Best CDs Right Now to Maximize Your Savings

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Business Insider's personal finance team independently reviews over 100 nationwide financial institutions to create a list of the best CDs currently offered by banks and credit unions across the U.S.

We report on standard CDs with term lengths as low as 3 months and as high as 5 years. We also report on no-penalty CDs, CDs with no minimum opening deposits, and other specialty CDs. In addition to nationwide CD rates, we give the best CD rate found at a local financial institution to give you an idea of the CD market as a whole.

The best CD rate we've found is 9.50% APY from California Coast Credit Union Celebration Certificate. However, the credit union has a small footprint for eligible applicants, and there are caps on the amount of interest you can earn.

The Fed cut its rates last month, which has influenced rate declines on various CD terms over the last few weeks. That being said, there's still time to lock in a strong CD rate even after the rate cut.

Featured Nationally Available Deposit Rates

Best CD Rates Today by Term

Credit unions offer many of the best current CD rates right now. But don't worry — anyone is eligible to join these credit unions and open CDs.

CDs aren't as accessible as other types of savings accounts, so keep in mind how long you can keep money in the account without potentially facing early withdrawal penalties. Also, make sure you know what steps you need to take once your CD term ends.

Compare Bank and Credit Union CD Rates

The best banks and credit unions for CDs offer a high rate on certificates of deposit with good perks and low minimum opening deposits.

Our top picks for CDs are protected by federal insurance. Bear in mind money is safe at a federally insured financial institution. When a financial institution is FDIC- or NCUA-insured, up to $250,000 per depositor, per account category is secure in a bank account.

If two or more banks offer the same rate, we choose the most well-rounded account as our overall top pick. We take into consideration factors like minimum opening deposit requirements, early withdrawal penalties, and the overall banking experience in addition to the interest rate.

Here are the best CD rates as picked by Business Insider editors in 2024.

California Coast Credit Union Celebration Certificate

California Coast Credit Union currently offers a limited-time 5-month Celebration Certificate offering a whopping 9.50% APY CD rate. It requires a low minimum deposit of $500.

However, the criteria you need to meet in order to open the certificate are steep. First of all, you can only put a maximum of $3,000 in the CD. Second of all, the money in the CD has to be new, which means it can't have previously been in a California Coast Credit Union account. You'll also need some sort of other account with California Coast Credit Union to get the high APY. You can have an active checking account (meaning it has one transaction a month), a new money market account with a minimum balance of $5,000, a new regular certificate with a minimum balance of $5,000, a new IRA certificate with a minimum balance of $5,000, or a new funded consumer loan that isn't either a credit card or a share-secured or certificate-secured loan.

You also need to be a member of California Coast Credit Union. Membership is limited to people who live or work in San Diego or Riverside counties, to people in select employee groups, and to people who live with a member.

Term options: California Coast Credit Union has terms ranging from 3 months to 5 years, as well as a 5-month celebration certificate, an 8-month liquid certificate, and an 18-month bump rate certificate.

Penalties: California Coast Credit Union certificates have the following early withdrawal penalties:

• 90 days interest for terms of 6 months or less
• 180 days interest for terms from more than 6 months to 24 months
• 365 days interest for terms of more than 24 months

Farmers Insurance Federal Credit Union No-Penalty Share Certificate

Farmers Insurance Federal Credit Union offers a strong rate on its 9-month no-penalty share certificate. It's also a credit union anyone can join by also joining the American Consumer Council for free. You can also join if you work for Farmers or if you're a family member of someone who's already part of Farmers Insurance Federal Credit Union.

Farmers Insurance puts limits on how many times you can withdraw money from your certificate. You can only withdraw money from your CD once per month, and you can't withdraw money during the first month. If you want a more flexible no-penalty CD, you might want to consider one of our other top picks.

Term options: Farmers Insurance Federal Credit Union offers one 9-month no-penalty share certificate.

Penalties: This is a no-penalty CD, so there are no early withdrawal penalties.

Dow Credit Union 3 Month Simple CD

Dow Credit Union offers the top 3-month CD rate along with TotalBank. The credit union is also a good option for opening an account with a low initial deposit — you'll only need a minimum of $500.

