CD rates today, February 11, 2025 (Lock in up to 4.35% APY)
The Federal Reserve lowered the federal funds three times in 2024. As a result, deposit account rates are on the decline.
The good news: You can lock in a competitive return on a certificate of deposit (CD) today and preserve your earning power. In fact, the best CDs still pay rates above 4%. Read on for a snapshot of CD rates today and where to find the best offers.
CDs today typically offer rates significantly higher than traditional savings accounts. As of February, the best short-term CDs (six to 12 months) generally offer rates around 4.00% to 4.50% APY.
Today, the highest CD rate 4.35% APY, offered by two banks: Synchrony Bank (13-month CD) and LendingClub (10-month CD).
The following is a look at some of the best CD rates available today from our verified partners.The 2000s were marked by the dot-com bubble and later, the global financial crisis of 2008. Though the early 2000s saw relatively higher CD rates, they began to fall as the economy slowed and the Federal Reserve cut its target rate to stimulate growth. By 2009, in the aftermath of the financial crisis, the average one-year CD paid around 1% APY, with five-year CDs at less than 2% APY.
The trend of falling CD rates continued into the 2010s, especially after the Great Recession of 2007-2009. The Fed's policies to stimulate the economy (in particular, its decision to keep its benchmark interest rate near zero) led banks to offer very low rates on CDs. By 2013, average rates on 6-month CDs fell to about 0.1% APY, while 5-year CDs returned an average of 0.8% APY.
However, things changed between 2015 and 2018, when the Fed started gradually increasing rates again. At this point, there was a slight improvement in CD rates as the economy expanded, marking the end of nearly a decade of ultra-low rates. However, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 led to emergency rate cuts by the Fed, causing CD rates to fall to new record lows.
The situation reversed following the pandemic as inflation began to spiral out of control. This prompted the Fed to hike rates 11 times between March 2022 and July 2023. In turn, this led to higher rates on loans and higher APYs on savings products, including CDs.
Fast forward to September 2024 — the Fed finally decided to start cutting the federal funds rate after it determined that inflation was essentially under control. Today, we're beginning to see CD rates come down from their peak. Even so, CD rates remain high by historical standards.
Take a look at how CD rates have changed since 2009:
Traditionally, longer-term CDs have offered higher interest rates compared to shorter-term CDs. This is because locking in money for a longer period typically carries more risk (namely, missing out on higher rates in the future), which banks compensate for with higher rates.
However, this pattern doesn't necessarily hold today; the highest average CD rate is for a 12-month term. This indicates a flattening or inversion of the yield curve, which can happen in uncertain economic times or when investors expect future interest rates to decline.
Read more: Short- or long-term CD: Which is best for you?
When opening a CD, choosing one with a high APY is just one piece of the puzzle. There are other factors that can impact whether a particular CD is best for your needs and your overall return. Consider the following when choosing a CD:
Your goals: Decide how long you're willing to lock away your funds. CDs come with fixed terms, and withdrawing your money before the term ends can result in penalties. Common terms range from a few months up to several years. The right term for you depends on when you anticipate needing access to your money.
Type of financial institution: Rates can vary significantly among financial institutions. Don't just check with your current bank; research CD rates from online banks, local banks, and credit unions. Online banks, in particular, often offer higher interest rates than traditional brick-and-mortar banks because they have lower overhead costs. However, make sure any online bank you consider is FDIC-insured (or NCUA-insured for credit unions).
Account terms: Beyond the interest rate, understand the terms of the CD, including the maturity date and withdrawal penalties. Also, check if there's a minimum deposit requirement and if so, that fits your budget.
