Retirement Planning Calculator (Canva coding)
I’m continually amazed at how far no-code and low-code tools have come. Could Canva’s coder create a retirement calculator that actual works - a calculator that allows users to customize not just their contributions and income sources, but also the ages when these financial events start and stop.
Instead of days lost to JavaScript debugging or wrestling with frameworks, I was able to describe what I wanted to Canva’s Code Writer—and the app generated the entire foundation for me. It handled not just the math, but the entire user interface, the tab system, the dynamic charts, and even a slick interactive timeline. Here’s what it made possible, almost out of the box:
Feature Review
1. Time-Windowed Contributions and Income:
One of my “I wonder if it can…” moments was asking Canva to create inputs for both start and end ages for every source of savings or income. Instead of a single Social Security or pension checkbox, Canva generated an interface where users can set Social Security to begin at, say, 65, a pension at 62, and have other income that appears only between 55 and 75. The underlying logic updates the entire projection accordingly—no manual code hacking needed.
2. Clean, Intuitive Tabbed Inputs:
Without a line of CSS from me, Canva built a three-tab input system: Personal Info, Savings, and Income Sources. It keeps the experience organized, uncluttered, and easy to use. I just described the workflow in my prompt—Canva handled all the layout and state management.
3. Visual Event Timeline:
I like the auto-generated timeline that appears alongside the results. Whenever you set a new event—like the start of pension income or the end of a savings contribution—Canva’s code visualizes it as a colored milestone on a vertical timeline, with clear explanations. It’s like getting a project manager’s view of your financial life, created automatically.
4. Dynamic Results & Year-by-Year Breakdown:
With a single click, it generates a comprehensive retirement summary, a detailed breakdown of income sources, an interactive savings chart, and a full year-by-year results table. Canva even coded an income breakdown bar and a summary card that immediately tells you if your plan is “On Track” or when you might run short.
5. Responsive, Modern Design:
Everything looks and feels professional, thanks to Canva’s modern UI components and responsive grid system. No time lost to pixel-pushing—just results.
A New Era for Financial Tools
The fact that all this was generated by Canva’s coding assistant is, frankly, mind-blowing. I didn’t have to build a single HTML tab or style a button. I described the tool, and Canva produced something that would have taken a solo coder (like me) weeks to put together—and it works.
Try the calculator
This calculator cannot replace the advice of a financial planner. At the end of the day, this calculator is an entertaining toy, but it is not a substitute for the advice of a real world person that knows your circumstances, needs, and financial goals.
