EI Benefits Calculator

Estimate your Employment Insurance: weekly EI at 55% up to $729, how many weeks you get from your hours and regional rate, and maternity and parental pay.

Reviewed by Dany, RightSums team · Updated

Runs in your browser. Free, no sign-up.

salary-tax · Daily life · Canada

Lost your job, or planning parental leave? Enter your average weekly earnings or salary, your insurable hours in the last 52 weeks and the unemployment rate in your EI region. The calculator uses the 2026 rules from Canada.ca and the Employment Insurance Act: 55% of your average weekly earnings, capped at $729 a week on $68,900 of insurable earnings, the best-weeks divisor of 14 to 22, the 420 to 700 hours you need to qualify, and the full table of 14 to 45 weeks. It checks the temporary measures that waive the waiting week and add up to 20 weeks for long-tenured workers on claims starting by October 10, 2026. A second mode covers maternity, standard parental and extended parental benefits.

Accepted inputs

  • Regular or maternity and parental benefits
  • Average weekly insurable earnings or yearly salary
  • Insurable hours in the last 52 weeks
  • Regional unemployment rate
  • Date the claim would start
  • Long-tenured worker status
  • Maternity weeks and standard or extended parental weeks

Outputs

  • Weekly benefit before tax
  • Number of weeks of benefits
  • Total if paid in full
  • Hours needed and hours short
  • Best-weeks divisor and capped earnings
  • Waiting week and temporary measures
  • Tips on hours, earnings and tax

How to use the EI Benefits Calculator

  1. Choose regular benefits if you lost your job, or maternity and parental benefits, and enter the date your claim would start.
  2. Enter your average weekly insurable earnings or your salary, your insurable hours in the last 52 weeks and the unemployment rate in your EI economic region.
  3. The calculator applies the 2026 rules: 55% of your earnings up to $1,325 a week, the hours you need at your regional rate and the weeks from the Employment Insurance Act table.
  4. Read the weekly amount, the number of weeks and the total before tax, then apply online within 4 weeks of your last day of work so you do not lose benefits.

Frequently asked questions

How much EI will I get a week?

55% of your average insurable weekly earnings, rounded to the dollar, up to $729 a week in 2026. If your best weeks average $1,000, you get $550 a week before tax. Earnings above $1,325 a week ($68,900 a year) are not counted, so anyone earning more still gets $729.

How many weeks of EI can I get?

Between 14 and 45 weeks, set by your insurable hours and your regional unemployment rate. With 1,400 hours in a region at 6.5% you get 31 weeks; at $550 a week that is $17,050 before tax. Claims starting by October 10, 2026 can get up to 20 extra weeks if you are a long-tenured worker.

How many hours do I need to qualify for EI?

Between 420 and 700 insurable hours in the last 52 weeks, depending on the unemployment rate where you live. At 6% or under you need 700 hours; at 13.1% or more you need 420. Maternity and parental benefits need 600 hours wherever you live.

Is there still a one-week waiting period for EI?

Not for new claims that start between March 30, 2025 and October 10, 2026, under a temporary measure. For claims starting after that, the usual one unpaid waiting week returns before payments begin. Apply within 4 weeks of your last day of work, or you may lose benefits.

How much is EI maternity and parental leave?

On $1,000 a week, 15 weeks of maternity plus 35 weeks of standard parental benefits pay $550 a week, $27,500 in total. Choosing extended parental instead pays $330 a week for 61 weeks, so $28,380 in total over 76 weeks. Quebec residents claim from the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan instead.

Sources

The rates and rules in this tool come from:

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