Calculator
Salary vs dividend estimator
See, roughly, how paying yourself by salary or dividends changes your tax and what you keep. Then we work out your real mix together.
An estimate using 2025 Ontario rates and non-eligible dividends. It
leaves out parts of a real return (other income, eligible dividends,
the passive-income grind, income splitting). Confirm your situation
with us before you act on it.
Rates & assumptions (2025)
- Ontario resident, 2025 federal + Ontario brackets, Ontario surtax and Health Premium included.
- Dividends are non-eligible (gross-up 15%, federal DTC 9.0301%, Ontario DTC 2.9863%).
- Corporate active income taxed at 12.2% up to $500,000 (small-business rate), 26.5% above.
- Salary route assumes you are an employee of your corporation: employee CPP plus a matching employer CPP (a corporate cost). EI is excluded (owners are usually exempt).
- Basic personal amounts: federal $16,129, Ontario $12,747.
- Simplifications: each amount is taxed on its own (a dividend is not stacked on top of a salary), no other income, no RRSP, no income splitting. This is an estimate, not a return.
Some constants (Ontario surtax thresholds, Health Premium table, the federal basic-amount grind) are pending final confirmation by Hawks.
Talk to a person
An estimate is a starting point.
We work out your real salary and dividend mix on a free call, with your actual numbers.
Talk to an expert, not a bot.
What to expect
01 You describe what's going on. About 15 minutes, on your schedule.
02 We ask a few questions. So we understand the business, not just the forms.
03 We tell you the next step. If we can help, we say so. If not, we point you to who can.