Best Bank CD Rates for May 2024

Frequently Asked Questions

• What Is a Bank CD?

  A certificate of deposit account is simply another deposit product available at banks, alongside savings, money market, and checking accounts. But instead of depositing money that you can withdraw from or add to whenever you want, you can generally only make a single initial deposit to a CD. When you open one, you're making an agreement to keep your funds in the account without withdrawals for an established period of time, known as the CD term.

  The trade-off to committing your funds is that you are able to lock in your interest rate. While a savings account rate can change whenever the bank sees fit, opening a CD involves the bank making a written promise on the interest rate it’ll pay you for the duration of the term.

  CDs are typically offered in standard maturity terms from 1 month to 10 years, with the most common terms ranging from 6 months to 5 years. But note that a bank can offer a CD in any term it wants. In fact, sometimes the top national rate is for an odd-term certificate—say, 5 months or 19 months—that is being offered as a limited-time promotion.

  
  

• How Much Do CDs Pay?

  CDs generally pay more than more-liquid savings and money market accounts. That is, in exchange for your commitment to keep the funds in place, the bank will pay you more than it pays savings account holders.

  Banks also typically pay a higher rate for longer commitments, because they mean the bank can count on that money being in place for a longer period of time. So typically, 5-year CDs pay a higher rate than 1-year CDs.

  A higher initial deposit can also sometimes earn a more lucrative return, such as with jumbo CDs requiring $50,000, $100,000, or even $250,000. But many banks don’t offer jumbo tiers, and even when they do, the incremental rate improvement is often fairly small.

  The FDIC calculates a weekly national average for various CD terms across all 4,000-plus FDIC banks. Though the average represents a fairly low yield, it’s fortunately easy to earn many times that by simply doing your homework to find the best current rates.

  
  

• Are Online Bank CDs Safe?

  Traditional banks have been offering CDs for decades. But the banking environment has changed with the advent of the internet. Online banks now pepper the banking landscape, as do internet-only divisions of brick-and-mortar institutions.

  The good news for CD shoppers is that the type of bank offering the CD is of little importance, so long as you verify that it’s FDIC-insured. That’s because internet banks are approved, regulated, and insured in just the same way that physical banks are. So whether you deposit $25,000 in a CD at a local branch of a bank in your community, or in a bank that operates only online with no branches at all, your money is equally protected.

  This is especially fortunate when you learn that online banks are often among the top-paying CD banks. Given their lack of physical branches, internet banks operate with lower overhead and are therefore generally able to pay higher rates to their customers.

  
  

• What If I Need My Money Early?

  You can withdraw your money early, but it will cost you. While it’s true that locking your funds into a CD is the reason you can earn a higher return than with other savings accounts, it’s not impossible to withdraw your money early should you need to. Of course, doing so carries financial consequences, but the option is available if the need arises.

  Every bank is required to have an established early withdrawal penalty policy, and as a potential CD depositor, you should review the policy before you commit to a CD. The most common way banks penalize you is by deducting a certain number of months of interest payments from your balance at the time of early withdrawal. Often, the longer the CD term the more months' worth of interest you'll lose.

  Each bank can set its own policy, and the penalties vary widely. Though some are mild, others are quite onerous, with some policies even potentially reducing your principal. For this reason, it’s critically important to investigate the early withdrawal penalty policy for any bank CD you’re considering, and when comparing two otherwise similar certificates, choose the one with the milder penalty.

  
  

• Why Do Shorter CDs Sometimes Pay More Than Longer Ones?

  The longer you’ve agreed to hold your CD funds on deposit without touching them, the more cost-effective it is for the bank. That’s why, in theory, banks are willing to pay you more for longer commitments than short ones.

  However, many other factors come into play regarding a particular bank’s deposit strategy. The bank must take into account several things: what it expects to happen to national rates in coming months and years, how much in deposit assets it needs to fund the lending side of its business, and how much in certificate balances it already has on hand for different maturities.

  If rates are expected to decline in the future, banks may again offer a better APY on shorter terms, and lower yields on long CDs. That's because they don't want to be stuck paying a higher rate for a lengthy period if the current interest rates are much shorter.

• Why Don't I See My Bank in Your List?