The easiest way to become a member of Dow Credit Union is to make a $10 donation to the Midland Area Community Foundation. The credit union also has other ways to join, such as being part of a Select Employer Group or having a family member who is a current credit union member.

Term options: Dow Credit Union offers Simple CDs ranging from 3 months to 60 months. 

Penalties: Here are the early withdrawal penalties for CDs at Dow Credit Union: 

• 45 days of interest for terms between 3 months and 5 months
• 90 days of interest for terms between 6 and 11 months
• 180 days of interest for terms between 12 months and 35 months
• 365 days of interest for terms between 36 months and 60 months

Newtek Bank 6 Month CD and Newtek Bank 1 Year CD

Newtek Bank has a variety of CDs with competitive interest rates that anyone in the U.S. can open. Its 6-month CD and its 1-year CD are its strongest traditional CDs.

Newtek Bank traditional CDs require a minimum opening deposit of $2,500, which is higher than other banks. If you want to open a CD with less money, you might want to choose another one of our top picks.

Term options: Terms range from 6 months to 5 years.

Penalties: The early withdrawal penalties for Newtek CDs are as follows:

• No fees for CDs with terms of 30 days or less
• 90 days of interest for CDs with terms more than 30 days and less than 1 year
• 180 days of interest for CDs with terms of 1 year or more

Newtek Bank Savings Review

EagleBank 18 Month CD

EagleBank offers the best 18-month CD rate at U.S. banks.

If you're unfamiliar with EagleBank, it's a local financial institution in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC. You can also open a high-yield savings account and online CDs ranging from 6 months to 18 months if you don't live near a branch.

You'll only be able to deposit a maximum of $500,000 into a CD. Another downside to banking with EagleBank is that its mobile banking app has lackluster ratings in both the Google Play and Apple stores.

Terms: EagleBank has online terms ranging from 6 months to 18 months. You can also open other terms by calling the bank or visiting a location in Virginia, Maryland, or Washington, DC.

Penalties: The following early withdrawal penalties may apply to online EagleBank CDs: 

• 3 months of interest for online EagleBank CDs ranging from 6 months to 18 months

First National Bank of America 2 Year CD

First National Bank of America currently offers the best rate for a 2-year CD. It also offers longer terms than what other banks usually offer, so First National Bank of America might be a good choice for you if that's a priority.

First National Bank of America has a minimum opening deposit of $1,000. This is pretty average for CDs, but if you want to open a CD with less money, you might want to consider some of our other options.

Term options: First National Bank of America offers CD term lengths ranging from 6 months to 10 years.

Penalties: The following early withdrawal penalties may apply to First National Bank of America:

• 90 days of interest for CD terms less than 1 year
• 180 days of interest for CD terms of 1 year
• 360 days of interest for CD terms of 2 years to 3 years
• 540 days of interest for CD terms of 4 years to 8 years
• 720 days of interest for CD terms of 9 years or more

First National Bank of America Review

Signature Federal Credit Union 3 Year Certificate and Signature Federal Credit Union 4 Year Certificate

Signature Federal Credit Union is another solid choice if you prioritize banking with a credit union. The Signature Federal Credit Union Certificate has a $500  minimum opening deposit. The credit union also notably offers the best 3-year and 4-year CD rates, although its 4-year CD rate is tied with rates from Securityplus Federal Credit Union and USALLIANCE Financial.

Credit unions require membership to open an account. The easiest way to become a member of Signature FCU, regardless of where you live in the U.S., is to enroll in the American Consumer Council. After you become a member, you'll just need to open a savings account.

Term options: Terms range from 3 months to 5 years.

Penalties: Signature Federal Credit Union charges standard penalties for early withdrawals of your principal balance, as follows:

• No early withdrawal penalties on terms up to 12 months
• 180 days of interest for terms of 12 months to 4 years
• 365 days of interest for a 5-year term

Signature Federal Credit Union Review

Synchrony 5 Year CD 

Synchrony CD rates are competitive for 5-year terms. You also might like Synchrony if you want to open a CD with a low initial deposit. You can open a CD with $0, which is much more lenient than the majority of financial institutions. 

You'll want to consider whether you have a preference on how you'll withdraw money from a CD. When you're ready to cash out your CD, you must call Synchrony. Some other banks will let you cash out your CD through online banking.

