For the first time in more than six weeks, a new CD rate leader has stepped up and nabbed the nationwide crown. Not only that, but you can now lock up the top rate in the country for a significantly longer term.
The new leader is an 18-month certificate paying 5.70% APY. Since June 1, the top nationally available rate you could earn in any term had been 5.65% APY, but you could only secure that for a duration of 7 or 9 months.
Today’s new leader also increases the number of options in our daily ranking of the best CDs that pay at least 5.35% APY to 25, up from 24 yesterday. In addition, the top rate on a 2-year CD inched up from 5.27% to 5.30% APY today.
If your goal is to extend one of today’s record CD rates much further into the future, the longest duration paying at least 5.00% APY is a 3-year certificate offering 5.13% APY. But if you have a jumbo-sized deposit of at least $100,000, you can stretch that to four years at 5.12% APY.
Key Takeaways
- The highest nationally available CD rate rose to 5.70% today, available for an 18-month term.
- The leading 2-year rate edged up from 5.27% APY to 5.30% APY.
- You can now earn 5.35% APY or better with 25 options in our daily ranking.
- The longest term paying at least 5.00% APY remains 3 years for a rate of 5.13% APY, or 4 years at 5.12% APY if you can deposit at least $100,000.
- The Federal Reserve is overwhelmingly expected to nudge the federal funds rate slightly higher next week. That could cause some CD rates to edge a bit higher, though many institutions have already raised rates in anticipation of the almost-certain increase.
| CD Terms | Yesterday’s Top National Rate | Today’s Top National Rate | Day’s Change (percentage points) |
| 3 months | 5.16% APY | 5.16% APY | No change |
| 6 months | 5.65% APY | 5.65% APY | No change |
| 1 year | 5.50% APY | 5.50% APY | No change |
| 18 months | 5.50% APY | 5.70% APY | + 0.20 |
| 2 years | 5.27% APY | 5.30% APY | + 0.03 |
| 3 years | 5.13% APY | 5.13% APY | No change |
| 4 years | 4.85% APY | 4.85% APY | No change |
| 5 years | 4.77% APY | 4.77% APY | No change |
Tip
Despite the suggestion that a larger deposit entitles you to a higher return, that’s not always the case for jumbo certificate rates, which often pay less than standard CDs. Today’s best jumbo offers, which typically require a deposit of $100,000 or more, do beat the best standard rates in five CD terms, but you can do better with standard CDs in the other three terms. So remember to shop every CD type before making a final choice.
Where Are CD Rates Headed This Year?
Though CD rates are already at record levels, it’s possible they could rise a bit more. That’s because the Federal Reserve is widely expected to increase the federal funds rate by a quarter percentage point at its meeting next week. The fed funds rate has a direct impact on the CD rates that banks and credit unions are willing to pay customers for their deposits.
The Federal Reserve has been on a mission since March 2022 to combat decades-high inflation with aggressive hikes to its benchmark rate. The cumulative increase has so far totaled 5.00%, driving today’s savings and CD rates to their highest levels since 2007. That’s created a heyday for CD shoppers, as well as anyone holding cash in a high-yield savings or money market account.
One month ago, the Fed held its benchmark rate steady for the first time in 11 meetings, in order to better study the impact of previous rate hikes. Minutes from the June 14 meeting were released July 5, and combined with various post-meeting statements by Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, signals were strong that two more rate hikes were still possible this year. As a result, financial markets are all but certain the Fed will implement a quarter-point hike at its meeting scheduled to conclude on July 26.
Last week, however, the prospect of additional increases after July diminished a bit. First, Wednesday’s monthly report of headline inflation showed June prices rose just 3.0% year-over-year, a notable improvement over May’s 4.0% level. Then Thursday saw the release of a lower-than-expected inflation figure on wholesale prices. These signs of cooling inflation have investors adjusting their predictions about future Fed rate moves, with more of them now betting this July increase will be the Fed’s last one of 2023.
But CD shoppers beware: Fed moves predicted several months down the road are just today’s best guesses. Each rate decision is based on the latest economic data and financial news, and that landscape can change quickly. What we can be fairly sure of, though, is that any rate hike the Fed does implement will almost certainly nudge CD rates a bit higher. When at some point it appears the Fed is ready to end its rate-hike campaign for good, that’s the sign that CD rates have probably peaked.
Note that the “top rates” quoted here are the highest nationally available rates Investopedia has identified in its daily rate research on hundreds of banks and credit unions. This is much different than the national average, which includes all banks offering a CD with that term, including many large banks that pay a pittance in interest. Thus, the national averages are always quite low, while the top rates you can unearth by shopping around are often five, 10, or even 15 times higher.
Rate Collection Methodology Disclosure
Every business day, Investopedia tracks the rate data of more than 200 banks and credit unions that offer CDs to customers nationwide and determines daily rankings of the top-paying certificates in every major term. To qualify for our lists, the institution must be federally insured (FDIC for banks, NCUA for credit unions), and the CD’s minimum initial deposit must not exceed $25,000.
Banks must be available in at least 40 states. And while some credit unions require you to donate to a specific charity or association to become a member if you don’t meet other eligibility criteria (e.g., you don’t live in a certain area or work in a certain kind of job), we exclude credit unions whose donation requirement is $40 or more. For more about how we choose the best rates, read our full methodology.
Source: https://www.investopedia.com/top-cd-rates-today-july-18-2023-7562657?utm_campaign=quote-yahoo&utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=referral&yptr=yahoo