  You typically won't see big names like Chase, Bank of America, or Wells Fargo in our list of the best high-yield savings accounts. While we do monitor their rates, they usually aren't high enough to make our ranking. That's because large banks typically don't need to attract deposits in the way that smaller institutions do, so their rates tend to be lower. You will sometimes see one of the top 25 U.S. banks in our rankings, such as Citi, BMO, or Ally Bank, as these institutions do occasionally offer competitive high-yield rates.

  Some banks you may be looking for that we track, but that don't make our list, are Marcus by Goldman Sachs, SoFi, Synchrony Bank, CIBC Bank USA, LendingClub, Bread Savings, FNBO Direct, and Citizens Access.

  Still other institutions may not appear in our ranking because they don't meet our qualification criteria, such as by not being available to customers in at least 40 states, significantly limiting the balance on which you can earn the high-yield APY, or not offering what qualifies as a high yield rate. These include U.S. Bank, PNC, Varo, American Airlines Federal Credit Union, Delta Community Credit Union, Boeing Employees' Credit Union, Bethpage Federal Credit Union, and Western Alliance Bank.

  
  

• Financial Institutions We Review

  We researched and reviewed more than 250 banks, credit unions, and financial institutions to find the best CD rates you see above on this list. While we write individual reviews for most, we do not always write reviews for those we would not recommend. Below are the banks, credit unions, and financial institutions we researched along with links to individual company reviews to help you learn more before making a decision:
  