Term options: Synchrony CD terms range from 3 months to 5 years. Synchrony has uncommon terms like 15-month and 19-month CDs, so it's a good option if you're interested in CD variety. 

Penalties: Synchrony's early withdrawal penalty rules are pretty standard, as follows:

• 90 days interest penalty for a term of 12 months or less
• 180 days interest penalty for a term over 12 months but under 48 months
• 365 days interest for a term of 48 months or more

 Synchrony Bank Review

Compare CD Rates by Term

Below, you'll find our picks for the best CD rates right now. There isn't one particular CD that will work for everyone, but we combed through offerings at around a dozen national banks to find the strongest options available right now. If more than three CDs share the top rate, we put the three highest-rated CDs in our guide. We also ordered CDs from highest to lowest editorial rating if they offered the same rate so you know which ones are the most well-rounded options.

Best 3-Month CD Rates

Best 6-Month CD Rates

Best 1-Year CD Rates

Best 18-Month CD Rates

Best 2-Year CD Rates

Best 3-Year CD Rates

Best 4-Year CD Rates

Best 5-Year CD Rates

Best No-Penalty CD Rates

Best Rates for No Opening Deposit

Best Rates for Other CD Terms

Types of Certificates of Deposit

Locking your money into an account in exchange for a higher interest rate can be a big decision. Here's what you need to know about common CD terms.

No-Penalty CDs

Most CDs charge you a fee if you need to withdraw money from your account before the term ends. But with a no-penalty CD, you won't have to pay an early withdrawal penalty. The best no-penalty CDs will offer rates slightly higher than the best high-yield savings accounts and can offer a substantially improved interest rate over traditional brick-and-mortar savings accounts.

However, there may be other reasons for wanting to open a savings account versus a no-penalty CD. Carefully review both accounts and see which is a better fit for reaching your needs.

6-Month CDs

The best 6-month CDs are offering interest rates around 5%. Six-month CDs are best for those who are looking for elevated rates on their savings for short-term gains, but are uncomfortable having limited access to their cash in the long term.

These can be a good option for those who may just be getting started with saving, or who don't have a large emergency fund for unexpected expenses.

1-Year CDs

The best 1-year CDs also offer around 5%, and are a popular option for many investors.

A 1-year term can be an attractive option for someone building a CD ladder, or for someone who has a reasonable cash safety net but is still concerned about long-term expenses. Financial planners often recommend this CD strategy of laddering several terms so that you have additional flexibility while still being able to lock in higher rates.

2-Year CDs

The best 2-year CD rates will be slightly lower than 1-year and no-penalty CD rates. In exchange for a longer lock-in period, investors receive a long-term commitment for a specific rate. These are best used as part of a CD ladder strategy, or for those worried about a declining rate market in the foreseeable future.

3-Year CDs

The best 3-year CDs tend to have rates that are comparable to 2-year CDs. These are usually less popular for your average investor, but can be an important lever when diversifying investments and hedging against the risk of unfavorable rate markets in the long term.

5-Year CDs

The best 5-year CDs will offer lower rates than the other terms on our list, but are still popular options for investors. These CDs are best for those looking to lock in high rates for the long term. CDs are generally viewed as safe investment vehicles, and securing a favorable rate can yield considerable earnings in year three and beyond — even if rates fall elsewhere.

Jumbo CDs

A jumbo CD is a type of CD with a much higher minimum opening deposit than the average traditional CD. In exchange, jumbo CDs usually offers better rates than you would find with traditional CDs. If you have a lot of money to put in a CD, jumbo CDs might be a good choice for you.

Bump-Up CDs

Bump-up CDs are a type of CD that lets you raise your CD rate once during the term length if your financial institution's rates go up. These are also sometimes called bump-rate CDs or raise-your-rate CDs. Some banks and credit unions let you raise your rate more than once, so if that's something you're interested in, you should check with your financial institution before you open the CD.

Step-Up CDs

Step-up CDs are similar to bump-up CDs, in that their special features center around raising the interest rate you get on your CD. However, step-up CD rates are locked in when you open the CD; you'll know exactly when your rate will raise, and by how much, when you open the CD.

