Terms of Use: Finance Simulator

Last Updated: October 21, 2026

Finance Simulator is a free Canadian personal finance calculator that I, Chris Coffin, built and run. By using it, you agree to these terms. If you don't agree, please don't use the tool. The same terms cover the French edition, which is published here in English.

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1. Ownership

The calculator, including its design, code, text, guides and images, is owned by Chris Coffin and protected by copyright. You get the right to use it as described below, not ownership of it. The License & IP page explains what you can and can't do with the work itself.

2. Your Right to Use

The tool is free to use, with no account and no login, for:

• Personal financial planning and learning
• Evaluating financial scenarios for your own use
• Looking at how it works, for example with your browser's developer tools, to learn
• Building your own tools inspired by this work, with credit and without copying it

There is no subscription and no paywall. The optional tip jar and referral link described in section 8 do not unlock anything.

3. What You Can't Do

• Copy and republish the site, the tool or significant portions of its code, text or design under a different domain or name
• Remove or hide copyright notices or author credits
• Claim authorship of this work as your own
• Repackage it commercially without my written permission (for example selling access, bundling it into a product or charging for a hosted version)
• Mislead others about where the calculator comes from, who made it or whether I endorse something
• Reverse engineer it to build a competing commercial product from my work
• Break the law while using the tool, including tax evasion, fraud or money laundering
• Interfere with the tool's operation: hacking, denial-of-service attacks, malware, or automated traffic heavy enough to slow the site for other people

4. Estimates, Not Advice

Finance Simulator is educational. Its results are estimates for planning, not official tax calculations and not financial advice.

Tax: The tax figures follow the 2026 tax year for federal, provincial and territorial rules, and every figure is listed on the methodology page with how confident I am in it and where it came from. The calculations are simplified, and some rules are deliberately not modelled. They are not a substitute for professional tax advice. For filing taxes or making a major decision, consult a qualified tax professional or accountant.

Projections: Projections rest on assumptions (returns, inflation, the numbers you enter) that you can change, and the results are hypothetical. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Consult a licensed financial advisor before making investment decisions.

5. No Warranty

Finance Simulator is provided "as is", without warranty of any kind. I don't promise that:

• The calculations are error-free or match your actual tax return
• The tool will always be available or never malfunction
• The results suit any particular purpose
• Every rate and limit is current the day you use it. Governments change them, and I update them as I verify the new figures

6. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, I am not liable for:

• Any direct, indirect, incidental or consequential damages arising from your use of the tool, or your inability to use it
• Loss of data, money or opportunities based on the calculations or projections
• Errors or inaccuracies in the results
• Third-party claims, or anything that happens on third-party websites and services

This applies even if I was told such damages were possible. Nothing in these terms limits rights you have under law that cannot be waived.

7. Your Data & Privacy

The short version: your financial numbers stay on your device, there is no account, and the only tracking is Google Analytics, set to measure visits and feature use, nothing else.

• Your numbers stay on your device. The income, balances, savings rate and goals you enter, and every figure the calculator works out from them, are saved in your browser's own storage. They are never sent to a server I control, and I can't see them.
• No account. You don't sign up, and I don't ask for your name or email to use the tool.
• Your numbers leave your device only if you send them. A plan link you create contains your plan, so anyone who has the link can read it. Your browser does not send the part of a link after the # sign to my server when someone opens it. A percentile you share carries only the percentile. You can tick a box to add an income figure rounded to $5,000, and it is off until you do.
• Feedback. If you send feedback, your message, its type and the email address you chose to add (optional) are delivered to my inbox by a form service called Web3Forms. I use them to read and reply, nothing else.
• Supporter wall. If you use the form to be listed on the supporters page, the link to your post, how you'd like to appear, your display name and note, and your email if you add one are delivered to me by Web3Forms. Only what you choose to show is published, never your email, and you can ask me at any time to change or remove it. I remove it within 7 days. If you opt in at the tip jar checkout, the name and line you enter reach me through Stripe and are handled the same way.
• Tips. The optional tip jar opens a Stripe checkout page. Stripe handles the payment under its own terms. I see the name, email and amount on the payment, never your card number.
• Google Analytics. The English edition loads Google Analytics on every visit, in both modes, to measure traffic and which pages and buttons get used. It uses small identifiers (cookies) stored in your browser to tell visits apart, and Google receives the standard technical details a browser sends, such as IP address and browser type. It is set to measurement only: advertising storage and ad personalization are switched off, and there is no advertising pixel on the site.
• What Google Analytics never sees. Your financial numbers. A few events record a milestone you reached or the broad range a result fell in, never an amount. On the money order of operations guide it records which of the ten steps the page worked out for you, as a step name. The English edition has no opt-out setting yet; a content blocker or Google's opt-out browser add-on will stop it.
• The French edition asks first. The French edition asks before loading Google Analytics, and loads nothing until you accept. You can change your answer anytime with the "Mesure d’audience" link at the bottom of the page. If you refuse there, Google Analytics stays off on the English pages in that browser too.
• Other third parties. Apart from Google Analytics, the site loads no third-party scripts. Web3Forms and Stripe are contacted only when you send a message or follow the tip link. The site is hosted by Namecheap, which keeps standard server logs, such as IP address and pages requested. Namecheap, Google, Web3Forms and Stripe may process data on servers outside Quebec and outside Canada.
• What your browser keeps. Your saved plans, check-in snapshots of your savings rate and nest egg, the money order guide's answers, your theme and mode choice, and small notes such as which prompts you've already dismissed. Open "Your data" in the menu to see how much is stored. "Download your plans" saves a copy, and "Delete all saved plans" erases the plans, snapshots and guide answers. The "Reset everything" menu item only clears the plan you're editing.
• Shared devices. Anyone who uses your browser can see the plans saved in it, so on a shared device delete them when you're done. Securing your device is up to you, and I'm not responsible if someone else uses a device you left open.
• Your rights. I am responsible for protecting personal information on this site. You can ask what I hold about you (feedback and supporter-wall emails), have it corrected, or have it deleted by writing to hello@chriscoffin.design. I keep feedback and supporter emails only as long as I need them to reply or keep the wall accurate.

8. Referrals & Tips

In the default Support mode, the app links to Wealthsimple through my referral link and offers a tip jar. If you open a Wealthsimple account through the link and meet their conditions, Wealthsimple can pay a bonus to both of us. Their offers are theirs to set and change. The calculations are identical either way. Switching to Community mode in the footer removes both the referral link and the tip jar from the calculator.

9. Third-Party Links & Services

Finance Simulator links to Wealthsimple and other outside services. I'm not responsible for:

• Third-party websites, services or content
• Their terms, practices or security
• Losses or problems from using them

Your use of an outside service is governed by their terms, not mine.

10. Changes to These Terms

I may update these terms at any time, and the Last Updated date above shows when. Continued use after a change means you accept the new terms.

11. Governing Law

These terms are governed by the laws of Quebec, Canada, and the federal laws of Canada that apply there. Disputes are subject to the courts of Quebec.

12. Contact

For questions, permissions, privacy requests or to report a violation:

• Email: hello@chriscoffin.design
• Website: https://finance.chriscoffin.design/

13. Severability

If any part of these terms is found unenforceable, the rest stay in effect.