Inflation: While CDs can offer safe, fixed returns, they might not always keep pace with inflation, especially for longer terms. Consider this when deciding on the term and amount to invest.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Hunting for big game: Trump tariff inflation
My safari hat has been on for a month in search of big-game inflation. I blame Walmart (WMT) CFO John David Rainey for making me get into this wardrobe. "And so we'll work hard to try to keep prices low. But it's unavoidable that you're going to see some prices go up on certain items," Rainey told me in mid-May after Walmart reported first quarter earnings. Rainey — responding to my question on the impact of new Trump tariffs — said increases would be noticeable in a few short weeks. "Well, if you've got a 30% tariff on something, you're likely going to see double digits [in price increases]," Rainey warned. I've been on high alert ever since for signs of eye-popping inflation that brings back the discussion of a potential Fed rate hike this year (which has gone dormant). Or, at the bare minimum, renewed market volatility due to a more uncertain outlook. By and large, my hunting expeditions have come up short. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for April rose by a seasonally adjusted 0.2%. The tame jump put the 12-month inflation rate at 2.3%, its lowest since February 2021. This report hit the wires on May 13, before an inflation-indicator company like Walmart warned about the looming effects of tariffs. Still, a data point is a data point. Also surprisingly docile was the inflation expectations reading in the University of Michigan's May sentiment report. Year-ahead inflation expectations were little changed at 6.6% versus April's 6.5%. The uptick marked the smallest increase since the election and ended a four-month streak of "extremely large" jumps in near-term inflation expectations. Long-term inflation expectations dropped to 4.2% in May from 4.4% in April. This was the first decline since December 2024. Again, a data point is a data point. While I hate to be the bearer of bad news, I have started to scope inflation charging out on the prairie. What I'm seeing seems to validate what Rainey told me and could set the stage for negative surprises for the bulls on inflation report days. New research from Morgan Stanley analyst Alex Straton shows that major retailers still reliant on China and other markets for production have begun to jack up prices a good bit. The average footwear year-over-year price increase tallied 13% in May, according to Straton's research. The prior six-month average was 1%. Under Armour (UA) and ON Holdings (ONON) were cited as being aggressive on recent price hikes. Some apparel pricing looked even worse, per Straton. Gap (GAP), for instance, hiked its average apparel pricing by 20% in May. Macy's (M) clocked in with a 12% apparel price increase, Levi's (LEVI) with 9%, and Nike (NKE) by 10%. Meanwhile, those aforementioned price increases at Walmart appear to be happening as Rainey promised. Customers are posting pics on the Walmart subreddit of large price increases on toys and apparel. "We also put in place some selective price actions," HP (HPQ) CEO Enrique Lores explained to me about how he is offsetting tariffs on parts that make up PCs and printers. "We think that the industry-wide price increases that we see, and especially the increased economic uncertainty, will have an impact on demand," he said, "and therefore we continue to expect that the market will grow, but we feel it will grow at a lower pace than we were expecting." Bottom line: If you've been complacent on tracking inflation, don't be. It's beginning to rear its ugly head and could devour your portfolio this summer if not careful. The Yahoo Finance team is heads down on our annual fall Invest conference. It's shaping up to be our most impactful one yet! At this invitation-only event, our guests will delve into the most critical issues powering global markets with our newsroom. Key themes include artificial intelligence, cryptocurrencies, and prosperity. Engage in Q&As following thought-provoking conversations with renowned investors, policymakers, economists, and other leading experts. For the first time, we will host two investor education rooms: one led by yours truly and one by the dynamic duo of data master Jared Blikre and veteran trader Kenny Polcari. I strongly encourage you to register now here before we are out of tickets. I will continue to remind you about Invest each Sunday in this newsletter. Brian Sozzi is Yahoo Finance's Executive Editor. Follow Sozzi on X @BrianSozzi, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Tips on stories? Email Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
CNBC
2 hours ago
- CNBC
Why Disney and Universal are investing billions into their theme parks
The Walt Disney Company and Universal, two of the biggest names in theme parks, are both undertaking historic expansions to their experiences businesses. Universal Orlando Resort in May opened the gates to Epic Universe, its fourth theme park at its flagship resort. Epic cost an estimated $7 billion to build, according to numbers provided by the University of Central Florida. Brian Roberts, Chairman and CEO of Universal parent company Comcast, called it the "single-largest investment Comcast NBCUniversal has made in its theme park business". "It's so different than anything else that we've ever built, but certainly I think it's different than anything anyone's ever built," said Karen Irwin, Universal Orlando President and COO. Epic's opening coincides with an expansion of Universal Orlando's resort portfolio, adding three Loews hotels to bring its total to 11 operated on the property. Universal is betting that the addition of Epic will turn the resort into a full-week destination, a distinction that is normally reserved for its crosstown neighbor, Walt Disney World. Not to be upstaged, Disney is working on a historic undertaking of its own. In 2023, Disney announced plans to invest $60 billion in its experiences segment, which includes theme parks, cruise ships and consumer products. Of that investment, $30 billion will go to its domestic theme parks, Disney World and Disneyland. "We've got a lion's share of that investment coming to us," said Michael Hundgen, portfolio executive creative producer with Walt Disney Imagineering. "It's about finding what strikes the best creative intent in the most value oriented way possible." These investments come at a time when both Disney and Comcast are paring down or spinning off their linear TV segments, an arena that has seen volatility in recent years. By comparison, theme parks have been consistent revenue drivers for the companies in the post-COVID tourism bounce. However, the timing of these openings and expansions could prove challenging for both theme parks. Epic's opening summer coincides with fears of a travel slowdown due to economic volatility. "If you're uncertain how the economy is going to develop, then you're going to try to be more cautious in your spending," said Jorge Ridderstaat, associate professor at UCF's Rosen College of Hospitality Management.
