2021 Tax Comparison of Canadian Dividends vs Interest

The tables on this page compare taxes payable by province/territory in 2021 for three different types of investment income:

- Canadian eligible dividends

- Canadian non-eligible Canadian dividends, and

- other investment income such as foreign dividends and interest.

The calculations assume that the income is earned by a single person, and that there is no other type of income included in taxable income. The tax rates used are as known on July 22, 2021. The total taxes payable include any alternative minimum tax, where applicable.

Taxes Payable on Eligible Dividends

Note: Eligible dividends gross-up % is 38%, as it has been since 2012.

The NT & NU refundable amounts are from their cost of living tax credits.

Actual Eligible Dividends	Taxable Income	Total Federal + Provincial Income Taxes Payable (Refundable) in 2021
Actual Eligible Dividends	Taxable Income	AB	BC	MB	NB	NL	NS	NT	NU	ON	PE	QC	SK	YT
$30,000	$41,400	$0	$0	$236	$0	$729	$0	$(680)	$(828)	$450	$0	$825	$0	$0
50,000	69,000	0	0	1,547	0	3,241	1,778	(942)	(1,380)	600	114	1,940	0	0
60,000	82,800	1,254	1,242	4,056	1,458	6,051	4,352	405	(153)	2,054	2,433	3,926	1,393	1,325
80,000	110,400	4,756	4,591	10,169	5,050	12,523	10,251	3,872	3,314	5,712	7,740	9,740	4,912	4,768
100,000	138,000	8,399	7,581	15,749	8,032	18,406	15,620	6,858	7,185	9,125	12,434	16,322	7,897	7,755

Taxes Payable on Non-Eligible Dividends

Note: Non-eligible dividends gross-up % is 15%, as it has been since 2019.

The BC refundable amount is the sales tax credit, while NT & NU refundable amounts are from their cost of living tax credits.

Actual Non-eligible Dividends	Taxable Income	Total Federal + Provincial Income Taxes Payable (Refundable) in 2021
Actual Non-eligible Dividends	Taxable Income	AB	BC	MB	NB	NL	NS	NT	NU	ON	PE	QC	SK	YT
$15,000	$17,250	$0	$(30)	$577	0	0	0	$(378)	$(345)	$0	0	$25	$0	$105
30,000	34,500	761	494	2,398	1,117	964	1,344	(593)	(690)	300	1,776	2,258	1,334	1,093
50,000	57,500	4,387	3,455	6,978	5,399	5,115	6,044	971	1,142	3,572	6,327	6,935	5,424	4,459
60,000	69,000	6,606	5,434	9,673	8,106	7,699	8,969	2,205	2,736	5,600	9,154	9,941	7,985	6,736
80,000	92,000	11,043	9,606	15,952	13,594	13,073	14,785	5,253	6,263	10,075	15,182	16,094	13,108	11,290
100,000	115,000	16,412	15,465	23,345	20,332	19,473	21,684	10,249	11,273	16,896	22,172	23,964	19,164	17,099

Taxes Payable on Other Income (foreign dividends, interest, etc.)

The NT & NU refundable amounts are from their cost of living tax credits.

Interest Income	Taxable Income	Total Federal + Provincial Income Taxes Payable (Refundable) in 2021
Interest Income	Taxable Income	AB	BC	MB	NB	NL	NS	NT	NU	ON	PE	QC	SK	YT
$15,000	$15,000	$179	$104	$603	$179	$179	$188	$(171)	$(121)	$179	$270	$149	$179	$255
30,000	30,000	3,492	3,211	4,596	3,937	4,209	4,108	2,762	2,370	3,694	4,340	4,994	3,875	3,465
50,000	50,000	8,546	7,659	10,127	9,523	9,694	10,258	6,902	5,922	8,258	10,074	10.793	9,115	7,824
60,000	60,000	11,596	10,479	13,452	13,055	13,194	13,870	9,712	8,472	11,223	13,504	14,571	12,415	10,774
80,000	80,000	17,696	16,119	20,433	20,119	20,245	21,383	15,472	13,672	17,312	20,829	22,194	19,015	16,674
100,000	100,000	23,904	22,360	28,120	27,501	27,612	28,982	21,804	19,410	24,204	28,380	30,299	25,723	22,719

Notes re all three tables:

	Ontario - includes Ontario Health Premium.
	QC includes contribution to the health services fund and prescription drug insurance plan premiums.
	QC taxes are net of tax credit for person living alone.

To see the tax results for your own income situation, and how it would change if the type of investment income changes, use our Detailed Canadian Income Tax and RRSP Savings Calculators, or our very simple Investment Income Tax Calculator.

TaxTips.ca Resources

Tax Comparison of Investment Income for Seniors

Tax Comparisons of Taxes Payable on Employment Income by Province and Territory

Tax Tip: Interest and foreign dividends are not as tax-efficient as Canadian dividends!

Revised: September 20, 2024