Average CD Rates: Current Trends and Finding Top Offers (2024)

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• According to the FDIC, the average CD pays 0.23% to 1.85% APY, depending on the term length.
• However, many financial institutions pay higher CD rates than the national average.
• Online banks and credit unions often have competitive CD rates on a variety of terms.

A CD can be a great savings option if you're looking to lock money away for a few months or years. While these fixed-interest accounts have an early withdrawal penalty to consider, they often provide higher interest rates than the average savings or money market account.

To help you understand what current average CD rates look like, we've gathered information on national CD rates, as well as rates from popular financial institutions. The best CDs can offer more than 15 times the national average rate.

National average rates for CDs

Certificates of deposit (CDs) are a type of savings account that offer a fixed interest rate, which means your rate will stay the same as long as you leave your money untouched until the maturity date.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, a government agency that oversees banks, keeps track of average interest rates paid on CDs. This data is updated monthly and includes both banks and credit unions.

Here's the average interest rate for a CD with a minimum deposit of $10,000, according to data from the FDIC:

Factors impacting average CD rates

Economic conditions

Bank interest rates, in general, can fluctuate. This means that once a CD term ends, the rate offered for renewing the account may not be the same. Why? Because CD rates are influenced by what the Federal Reserve does.

"When the Fed comes out with an announcement and says if we're going to be raising interest rates, then eventually what you see across all different segments of the market is a rate increase," explains Scott Stanley, a CFP professional and the founder of Pharos Wealth.

Between March 2022 and July 2023, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates 11 times to help combat inflation. Stanley notes that average CD rates have grown more attractive over the last year and that short-term CDs are actually more competitive than long-term CD rates. This is partly because banks expect the Fed to cut rates in the future and they don't want to be stuck paying older (higher) rates to long-term CD customers.

CD terms

CDs come in a variety of terms, often ranging from a few months to several years. The term length is hugely influential when it comes to the APY offered.

Broadly speaking, when financial institutions expect rates to go down in the future, they will offer more competitive rates on CDs that mature within a year or less. When institutions expect the opposite—that rates will increase in the future—they may offer more competitive rates on long-term CDs to lock customers into a lower rate.

Bank competition

Financial institutions are continually competing for customers. While online banks and credit unions typically have lower overhead costs, allowing them to pass more savings on to customers and members, you may still find good deals at traditional banks that offer promotions or relationship rates to loyal customers.

Sometimes, institutions will offer higher rates on larger balances, known as jumbo CDs, to draw in wealthy clientele.

Where to find the best average CD rates

When you're searching for rates, Patrina Dixon, a financial expert and owner of P. Dixon Consulting, LLC, says it's best to research a variety of banks and compare different options.

Dixon also points out that federal insurance should be a requirement. Up to $250,000 per depositor, per category, is safe in a CD at an FDIC-insured bank or NCUA-insured credit union.

"Make sure that your money is FDIC-insured. If you're depositing $1,000 and the institution is FDIC-insured, that dollar amount is within the amount of money that the government will insure. You get your money should anything happen to the bank," says Dixon.

CD interest rates at national banks

When viewing CD rates at national banks, make sure you know the difference between standard rates and relationship rates.

Relationship rates are generally offered to customers who have a specific checking account. If you don't qualify for a relationship rate, you'll earn the standard CD rate.

At some banks, the distinction between standard rates and relationship rates is significant. For example, at Chase, the standard CD rate is 0.01% APY on all terms. However, Chase CD relationship rates can vary from 0.02% to 4.75% APY.

Several brick-and-mortar banks also have promotional CDs with higher interest rates than their standard ones. For example, Wells Fargo has standard CDs that pay 1.50% to 4.51% APY and CD specials that pay 4.25% to 5.01% (varies by location) APY.

Here are the CD rates for standard and promotional CDs at some of the biggest national banks:

CD interest rates at online banks

Online banks are more straightforward when it comes to CDs. These typically offer competitive CD rates on a variety of terms, and there aren't relationship rates.

Here are the interest rates for CDs at some of the biggest online banks:

CD interest rates at credit unions

Credit unions also typically pay high interest rates on a variety of CDs, which they often call share certificates.

One thing to note that is common at credit unions is that the interest rate may vary depending on how much money you deposit. For example, at Alliant Credit Union, you could earn a higher interest rate on select CDs with a $75,000 minimum opening deposit.

Here are the CD rates for standard CDs at some of the biggest credit unions:

Average CD rate FAQs