For example, an 18-month step-up CD might start at 1% APY, or annual percentage yield, raise to 1.5% APY after 6 months, and raise to 2% APY after a year. These rate raises aren't dependent on market fluctuations like bump-up CDs are.

IRA CDs

IRA CDs are a type of retirement account. They work just like traditional CDs, but they have different rules when it comes to the taxes you pay and the way you withdraw money. IRA CDs can be traditional IRAs, which defer the taxes you pay on your money until you're ready to withdraw it, or Roth IRAs, which you pay taxes on up-front but are otherwise tax-exempt if you withdraw your money when you're retirement age.

You'll have to pay early withdrawal fees on any money you withdraw from IRA CDs before their term lengths are up. But depending on how old you are and what type of IRA it is, you might have to also pay taxes and penalties on what you withdraw. If you have a non-IRA CD, you'll need to pay taxes on the interest your CDs make each year. As long as you aren't withdrawing money from your early, you won't have to pay taxes yearly on your IRA CDs.

What Makes a CD the 'Best'?

Highest Interest Rates

When opening a CD, one of the most important things to consider is the interest rate. CD rates are impacted by the Federal Reserve's decisions. As a result of the Fed's latest rate cut, CD rates have been declining. There are still a few CDs offering 5% interest.

Keep in mind it's also likely that CD rates will drop in the future. Notably, there's less room for long-term CD rates when rates decline since accounts offer around 4% APY, while short-term CDs are still paying around 5% APY.

Favorable Terms

While the interest rate is important, you'll also want to make sure other aspects of the CD fit your needs, too. Consider whether you want a short-term CD vs. a long-term CD and act accordingly; you don't want to end up hit by early withdrawal penalties because you took out a CD with a too-long term length, and you don't want to miss out on savings because you took out a short-term CD and interest rates dropped.

You'll also want to consider types of CDs, too. If you're interested in the best CD rates for seniors, for example, you might want to look for CDs that give better interest rates for senior citizens. And if you're interested in planning for retirement, you might want to consider IRA CDs over traditional CDs.

Safety and Insurance

Make sure that the bank or credit union is FDIC- or NCUA-insured before putting money in a financial institution. FDIC insurance keeps your money safe in banks up to $250,000 per person, per account type. NCUA insurance works similarly, but is only for credit unions.

Factors to Consider Beyond Just the Rate

Minimum Deposit Requirements

If you have a limited amount of money to put in a CD, you'll want to check what the minimum opening deposit is for the CD. A minimum opening deposit of $1,000 is fairly standard, but you can find CDs that permit a deposit of $0 upfront. If you're looking to open a much larger CD, jumbo CDs usually have minimum opening deposits that are far higher than those for standard CDs. 

If you're not certain how much money to deposit into a CD, think about what you're saving money for and create a savings goal that can help make this idea more tangible. Setting up a timeline can also help you determine how much you'll need to deposit upfront to reach your end goal. 

Early Withdrawal Penalties

If you aren't sure whether you can keep money in a CD for its entire term length, you'll want to check what early withdrawal penalties your CD charges. This generally takes the form of deducting a certain amount of interest from your account, such as 90 days' interest for a 6-month CD. A compound interest calculator can help you figure out exactly how much this is for your CD.

If you want to be able to withdraw money without incurring these penalties, you'll probably want to go for a no-penalty CD. No-penalty CDs let you withdraw your money without penalty in exchange for generally slightly lower interest rates.

Account Fees

Some bank accounts come with monthly service fees, which will automatically deduct a small fee from your account each month. Luckily, you generally don't have to worry about these for CDs; they're more commonly found on checking accounts, money market accounts, and traditional savings accounts. However, you should always check before opening a CD to make sure there aren't any fees associated with the account.

Bank/Credit Union Reputation

It's important to make sure the financial institution you open a CD with is trustworthy and safe. Before opening a CD with a bank or credit union, check their BBB page, see if they've been involved in any recent lawsuits, and research whether they've had any recent data breaches.

You might also want to consider banking with an eco-friendly bank, a minority depository institution, or a community development financial institution. These banks use the money you put in your accounts to help the environment and underserved populations.