CNBC
2 hours ago
- CNBC
Trump wants to bring manufacturing jobs back. The aviation industry can't hire fast enough
LAFAYETTE, Ind. — President Donald Trump has said he wants to bolster manufacturing jobs and other technical employment in the United States. But in the aviation industry, finding skilled workers to make airplanes and engines — and maintaining those jobs for years to come — has been a struggle. The average age of a certified aircraft mechanic in the U.S. is 54, and 40% of them are over the age of 60, according to a joint 2024 report from the Aviation Technician Education Council and consulting firm Oliver Wyman, which cites Federal Aviation Administration data. The U.S. will be short 25,000 aircraft technicians by 2028, according to the report. "A lot of them were hired on in the '80s and early '90s. You just start doing some math and you start saying at some point they're going to retire," said American Airlines Chief Operating Officer David Seymour, who oversees the carrier's more than 6,000 daily flights. To boost their ranks, airlines and big manufacturers of airplanes and their thousands of components are trying to get more younger people interested in the field. The industry was already facing a retirement wave when Covid hit, and companies cut or offered buyouts to experienced workers — from those who build aircraft to those who maintain them to keep flying. "People forget that the aerospace industry was in a pretty serious ramp at the time pre-Covid. And then frankly, of course overnight we went from ramping to zero demand over time. And so we lost a lot of talent," said Christian Meisner, GE Aerospace's chief human resources officer. GE, along with its French joint venture partner Safran, makes the bestselling engines that power Boeing and Airbus top-selling jetliners, and has been ramping up hiring, though it is also dependent on a web of smaller suppliers that have also been getting back up to speed since the pandemic. Meisner said that the company has a strong retention rate and that some employees earn their FAA licenses to work on airplane engines or airframes on the job. At GE's engine plant in Lafayette, Indiana, about an hour outside of Indianapolis, base pay averages between $80,000 and $90,000 a year, based on qualifications and experience, the company said. Median pay for aircraft technicians or mechanics was $79,140 a year in the U.S. in 2024, compared with a nationwide median income of $49,500, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The agency projects 13,400 job openings in the field each year over the next decade. American's Seymour said that with new pay raises, technicians could make $130,000 a year at the top of their pay scale in nine years at the carrier. While many experts don't expect jobs that have been shipped abroad like clothing manufacturing to come back to the U.S., high-value sectors tend to pay much more and are more likely to stick around. But hiring can still be difficult in a sector that is seen as politically important and symbolic to the country's economic power. The impending worker shortages aren't just for those who repair aircraft and engines. A shortfall of air traffic controllers has also stifled airline growth and raised concerns about safety in recent years. The Trump administration has said it will raise wages and ramp up hiring to try to reverse yearslong shortfalls. Manufacturing is about 9% of U.S. employment but "we all have a bit of a fetish with manufacturing because we focus on it more and than other sectors," said Gordon Hanson, a professor of urban policy at Harvard University. The U.S. unemployment rate in May held steady at 4.2%. One problem with manufacturing jobs, Hanson said, is that workers aren't very geographically mobile, and if factories reopen or hiring ramps up, that could make it harder to attract employees from other places. "You're asking the local labor market to supply workers," Hanson added. Wages for technicians that repair aircraft at airlines, as well as big manufacturers like Boeing, have gone up in recent years, with skilled workers still in short supply and travel and airplane demand robust. But some workers said that's not enough. "We need to increase wages," said Sarah MacLeod, executive director of the Aeronautical Repair Station Association. Most of the companies the association works with are small businesses. She warned that the "entire world is going to feel this workforce shortage. You already can't get your houses built. You already can't do XYZ. I think and pray that aerospace can actually lead the recovery of that." Getting FAA licenses can take years, but the reward can be high. Some students are considering forgoing traditional four-year college degrees straight out of high school to get into the industry. "I'm thinking about going to college, but it's whichever really comes first. If they give me an opportunity to go to the airlines, I'd like to do that," said Sam Mucciardi, a senior at Aviation High School in Queens, New York. The public school offers its roughly 2,000 students the option to stay on for a fifth year to earn their FAA licenses with training at the school. "I stay late after school every day to work on the planes and, probably a little bit too much ... but I still really enjoy it," Mucciardi said. "That's what I put my all my heart into." The school, which has been teaching students how to maintain aircraft since the 1930s, is fielding more demand from airlines in recent years. "After a program like ours, typically you'd go to the regional airlines first, like the Endeavors, the Envoys," said Aviation High School Principal Steven Jackson. "Lately, because of the huge technician need, there's been more students going directly into American, Delta, United, but you have the whole range." He said the school received about 5,000 applications this year from students. Students at the school learn at the campus in the Sunnyside section of Queens but also at other facilities at John F. Kennedy International Airport. Seymour said American has teamed up with high schools before, but is now going even younger and working with some junior highs to raise awareness about the career path. "It is getting into the high schools and showing that a career in aerospace as an engineer or frankly, on a production floor, is not your grandparents' manufacturing. It is high tech," GE's Meisner said. "You're talking about laser-guided machine, precision machining operations, exotic coatings and metals." Krystal Godinez, who has lived in the Lafayette area for about 14 years, graduated last summer from GE's first apprentice program class at the facility after about two years. She said she previously worked in the automotive industry. "I feel like what I do here … definitely does matter. It's like taking all those extra steps, make sure everything is correct," she said. "We're there to kind of keep people safe out there and make them feel safe." American's Seymour was optimistic that younger people are changing their tune. "There was a period of time when people said 'I want a computer, I want tech,'" he said. "There are people who want to get their hands dirty." --
