After holding it for three weeks or more at 5.75%, today’s top CD price nationwide rose to a new record high of 5.90% APY. But there is more. If you’ve been looking to lock in an excellent rate for as long as possible, you’ll be happy to hear that the new Day Commander is available for a full two-year term. The previous highest rate on the two-year CD was just 5.30% APY.
Market leading APY of 5.90% is available nationally from Pelican State Credit Union for a period of 24 months. The previous leading rate of 5.75% APY was offered on a variety of CDs ranging from 9 months to 15 months.
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- New CD takes the overall crown today in our daily ranking of Best CD Prices, offering 5.90% APY over two years. For weeks, the leading rate nationwide has been 5.75% APY and much shorter periods.
- The number of “Benchmark Leader” CDs, which pay a minimum of 5.50% APY, jumped with three new options today, increasing the count to 25 from 22.
- The highest price you can earn on 1-year CDs and 2-year CDs both went up today, while the leading price fell in the six-month period.
- The longest you can earn at least 5.00% remains three years, at a rate of 5.13% APY, or four years at a rate of 5.12% APY if you have a large deposit.
- The Fed’s next rate-setting meeting will not last more than five weeks, and it is not certain whether the central bank will raise interest rates higher this year, or choose to keep them steady.
To help you earn as much as possible, here are the best CD prices available from our partners, followed by more information about the most profitable CDs available to US customers everywhere.
Four new certificates entered the market today paying one of our “Benchmark Leader” rates of 5.50% APY or better, while another certificate has been retired – yesterday’s Total Rate Leader which paid 5.75% in 9 months. But you can still earn 5.75% APY on a one-year certificate with one of today’s new contenders.
If you want to lock in one of today’s standard rates for more than two years, you have two long-term options that offer a minimum of 5.00%. You can get 5.13% APY with the leader in our ranking of the best 3-year CDs, or if you have a minimum of $100,000 to deposit in a mega CD, you can extend that to four years at a similar rate of 5.12% APY.
CD Shopper Tip
If you think you need to hold on to a banking CD because membership in a credit union seems like a big deal, think again. The credit unions that we include in our rankings are open to anyone nationwide and easy to join. Although some require a donation to an affiliated nonprofit organization, the amount required is generally modest, and some require no donation or cost at all. The process for opening an account with a credit union is also the same as opening an account with a new bank.
Be careful
Although it is suggested that a larger deposit entitles you to a higher payout, this is not always the case for hefty certificate rates, which often pay less than standard CDs. Although today’s best jumbo deals, which typically require a deposit of $100,000 or more, beat standard best rates in four terms on CDs, you can do just as well or better in the other four terms with a standard CD. So always make sure to shop around each certificate type before making a final decision.
Will CD prices go up this year?
CD rates are already at record highs, but they could be even higher. That’s because the Fed announced another 0.25% increase in the federal funds rate on July 26th, and it will remain at that level until at least September 20th. Credit unions are willing to pay customers for their deposits.
Since March 2022, the Fed has been aggressively battling decades-high inflation, with 11 hikes to the federal funds rate over the past 12 meetings. With the latest bump, the cumulative increase totaled 5.25% and took the federal funds rate to its highest level since 2001. That created excellent conditions for CD shoppers, as well as for anyone with cash in a high-yield savings account or in the money market.
The Fed’s official announcement in July did not provide any strong indications as to whether it would raise the benchmark interest rate higher this year. The written statement simply reiterated the Fed’s commitment to lower inflation to its target of 2%.
In his post-announcement press conference, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell noted that the rate-setting committee had not yet made any decisions about raising rates again in 2023, or if so, what the timing or speed of any increases would follow. He specifically mentioned that both a hike and a halt were potential at the next meeting, scheduled for September 19-20.
Three Fed governors have made public statements over the past two weeks about their expectations on whether the committee will raise or hold interest rates in the future. While two emphasized the need to monitor upcoming data and decide on a meeting cycle by session – including the possibility of implementing another hike – the third indicated that unless something unexpected appears in the data, he expects prices to be held without further increases.
Since their remarks, new monthly inflation data has been released, with last week’s report showing that core inflation is cooling down. While the Fed will also be looking for other economic indicators between now and its next meeting, this latest inflation news could lead them to pause interest rates, rather than raise them again, in September.
As we can see from today’s action, the rally in July is certainly likely to push CD rates higher. Then again, the impact is likely already behind us, given that the Fed’s move was almost certain weeks in advance, and many banks and credit unions have already boosted their rates. In any case, when it finally looks like the Fed is ready to halt its rate hike campaign altogether, that will indicate that CD prices have probably capped.
Note that the “higher rates” listed here are the highest rates available nationwide that Investopedia has determined in its daily rate search on hundreds of banks and credit unions. This is very different from the national average, which includes all banks that offer a CD with that term, including many of the larger ones that pay minuscule interest. Thus, the national rates are always very low, while the higher rates that you can find out by shopping around are often five, 10 or even 15 times higher.
Disclosure of the price collection methodology
Every business day, Investopedia tracks price data for more than 200 banks and credit unions that offer CDs to customers across the country and determines daily ratings for the highest-paying certificates in each key term. To qualify for our listings, an organization must be federally insured (FDIC for banks, NCUA for credit unions), and the minimum initial CD deposit must not exceed $25,000.
Banks must be available in at least 40 states. And although some credit unions require you to make a donation to a specific charity or association to become a member if you don’t meet other eligibility criteria (for example, you don’t live in a certain area or work in a certain type of job), we exclude credit unions whose donation requirements are $40 or more. For more information on how to choose the best rates, read our full methodology.