.
The bank’s diversified earnings base, strong capital position, and consistent dividend growth make it a stock worth owning rather than trading, and I would treat any market pullback as a buying opportunity.
Catching up over the next 20 years
If your numbers fall short of the averages above, age 45 is still an excellent time to course-correct. Two decades of compounding ahead of you is plenty of runway.
One approach worth considering: claim the RRSP tax deduction on new contributions, then redirect the resulting tax refund straight into your TFSA.
From there, shifting that TFSA money out of cash and into quality dividend growth stocks lets it compound tax-free for the long haul.
The earlier that shift happens, the more time your money has to work for you.
