Debt-to-Income Calculator Canada (2026): Check DTI Ratio

This calculator adds your entered housing and debt payments and reports planning ratios. It does not decide whether you qualify for a mortgage, predict an interest rate, apply a lender’s underwriting model, or tell you how much debt to repay. The frequently cited 39% GDS and 44% TDS figures relate to particular mortgage-insurance and underwriting assessments; lender policies and the facts of a file still matter.

How to Use This Calculator

Enter your gross monthly income and the monthly housing and debt payments requested by the form. The calculator reports the ratios produced by those entries and shows the assumptions used.

Results appear in broad planning bands. They are not a pass/fail result, approval prediction, or diagnosis of insolvency. Use the numbers to prepare a lender question, a budget review, or a conversation about debt options.

The calculator uses the basic ratio formulas shown below. It does not reproduce every lender’s treatment of income, property taxes, heating, condo fees, debt payments, mortgage insurance, or the minimum qualifying rate. For current stress-test scope, consult OSFI’s minimum qualifying rate guidance.

Who This Is For

Use this calculator if you are reviewing a mortgage application, renewal, refinance, or household cash flow and want one consistent way to organize the numbers. It can also help you prepare questions for a lender, broker, credit counsellor, or Licensed Insolvency Trustee.

You can use it when creditors are pressuring you or you are reviewing debt options. A ratio is one cash-flow signal; it does not determine whether a consumer proposal, bankruptcy, consolidation, or another option is appropriate. Start with the consumer proposal planning worksheet if you need to organize questions for a Licensed Insolvency Trustee.

Understanding DTI, GDS, and TDS Ratios

GDS (Gross Debt Service) is the percentage of gross income represented by the housing costs included in the form. TDS (Total Debt Service) adds the other debt payments included in the form. A lender may include or exclude items differently.

The basic formulas are:

• GDS = entered housing costs ÷ gross monthly income × 100
• TDS = entered housing costs and other debt payments ÷ gross monthly income × 100

DTI is a general term for a debt-payment-to-income ratio. In Canadian mortgage underwriting, lenders may use GDS and TDS definitions alongside other information. This calculator is a planning worksheet, not a lender replica.

Planning Bands, Not Approval Thresholds

The 39% GDS and 44% TDS figures are commonly used in mortgage-insurance and underwriting guidance, but they are not a universal pass/fail rule. A result above or below a benchmark should prompt a question, not an assumption about approval.

Alternative lenders use their own policies and pricing. Do not infer approval, rate, or affordability from a ratio alone; compare the full cost, security, term, fees, and repayment plan.

For uninsured mortgages, OSFI’s current guidance describes a minimum qualifying rate of the greater of the contract rate plus 2% or 5.25%, with scope and exceptions explained by OSFI. This calculator does not perform that lender-side test.

When a High Ratio Deserves a Closer Look

If your result is high, review the inputs first and separate housing costs from other debt payments. Then compare the result with your actual budget and ask a lender or qualified adviser which items they include. A high ratio does not by itself establish insolvency or make one debt solution appropriate.

If payments leave too little room for essentials, use a complete income-and-expense review rather than treating the ratio as a legal conclusion. The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy’s consumer-proposal guidance explains the formal process, the role of a Licensed Insolvency Trustee, and why terms and creditor response are file-specific.

If you are facing a mortgage renewal, use the mortgage-shock calculator to compare entered payment scenarios. Do not assume that a debt filing will improve a renewal or switch application; ask the lender and a Licensed Insolvency Trustee how the specific filing would affect your situation.

What to Do Next

If your result is near a lender’s stated benchmark, verify the calculation and ask what documentation the lender needs. The debt payoff calculator can model entered balances and payments; it does not predict mortgage approval or rates.

If your result is high and you are already missing payments, receiving collection notices, or using new credit for essentials, get individualized advice before applying for another loan. Compare the full cost of any consolidation offer and ask a Licensed Insolvency Trustee to explain proposal and bankruptcy alternatives where relevant.

If your result is extremely high, do not infer that you are insolvent or that a proposal will be accepted. List your debts, income, assets, expenses, notices, and any garnishment, then discuss the file with a Licensed Insolvency Trustee or another qualified adviser.

Calculate your debt payoff timeline to model a payment plan under your own assumptions. If you are already facing collection action, use the debt-collection notice guide to identify the document before deciding what to do.

Use the Debt-to-Income Ratio Calculator now to organize your housing and debt payments. You will see the ratios produced by your entries, the assumptions used, and practical questions to verify with a lender or adviser. The result is a planning aid—not an approval, eligibility, savings, or debt-relief prediction.