CD Auto-Renewal

Generally, your CDs will auto-renew at the end of the term length, giving you a short window when the original CD closes to choose not to renew. There are a few things to look out for with CD auto-renewal. If interest rates have changed since you opened the original CD, your new CD with have the updated interest rate. If interest rates have fallen, you'll probably want to close out your CD instead of auto-renewing. Additionally, many promotional CDs with auto-renew into one of the bank's standard CDs with much worse interest rates. Make sure you understand what your CD will renew into at the end of the term length so you can take appropriate action.

CDs vs. Traditional Savings Accounts

In general, you'll earn a much higher rate with a CD compared to traditional, brick-and-mortar savings accounts; average CD rates far outpace average savings account interest rates. You'll also be locking in your rate; CDs come with a fixed interest rate, while savings accounts have variable interest that can change at any time. That being said, savings accounts give you much easier access to your money than CDs, and high-yield savings accounts from online financial institutions also offer great interest rates.

Secure the Best CD for Your Financial Future

When looking for where to find the best CD rates, you'll want to consider several factors, including interest rate, minimum opening deposit, early withdrawal penalties, and bank safety. You'll also want to factor what banks and credit unions are accessible to you. If you know you don't enjoy online banking, you'll probably want to choose a brick-and-mortar bank or local credit union, even if their rates aren't as good as the ones in this article.

Best CD Laddering Strategies

Sometimes, opening just one CD isn't the best option for your savings. A CD ladder strategy can give you more flexibility and liquidity than a regular CD while still letting you lock in a great rate for a significant amount of time.

To open a CD ladder, you just open multiple CDs with different term lengths at once. For example, if you have $120,000 you want to put in a CD, instead of putting all of that money into just one CD, you spread it across several. For example, you might open a 1-year, 2-year, and 3-year CD, putting $40,000 in each. That way, you'll have some of your money back within a year in case of an emergency, but you'll be earning a great interest rate for three years. You don't need to open these CDs at the same bank, which means you'll have more flexibility to choose CDs with the best rates or features.

CD ladders can help mitigate the risk that you'll need to withdraw your funds before the CD's term length is up. This makes it a low-risk way to diversify your portfolio. That being said, CDs won't earn you as much money on average as investments do. You'll get a guaranteed growth rate with CDs, but you'll get a higher rate overall, albeit with some amount of risk, with a brokerage account or other investment strategy.

Why You Should Trust Us: Experts' Advice on Choosing the Best CD

We consulted banking and financial planning experts to inform these picks and provide their advice on finding the best CDs to use for your money. You can read their insights at the bottom of this post.

BI

Here's what they had to say about CDs. (Some text may be lightly edited for clarity.)

What makes a CD good or not good?

Mykail James, MBA, certified financial education instructor, BoujieBudgets.com:

"You always want to look at how much money you need to start up. And then if you can continuously add money in. Also, check not just what the interest rate is, but how often they pay out interest, whether it's monthly or quarterly."

How should someone choose a CD term length?

Roger Ma, CFP® professional and author of "Work Your Money, Not Your Life":

"I would think about when you need the money and then compare that with what the prevailing CD rates are, and then what makes sense from a financial perspective, but also from your own personal timing perspective."

Mykail James, CFEI:

"I believe in having a plan for whatever the funds are. If it's supposed to be a house fund, and you want to wait for another two years to buy a house, that's what you should be thinking of when you want to have this money."

How should someone decide whether to put their money in a high-yield savings account, money market account, or CD?

Tania Brown, CFP® professional and vice president of coaching strategy at OfColor:

"So I guess we'll start off with how much money you want to put in and the level of transactions you want to have. If you want to have any transactions, that automatically takes out CDs. Then you're stuck between the high-yield savings and the money market account."

Sophia Acevedo, banking editor, Business Insider:

"Generally, I think a high-yield savings account or money market account could be good options for an emergency fund or short-term savings goals. A high-yield savings account offers a higher interest rate than traditional savings accounts at brick-and-mortar banks.

"Meanwhile, money market accounts might be worth considering if you want more account accessibility — several offer paper checks, ATM cards, or debit cards. CDs could be worthwhile if you don't need access to some of your money, since they have a fixed interest rate for a specific term."

