How to find the value of a U.S. savings bond

Yahoo

26-02-2025

Issued by the U.S. Treasury, savings bonds are relatively safe, long-term investments that mature 30 years after the original purchase date.
For most of us, 30 years is a long time to hold a single investment. The value of your investment can also change considerably during that time. So if you're wondering what your savings bond is worth, there are simple methods for calculating the value; the one you use will depend on the type of bond you have.
Read more: What are bonds, and how do you invest in them?
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The U.S. Treasury currently issues two types of bonds:
Series EE bonds: These bonds earn interest monthly for 30 years. As long as you hold it for at least 20 years, the Treasury guarantees that a Series EE bond will double in value, regardless of the interest rate.
Series I bonds: Intended as a hedge against inflation, these bonds also earn interest monthly for 30 years. Unlike Series EE bonds, however, the interest rate on Series I bonds is made up of two parts:
A fixed rate, set at the time of purchase and remains the same for the bond's life.
A variable rate, adjusted every six months based on inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U).
Read more: I bond vs. high-yield savings account: Which is better for beating inflation?
Both types of savings bonds are issued electronically through the official Treasury website. However, you can also get paper versions of I bonds if you use your federal tax refund to purchase them.
Note that in the past, the Treasury issued other types of savings bonds, such as Series HH bonds, but has since retired them. These older bonds were originally issued in paper form but are no longer available for new purchases.
Read more: Types of U.S. savings bonds and how they work
Finding the value of an electronic savings bond is as simple as visiting the U.S. Treasury website: TreasuryDirect.gov.
Once on the site, click 'log in,' then click 'next.' Then, enter your account number. You may be prompted to enter a one-time passcode (OTP), which TreasuryDirect will send to your email. If so, enter the code you receive in your email and submit, then do the same with your password.
After logging in successfully, you will be in the My Account section. On that page, you will find a section called 'Current Holdings,' which shows the current value of all your holdings, including savings bonds.
If you have more than one type of savings bond, you can see the value of each type by clicking the Current Holdings button in the menu at the top of the page. You will then see a separate holdings page, showing the value of your Series EE and Series I bonds.
Unlike electronic savings bonds, paper bonds are not tracked via your online account. Since you can't quickly look the values up, you must calculate them manually. Fortunately, there is a paper savings bond calculator on the TreasuryDirect website that lets you quickly calculate the value of paper bonds.
This calculator determines the value of a paper bond based on its series, issue date, and denomination. You can also enter the bond's serial number for later reference, though this step is optional.
To calculate the value of a paper savings bond:
Access the calculator on the TreasuryDirect website.
Enter a date for which you'd like to know the bond's value.
Enter the type of bond and dollar amount.
Enter the serial number (optional, to track the bond later).
Enter the issue date (month and year).
Click calculate.
Read more: How to cash a savings bond
Two of the biggest factors affecting bond values are interest accrual and the bond's value doubling if you own Series EE bonds. Interest can be a big factor, particularly because savings bonds can earn compounding interest, where you can earn interest on top of the interest you earned previously.
Because Series EE bonds have fixed interest rates and Series I bonds have variable rates, the amount of interest each type earns can vary significantly over 30 years. For instance, if you purchase a Series EE bond with a 2.5% interest rate, you may earn much less than you would with a Series I bond if interest rates increase over time.
To illustrate this, we can compare a $1,000 Series EE bond issued in February 2001 to a Series I bond issued in the same month. The current value of the Series I bond as of Feb. 20, 2025, is $4,148.00, while the value of the Series EE bond is just $1,152.00. Series I bonds have a higher interest rate in that period, leading to a much larger increase in value.
This can also have a significant impact on a bond's resale value. It is possible to sell savings bonds at any time on the open market. However, if you have Series EE savings bonds with a low interest rate and market interest rates increase, the value of your bond will decrease. This is because it earns less interest than newly-issued bonds.
The value of a 30-year bond today depends on several factors, including the issue date, the bond type, and the dollar amount denomination. A $50 savings bond you purchased last year likely hasn't changed much in value. Conversely, a $5,000 bond you purchased 25 years ago may be worth much more than it was when you purchased it.
Remember that you can quickly see the value of 30-year electronic bonds by logging into TreasuryDirect.gov. For old paper bonds, use the paper savings bond calculator on the TreasuryDirect website.