🛂 Benefits

Canada Workers Benefit calculator

Enter your working income, your adjusted net income and whether you are single or in a family. You get the estimated basic benefit and where it phases out.

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Estimated basic benefit—
    Working with a different rate? Edit the rates this calculator uses

    These are the figures we verified on 2026-10-23. Change them to work with a historic period, or with a new rate that has been announced but which we have not published yet.

    An estimate of the federal basic amount. Check your own eligibility.This estimates the federal basic Canada Workers Benefit for the 2025 tax year. It does not decide whether you are eligible, does not combine a spouse's working income for you, does not compute the disability supplement from earnings, and does not cover residents of Alberta, Quebec or Nunavut, whose benefit is designed differently. The CRA works out the final amount when you file. This is general information, not tax advice.

    How much is the Canada Workers Benefit?

    For the 2025 tax year the basic benefit is worth up to $1,633 for a single person and $2,813 for a family. It builds at 27% of working income above $3,000, then is reduced by 15% of adjusted net income above $26,855 (single) or $30,639 (family). It reaches zero at $37,742 and $49,393. Residents of Alberta, Quebec and Nunavut have different designs.

    Why we built this calculator

    The Canada Workers Benefit is a benefit claimed on your tax return by people on low incomes who work. Its shape is unusual: it builds as your earnings rise, hits a maximum, then shrinks as your total income rises. That shape is why a small raise can look like it changes the benefit less, or more, than you expect.

    This calculator shows both parts so you can see where you sit on the curve. For the tax side of the same income, use the income tax calculator.

    It runs in your browser. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere, and there is no sign-up.

    When to use it

    • Checking whether you are likely to get the benefit when you file
    • Seeing how a raise or extra shifts changes the benefit
    • Working out the benefit for a couple or a single parent
    • Planning before you file your return

    Mistakes it helps you avoid

    • Using total income where working income belongs. The two parts use different incomes.
    • Assuming you qualify. Age, residency and full-time student rules apply.
    • Forgetting that Alberta, Quebec and Nunavut residents use a different design.
    • Treating the maximum as a fixed amount rather than one that phases out.

    How the benefit is worked out

    The benefit builds with working income, then is reduced by adjusted net income above a threshold.

    • earnings part = the smaller of 27% × (working income − $3,000) and the maximum
    • reduction = 15% × (adjusted net income − threshold), not less than zero
    • basic benefit = earnings part − reduction, not less than zero
    • single family
    • maximum $1,633 $2,813
    • reduction starts at $26,855 $30,639
    • benefit reaches zero $37,742 $49,393
    • disability supplement up to $843, reduced by 15% above $37,740 (single) or $49,389 (family)

    These are the 2025 tax year amounts on the CRA page modified April 8, 2026. The 27% rate and the 15% phase-out come from Finance Canada's tax expenditures report; the CRA thresholds fit them, since $1,633 divided by 15% added to $26,855 gives the $37,742 cutoff. The disability supplement also depends on working income through a formula the pages we read do not state, so it is shown only as a maximum.

    Worked example: single, $30,000 working income and net income

    You are single with $30,000 of working income and $30,000 of adjusted net income for 2025.

    1. Earnings part: 27% × ($30,000 − $3,000), capped at $1,633$1,633.00
    2. Income above $26,855: $30,000 − $26,855$3,145
    3. Reduction at 15%$471.75
    4. Basic benefit$1,161.25

    The estimated basic Canada Workers Benefit is $1,161.25.

    With only $5,000 of working income the earnings part is just $540.00, well below the maximum. With $20,000 it reaches the maximum of $1,633.

    Who can claim it

    The CRA lists the main conditions for the basic amount: you earn working income and your net income is below the level for your province or territory, you are a resident of Canada throughout the year, and you are 19 or older on December 31 or you live with your spouse, common-law partner or child. You are not eligible if you were a full-time student at a designated institution for more than 13 weeks in the year, unless you have an eligible dependant, or if you were confined to a prison for at least 90 days. Check the CRA page for your own situation.

    Alberta, Quebec and Nunavut

    The CRA page says the amounts vary for residents of Quebec, Nunavut and Alberta, and Finance Canada says those three have jurisdiction-specific designs. We have not been able to read those designs from a primary page, so this calculator does not estimate them.

    Terms on this page

    Working income
    Income earned from work, used to build the benefit; the CRA page does not define it further.
    Adjusted net income
    The income measure the benefit is reduced against, which for families is the family's combined figure.
    Disability supplement
    An extra amount of up to $843 for people eligible for both the CWB and the Disability Tax Credit.

    What has changed, and when

    Rates on this page have not always been what they are today. If you are working on an earlier period, use the figure that applied at the time rather than the current one.

    1. 2025 tax year Single maximum $1,633, family $2,813, disability supplement $843, as on the CRA page modified April 8, 2026.

    Common questions

    What is the maximum Canada Workers Benefit for 2025?

    $1,633 for a single person without dependants and $2,813 for a family, plus a disability supplement of up to $843.

    When does the Canada Workers Benefit start to be reduced?

    When adjusted net income is above $26,855 for a single person or $30,639 for a family, at 15% of each dollar above.

    At what income does the benefit stop?

    No basic amount is paid above $37,742 of adjusted net income for a single person or above $49,393 for a family.

    Which line of the return is it on?

    Line 45300, the Canada workers benefit, on the federal return. The CRA's page for it is titled that way.

    Why are Alberta, Quebec and Nunavut different?

    The CRA page says the amounts vary for residents of Quebec, Nunavut and Alberta, and Finance Canada says those three have their own designs.

    What to work out next

    Where these numbers come from

    Last verified 2026-10-23 Rates on this page are checked against the sources above at least once a year, and whenever the governing authority announces a change. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.

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