Methodology: How We Chose the Best CDs

At Business Insider, we aim to help you make smart decisions with your money. We thoroughly research banking products with the goal of providing helpful content about personal finance.

Business Insider's personal finance team is editorially independent, which means our business team does not decide how we cover products and what we write about. You can read our editorial standards page to learn more about how we review and choose products in greater detail. 

In order to choose the best CDs, we reviewed over 100 financial institutions. All banks included on our list are FDIC-insured, while credit union CDs offer insurance through NCUA. 

We've selected the top CD offerings from banks and credit unions using our bank account methodology. We rate bank products on a scale from zero to five stars, with one star being the lowest rating and five star being the highest rating possible.

For CDs, we consider what terms are offered, along with the accounts' minimum opening deposit requirements, interest rates, and early withdrawal penalties. We also consider the financial institution's customer service options, ethics, and mobile app ratings. We score each of these features on a scale of zero to five, then average these scores together to get an account's final rating.

If two banks offered the same APY on a CD product, we considered factors like minimum deposit requirements and early withdrawal penalties. 

Best CD FAQs

Sophia Acevedo

Banking Editor

Sophia Acevedo is a banking editor at Business Insider. She has spent three years as a personal finance journalist and is an expert across numerous banking topics. ExperienceSophia leads Personal Finance Insider's banking coverage, including reviews, guides, reference articles, and news. She edits and updates articles about banks, checking and savings accounts, CD rates, budgeting, and general saving. Sophia was also a part of Business Insider's 2024 series "My Financial Life," which focused on telling stories that could help people live and spend better.Before joining Business Insider, Sophia worked as a journalist at her college newspaper and was a freelance writer. She has spent seven years writing and editing as a journalist.Sophia was nominated for an Axel Springer Award for Change in 2023 for her coverage of ABLE Accounts, tax-free savings accounts for people with disabilities. She was also a winner of a 2018 California Journalism Awards Campus Contest for her photography.She loves helping people find the best solutions for their unique needs and hopes that more people will find the tools to solve their financial problems. She’s inspired by stories of everyday people adapting to their financial circumstances and overcoming their fears around money.ExpertiseSophia's expertise includes:

• Bank accounts
• Savings and CD rate trends
• Budgeting
• Saving
• How banks operate

EducationSophia graduated from California State University Fullerton with a degree in journalism and a minor in political science.Sophia is a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.She is an avid reader across a variety of genres, and she started running in 2021. She ran in the 2024 Los Angeles Marathon.

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Kit Pulliam

Banking reporter

Kit Pulliam (they/them) is a banking expert who specializes in certificates of deposit, savings accounts, and checking accounts. They’ve been reporting, editing, and fact-checking personal finance stories for more than four years. ExperienceIn college, Kit worked as an undergraduate research assistant in a psychology lab. While there, they found that they were passionate about writing and helping others write about topics that matter.Before Business Insider, Kit was an editorial specialist for Tax Analysts, diving into the tax code to help readers get the best information about a confusing but necessary subject.They find banking similar to taxes in that way: There are some things everyone needs to know because just about everyone needs to work with a bank — and you don’t want to end up with an account that doesn’t serve your needs.As interest rates change, they enjoy the fast pace of reviewing rates for products like CDs and high-yield savings, which can change daily and have a direct impact on readers’ money.Their work has been featured in Business Insider and MSN. They were part of the My Financial Life series with Business Insider.ExpertiseTheir expertise includes:

• Certificates of deposit
• Savings accounts
• Checking accounts
• CD rates
• Bank reviews

EducationKit is an alumnus of Vanderbilt University, where they studied English and psychology and received the Jum C. Nunnally Honors Research Award for their senior thesis.Outside personal finance, Kit enjoys reading, film, video games, and cross stitching. They are based in the DC area.

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Evelyn He

Compliance and Operations Associate

Evelyn He is a Compliance and Operations Associate on the Personal Finance team to ensure content accuracy and editorial independence so readers get up-to-date and objective financial advice.The compliance team's mission is to provide readers with fact-checked and current stories so they can make informed financial decisions. The team also works to minimize risk for partners by ensuring language is clear, precise, and fully compliant with regulatory and partner marketing guidelines that align with the editorial team.

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