  1st Source Bank, 5star Bank, ableBanking, Abound Credit Union, Achieva Credit Union, Affinity Federal Credit Union, Affinity Plus Federal Credit Union, Air Force Federal Credit Union, Alabama Credit Union, Allegacy Federal Credit Union, Alliant Credit Union, Ally Bank, Amerant Bank, American 1 Credit Union, American Express, American Heritage Credit Union, Andrews Federal Credit Union, Apple Federal Credit Union, Banco do Brasil Americas, Banesco USA, Bank of Baroda, Bank5 Connect, Bank7, Texas Capital Bank, bankESB (Easthampton Savings Bank), BankUnitedDirect, Barclays, BBVA Bank, Bellco Credit Union, Blue Federal Credit Union, BMO, BMO Alto, BrioDirect, Cadets Federal Credit Union, California Coast Credit Union, Capital One, Capitol Federal Savings Bank, CD Bank, CFG Bank, Chase Bank, Chevron Federal Credit Union, CIBC (Agility Banking), CIT Bank, Citibank, Citizens Access, Citizens Trust Bank, Colorado Federal Savings Bank, Bread Savings, Communitywide Federal Credit Union, ConnectOne Bank, Connexus Credit Union, Consumers Credit Union, Corporate America Federal Credit Union (CAFCU), Credit Union of Denver, Credit Union of the Rockies, Digital, Federal Credit Union, Discover Bank, DollarSavingsDirect, Dover Federal Credit Union, Dow Credit Union, Evergreen Bank Group, RocklandTrust Bank, Elements Financial, EmigrantDirect.com, Liberty Federal Credit Union, Fidelity Investments, Financial Partners Credit Union, Financial Resources Federal Credit Union, First Financial Credit Union, First Financial Northwest Bank, First Internet Bank, First National Bank of America, First Technology Federal Credit Union, Fort Bragg Federal Credit Union, Garden Savings Federal Credit Union, Georgia Banking Company, Georgia's Own Credit Union, GreenState Credit Union, Greenwood Credit Union, Grow Financial Federal Credit Union, GTE Financial, Gulf Coast Bank & Trust Company, Hanscom Federal Credit Union, Heritage Bank, Hiway Federal Credit Union, Home Loan Investment Bank, Home Savings Bank, Hope Credit Union, HSBC Direct, Hughes Federal Credit Union, Hyperion Bank, Ideal Credit Union, iGObanking, Interior Federal Credit Union, Justice Federal Credit Union, Kinecta Federal Credit Union, KS State Bank, La Capitol Federal Credit Union, Lafayette Federal Credit Union, Lake Michigan Credit Union, Langley Federal Credit Union, Latino Community Credit Union, Limelight Bank, Live Oak Bank, Luther Burbank Savings, MYSB Direct, MAC Federal Credit Union, Main Street Bank, MainStreet Bank, MapleMark Bank, Marcus by Goldman Sachs, Market USA Federal Credit Union, Matadors Community Credit Union, MECU Credit Union, Merrick Bank, Michigan State University Federal Credit Union, Mills42 Federal Credit Union, Mountain America Credit Union, MTC Federal Credit Union, MutualOne Bank, My Banking Direct, My eBanc, My Savings Direct, NASA Federal Credit Union, Nationwide by Axos Bank, Navy Federal Credit Union, nbkc, NexBank, North Country Savings Bank, Northern Bank Direct, Northfield Bank, Northpointe Bank, Nuvision Federal Credit Union, Oklahoma Central Credit Union, One American Bank, OneUnited Bank, Pacific National Bank, Paramount Bank, PARDA Federal Credit Union, Partner Colorado Credit Union, Patelco Credit Union, Pen Air Federal Credit Union, PenFed Credit Union, People's Credit Union, First Service Credit Union, Pinnacle Federal Credit Union, Popular Direct, Premier America Credit Union, Presidential Bank, FSB, Prime Alliance Bank, PSECU (Pennsylvania State Employees Credit Union), Quontic Bank, Quorum Federal Credit Union, Rising Bank, Merrimack Valley Credit Union, Salal Credit Union, Sallie Mae Bank, Santa Clara County Federal Credit Union, Signature Federal Credit Union, Spectrum Credit Union, SRP Federal Credit Union, State Bank of India Chicago, State Bank of India New York, State Bank of Texas, State Department Federal Credit Union, Summit Credit Union, Sun East Federal Credit Union, Superior Choice Credit Union, Synchrony Bank, TAB Bank, Teachers Federal Credit Union, Technology Credit Union, The Federal Savings Bank, Third Federal Savings & Loan, EverBank, TotalDirectBank, Transportation Federal Credit Union, TruStone Financial Credit Union, UNIFY Financial Credit Union, Expedition Credit Union, United States Senate Federal Credit Union, United Texas Bank, University Federal Credit Union, US Bank, USAlliance Financial, USPS Federal Credit Union, Velocity Credit Union, VeraBank, Vio Bank, Virtual Bank, WebBank, Webster Bank, Wells Fargo, Western Vista Credit Union, Wings Financial Credit Union, XCEL Federal Credit Union, BankPurely, Umbrella Bank, giantbank.com, CapEd Credit Union, Zeal Credit Union, Finworth, Coastal1 Credit Union, Service Credit Union, National Cooperative Bank, Premier Members Credit Union, Bank of America, Flagstar Bank, 1st MidAmerica Credit Union, INOVA Federal Credit Union, Genisys Credit Union, Ivy Bank, Heartland Credit Union, Luana Savings Bank, Spectra Credit Union, Workers Credit Union, Credit Human, EFCU Financial, Poppy Bank, Credit One Bank, Vibrant Credit Union, CFBank, Department of Commerce Federal Credit Union, Seattle Bank, Crescent Bank, Pima Federal Credit Union, Cross River Bank, USAA, Great River Federal Credit Union, Brilliant Bank, Merchants Bank of Indiana, LendingClub, Chartway Credit Union, First Central Savings Bank, AgFed Credit Union, North American Savings Bank, Pelican State Credit Union, First Community Credit Union, Bask Bank, Skyla Credit Union, SkyOne Federal Credit Union, 3Rivers Federal Credit Union, Utah First Credit Union, Pasadena Federal Credit Union, Magnifi Financial, AloStar, Primis Bank, Farmers Insurance Federal Credit Union, Tampa Bay Federal Credit Union, Veridian Credit Union, Republic Bank, Salem Five Direct, All In Credit Union, Bethpage Federal Credit Union, Self-Help Federal Credit Union, Forbright Bank, Jovia Financial Credit Union, Sun Canyon Bank, Fortera Credit Union, Partners 1st Federal Credit Union, SouthEast Bank, American Bank, Newtek Bank, CBC Federal Credit Union, Vanguard, All America Bank, Amalgamated Bank, Citizens State Bank, AmBoy Direct, Republic Bank of Chicago, Oklahoma Community Credit Union, BluPeak Credit Union, Valley Direct, Bayer Heritage Federal Credit Union, First Harvest Credit Union, Orion Federal Credit Union, Wellby Financial, FedChoice Federal Credit Union, CoVantage Credit Union, Choice First Bank, Sandia Area Federal Credit Union, OMB Bank, Minnequa Works Credit Union, Securityplus Federal Credit Union, Bank of South Texas, T Bank