RetireePlan

Overview

RetireePlan is a free retirement-planning app built for Canadian finances, with desktop and self-hosted options. It suits individual investors who want to model income, withdrawals, taxes and estate scenarios without sending their data off their own hardware. Its depth is unusual for a free tool, but its calculations are planning illustrations rather than financial advice.

Key features

The deterministic engine projects income, expenses, account growth, withdrawals and taxes year by year, giving users a baseline view of how a retirement plan may unfold. A separate 1,000-trial Monte Carlo simulator supports normal, log-normal and historical-bootstrap returns. Those choices let users examine plans under different return assumptions, but do not turn modeled outcomes into predictions.

Canadian tax modeling spans federal and provincial brackets, CPP/QPP, EI, OAS/GIS clawbacks, pension splitting and RRIF minimums. That coverage makes RetireePlan a more natural fit for Canadian planning than a tool without those systems. The calculations remain illustrative, so users should not rely on them as formal tax determinations.

Ranked, dollar-quantified recommendations point to potential RRSP meltdown opportunities, OAS clawback avoidance and TFSA use. Named what-if scenarios help compare plans, while estate modeling includes rental properties, principal-residence exemptions, probate and beneficiary designations. YNAB imports can bring spending categories and transaction data into projections. Multi-scenario PDF reports and CSV exports with one row per year make results easier to share or examine elsewhere.

The context-aware AI assistant can use local Ollama or GitHub Copilot. RetireePlan also offers read-only account synchronization, though its YNAB integration is specifically for importing spending categories and transactions. The MIT License and Docker containers make it a practical option for users who want to run the software themselves; the trade-off is that self-hosting requires users to manage their own setup.

Pricing

The Free plan costs nothing and is free forever. It is open source and includes income projection, savings growth projection, withdrawal planning, detailed tax modeling and scenario analysis. There are no paid tiers or stated usage caps in this plan, making it suitable for individual investors who want substantial modeling without a subscription. Its main limitation is not a feature cap but the scope of the tool: projections and tax calculations are illustrative, not financial advice.

Platforms

RetireePlan supports API, Linux, macOS, self-hosting, web and Windows. Desktop installers are available for macOS, Windows and Linux, and Docker containers support self-hosting. Running the app on personal hardware aligns with its privacy-first approach, but users seeking a straightforward hosted service may prefer a web-focused alternative.

Who it's for

RetireePlan is best for Canadians who want detailed tax-aware projections, scenario comparisons and estate modeling at no cost, especially if they value running software on their own hardware. It is less suitable for anyone who needs formal tax advice or expects projections to substitute for professional financial guidance.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Canadian tax coverage includes federal and provincial brackets, CPP/QPP, EI, OAS/GIS clawback, pension splitting and RRIF minimums, bringing relevant retirement systems into one planning model.
• Pro: Deterministic forecasts, Monte Carlo simulations, named scenarios and dollar-quantified recommendations provide several ways to assess a plan rather than relying on a single projection.
• Pro: Free forever, open-source access and self-hosting offer a no-subscription route for users who want to keep their data on their own hardware.
• Con: Tax calculations and projections are illustrative, limiting their use for formal tax decisions or as a substitute for financial advice.
• Con: Self-hosting and desktop installation suit technically comfortable users better than people looking for a conventional hosted service.

Alternatives

Compare retirement planning software if you want to review more options by category.

Flexible Retirement Planner is another free option for Linux, macOS, web and Windows users; its personal-use plan is free for individual non-commercial use, with educators and trainers also able to use it free for educational purposes and voluntary contributions accepted.

ProjectionLab is worth considering for Android, iOS or web access, with a free Basic plan covering forecasting, financial planning, Monte Carlo simulations, historical backtesting and flexible modeling.

Boldin suits readers looking for a freemium planning service across Android, iOS and web, with a free Basic plan that includes more than 100 inputs, two interactive explorers, more than 10 charts and up to five Boldin AI questions per day.

Retirement Budget Calculator offers a web-based free lifetime plan for basic retirement budgeting and asset tracking; its Premium monthly plan costs $9.95 a month.

Retireator is a free, open-source retirement simulator for web and Windows.

driftcurve is another free self-hosted option, available through API and web, with no subscription and no accounts in its default local mode.

FI Calc is a free web calculator supported by donations.

Fidelity Planning & Guidance Center lets users generate a plan at no fee, though investment expenses and account transaction fees may still apply.

Verdict

Choose RetireePlan if you are a Canadian individual investor who wants detailed tax-aware scenarios, exports and self-hosted privacy without paying a subscription. Look elsewhere if you need authoritative tax answers, financial advice or a hosted experience that does not involve managing your own installation.