Boomers hold nearly half of Canada's wealth while millennials and Gen X fall behind — here's how every generation can catch up

So, how did boomers get here?

Real estate appreciation was one way — boomers bought homes when prices were modest, and those properties generated wealth over the years. Many also received defined benefit (DB) pensions, something far less common today in the private sector. And boomers hit their prime earning years during one of the longest stock and bond market rallies in history.

However, despite their edge, it’s not all clear sailing for boomers. Plus, younger generations have advantages of their own. A comfortable retirement may still be within reach for all — if each generation leans into its strengths.

Here’s what different generations can do to secure their financial futures.

Baby boomers

Baby boomers may hold more wealth than any generation in Canadian history, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have to be careful about planning for their retirement. There are still plenty of decisions that could impact how financially comfortable they are in their golden years.

For younger boomers who are still working, timing is everything — especially when it comes to Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Old Age Security (OAS) benefits. You can start collecting CPP as early as age 60 — but for every month you delay past age 65, your benefit increases by 0.7% (8.4% each year), meaning those who wait until 70 receive up to 42% more each month for life.

OAS payments begin at age 65, but they can be deferred until age 70, increasing by 0.6% every month you defer — up to 36% more after five years. For boomers still in good health, delaying both CPP and OAS can add hundreds of dollars monthly in permanent, inflation-indexed income that will never run out.

There’s also the option to not retire at all. In fact, among boomers yet to retire, the 2026 BMO Retirement Survey found that 27% of boomers who are still employed say they don’t plan to stop working at all. For many, staying in the workforce — even through part-time work — serves a dual purpose: it generates income that can be directed into a Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) or Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) and it delays the need to draw down existing savings.

For boomers looking for a low-risk way to put their cash into an RRSP account, you might want to consider using no-fee, high-interest savings accounts like those offered by EQ Bank. With the EQ Bank RRSP Savings Account, not only do you get to avoid monthly fees and minimum balance requirements, but you also get an annual interest rate of 1.50%, so you can maximize the tax-deferred growth on your savings.

Want to know more? Here’s a review of more banking products from EQ Bank.

Gen X

Generation X might have drawn the shortest straw when it comes to retirement. This cohort — roughly those born between 1965 and 1980 — entered the workforce just as many employers in the private sector were phasing out DB pensions. They became the first generation to rely on defined contribution plans, where the savings burden falls entirely onto the worker.

However, the numbers suggest they aren’t entirely optimistic about retirement. For example, the BMO 2026 Retirement Survey found that 20% of Gen X respondents say they don’t plan to retire. Many are also caught in the so-called sandwich generation squeeze — supporting aging parents while still raising children.

What can Gen Xers do? Maxing out RRSP and TFSA contributions is perhaps the most important starting point. The 2026 RRSP contribution limit is $33,810 — or 18% of the previous year’s earned income, whichever is less — and any unused contribution room from that carries forward. That carry-forward is a lifeline for anyone who couldn’t contribute in previous years, perhaps when income was lower. Additionally, the TFSA limit sits at $7,000 for 2026, with a cumulative lifetime limit of $109,000 for those eligible since 2009.

Tackling debt is equally urgent. Gen X households aged 46 to 55 years carry the highest average non-mortgage debt of any age group — $34,775 as of the first quarter of 2026, according to Equifax Canada. Dragging that into retirement is a fast track to financial stress. Paying it down right away is an important step toward Gen X closing the retirement gap before it’s too late.

For those struggling with credit card debt or other outstanding payments, one strategy might be to consolidate those debts into a single personal loan, which typically has lower interest rates than a credit card, so that you can decrease the interest you’re paying each month. Plus, you only have to keep track of one payment.

You can even be systematic about finding the right personal loan by comparison-shopping using a platform like Loans Canada, which helps you find and compare the best available rates — all without having to travel to in-person meetings at every bank. All you have to do is submit a single application through its online platform, and your application will be evaluated across a network of lenders. The process takes just minutes and requires no minimum credit score.

Loans Canada is a lending platform, not a direct lender. To find out more about the difference, check out this breakdown of its services.

Millennials

For Canadian millennials — generally those born between 1981 and 1996 — debt is the biggest thing standing between them and a comfortable retirement. And they’re starting to feel the pressure.

According to the latest RBC Financial Independence Poll, 59% of millennials polled by the survey didn’t feel financially secure, with 57% stating they had little or no money to their name after paying their monthly bills. In the same survey, two out of five millennials reported being concerned that they would never pay off their debts.

Meanwhile, the bar for retirement savings keeps climbing. The BMO 2026 Retirement Survey found that Canadians believe they need an average of $1.7 million to retire comfortably. But according to previous years of the survey, millennials tend to set the highest retirement targets: in 2024, for example, many estimated they would need around $2.1 million in savings.

The good news? Millennials who are young enough to still have two or three decades of earning ahead of them possess two of the most powerful financial tools available — time and compounding growth. Automating savings — directing even a small, fixed percentage of each paycheque into an RRSP or TFSA — removes the decision-making tension that can lead to missing contributions.

There are other small things to look out for as well. For example, millennials raising children may want to take note of the Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP). The federal government kicks in a grant of up to $500 a year — 20% on the first $2,500 you contribute annually — which can take some future financial pressure off and help keep your retirement savings intact.

Additionally, professionals in this generation may qualify for profession-specific banking perks that can help reduce everyday banking costs. Some institutions like National Bank even offer specialized banking packages for professionals in fields like healthcare, engineering, IT, finance, law, teaching, public service, administration, architecture, agriculture and more. According to National Bank, eligible professionals can unlock up to approximately $1,313 in annual savings, with higher savings available for select professions.

National Bank also offers special banking packages to students and newcomers to Canada. Here’s an overview of the pros and cons of these packages.

Gen Z

Data shows the youngest generation of Canadian adults may be the most financially self-aware of all. The National Payroll Institute’s 2025 Annual Survey of Working Canadians by Canada’s Financial Wellness Lab found that Gen Z workers are saving an average of 11% of each paycheque — a higher proportion than any other generation.

A 2024 TD Bank survey also found that 68% of Gen Z Canadians invest consistently each year — the highest rate of any demographic. And StatCan data confirms that Gen Z contributed a median amount of $1,880 to their RRSPs in 2023 — 20% more than millennials were contributing at the same age in 2009.

Motivated savers have one enormous advantage: compound growth. The earlier money is invested, the longer it has to multiply. For example, a Gen Z investor who started contributing at 22 and remained consistent throughout their working years will have accumulated dramatically more than a peer who started 10 years later — even if the late starter contributed more each year.

The main focus for this generation is maximizing employer matching in workplace pension or group RRSP plans — free money that too many workers leave on the table — while also taking full advantage of the TFSA for tax-free growth. With cumulative TFSA room growing at $7,000 every year, a young Canadian who starts contributing early and invests consistently can build a substantial, tax-free nest egg over a 40-year career.