Best CD Rates for April 2024 (Earn up to 9.50% APY) (2024)

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At Business Insider, we report on the best CD rates from banks and credit unions offer every day to help you find the right CD for you. We provide the rates of 3-month to 5-year CDs. We also report on rates for non-traditional CDs, such as no-penalty CDs, CDs with non-standard term lengths, and CDs with no minimum opening deposit.

Some national brick-and-mortar banks pay decent rates on select CD terms, but it's rare. For example, TD Bank Choice Promotional CD rates go up to 5.00% APY (Annual Percentage Yield) — but you need a TD checking account to earn that rate, and most of its rates aren't that high.

Featured Nationally Available CD and Savings Rates

Market Leader

California Coast Credit Union Celebration Certificate paying 9.50% APY

The California Coast Credit Union Celebration Certificate requires a minimum deposit of $500 and a maximum deposit of $3,000. To open this certificate, you have to be a member of the credit union and put in new money, or money that wasn't previously in a California Coast Credit Union account. In order to earn the high APY, you'll need to either have an active checking account with the credit union, open a new money market account, new regular certificate, or new IRA certificate with a minimum balance of $5,000 with the credit union, or have a new, funded consumer loan with California Coast Credit Union. You may be eligible for this certificate if you live or work in San Diego or Riverside counties.

The Best CD Rates by Term

Many of the best CD rates are offered by credit unions right now. But don't worry — anyone is eligible to join these credit unions and open CDs.

Compare the Best CD Rates

About the Best CD Issuers

Our top picks for CDs are protected by federal insurance. Bear in mind money is safe at a federally insured financial institution. When a financial institution is FDIC- or NCUA-insured, up to $250,000 per depositor, per account category is secure in a bank account.

California Coast Credit Union Celebration Certificate

California Coast Credit Union currently offers a limited-time 5-month Celebration Certificate offering a whopping 9.50% APY CD rate. That's several percentage points higher than other CDs that are currently being offered. It also requires a low minimum deposit of $500.

However, the criteria you need to meet in order to open the certificate are steep. First of all, you can only put a maximum of $3,000 in the CD. Second of all, the money in the CD has to be new, which means it can't have previously been in a California Coast Credit Union account. You'll also need some sort of other account with California Coast Credit Union to get the high APY. You can have an active checking account (meaning it has one transaction a month), a new money market account with a minimum balance of $5,000, a new regular certificate with a minimum balance of $5,000, a new IRA certificate with a minimum balance of $5,000, or a new funded consumer loan that isn't either a credit card or a share-secured or certificate-secured loan.

You also need to be a member of California Coast Credit Union. Membership is limited to people who live or work in San Diego or Riverside counties, to people in select employee groups, and to people who live with a member.

Term options: California Coast Credit Union has terms ranging from 3 months to 5 years, as well as a 5-month celebration certificate, an 8-month liquid certificate, and an 18-month bump rate certificate.

Penalties: California Coast Credit Union certificates have the following early withdrawal penalties:

• 90 days interest for terms of 6 months or less
• 180 days interest for terms from more than 6 months to 24 months
• 365 days interest for terms of more than 24 months

Climate First Bank 6 Month No Penalty CD

Climate First Bank currently offers the highest rate on a no-penalty CD for its 6-month no-penalty CD. However, it also offers two other no-penalty CDs that also have strong rates. Climate First Bank might be a good choice for you if you're looking for an environmentally friendly bank offering a no-penalty CD with a low minimum opening deposit of $500.

Climate First Bank doesn't offer any CDs with term lengths over 25 months, so if you're interested in a long-term CD, Climate First Bank might not be the choice for you.

Term options: Climate First Bank has terms ranging from 6 months to 25 months.

Penalties: None

TotalDirectBank 3 Month CD

A TotalDirectBank CD may be appealing if you're searching for a 3-month term available nationwide.

TotalDirectBank CDs have a steep minimum opening deposit of $25,000 and a maximum deposit of $1 million. TotalDirectBank is the online-only division of the City National Bank of Florida. The online division doesn't operate in Florida, Puerto Rico, Somoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, or the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Term options:TotalDirectBank has terms ranging from 3 months to 5 years.

Penalties:The following early withdrawal penalties may apply to TotalDirectBank CDs:

• 30 days of interest for terms between 30 days and up to 6 months
• 90 days of interest for terms above 6 months and up to 1 year
• 180 days of interest for terms over 1 year

Newtek Bank 6 Month CD

Newtek Bank has a variety of CDs with competitive interest rates that anyone in the US can open. Its 6-month CD is its strongest traditional CD, but it also offers a variable rate 2-year CD that's currently offering a high APY. Keep in mind, though, that variable rate CDs' rates aren't locked in, unlike regular CDs.

Newtek Bank CDs require a minimum opening deposit of $2,500, which is higher than other banks. If you want to open a CD with less money, you might want to choose another one of our top picks.

Term options:Terms range from 6 months to 5 years.

Penalties: The early withdrawal penalty for all CD terms is 180 days of interest.

Newtek Bank Savings Review

Northern Bank Direct 1 Year CD

Northern Bank Direct offers a great rate on its 1-year CD. It also has a 15-month CD with a good rate, so if you're interested in opening a CD with a non-standard term length, Northern Bank Direct Might be a good choice for you. Both CDs require a low minimum deposit of $500.

Northern Bank Direct charges high early withdrawal penalties for its 1-year CD, so if you think there's a chance you'll have to withdraw your funds before the CD term length is up, this CD might not be a good choice for you.

Term options: Terms range from 6 months to 5 years.

Penalties: Northern Bank Direct CDs have the following early withdrawal penalties:

• 6 months interest for terms of less than 12 months
• 12 months interest for terms of 12 months to 35 months
• 24 months interest for terms of 36 months to 47 months
• 36 months interest for terms of 48 months or greater

Northern Bank Direct Review

Credit Human 18 Month Share Certificate and Credit Human 4 Year Share Certificate

You may like a Credit Human Share Certificate if you'd prefer a credit union over a bank. Credit Human offers especially high interest rates on its 18-month and 4-year terms. You'll need a minimum of $500 to open a CD, which is less than what many other institutions require.

To open a Credit Human Share Certificate, you'll have to qualify for membership. You may join from anywhere in the U.S. if you become a member of the American Consumer Council. Credit Human also has other ways to become a member: You'll be eligible to join if you live in a service area in San Antonio, Texas, or New Orleans, Louisiana, or if you work for a partner employer or organization.

Term options: Credit Human has share certificate terms ranging from three months to 10 years.

Penalties: Credit Human Share Certificates have the following early withdrawal penalties:

• 90 days of interest for terms of 3 months
• 180 days of interest for terms of 6 months
• 270 days of interest for terms of 12 months
• 365 days of interest for terms of 36 months
• 730 days of interest for terms of 60 months
• 1,095 days of interest for terms of 84 to 120 months

First Internet Bank of Indiana CD

First Internet Bank of Indiana offers strong rates on several of its long-term CDs, but its 2-year CD rate and 5-year CD rate are the most competitive. If you're interested in opening several CDs with different term lengths at the same bank, and you want them all to have strong rates, First Internet Bank of Indiana might be a good choice for you.

First Internet Bank of Indiana compounds interest monthly, not daily. Depending on how much money you put in your CD, this may or may not make a significant difference for you. Also, First Internet Bank of Indiana is not the only one to offer 4.55% APY for a 5-year CD. If you'd prefer to go with someone else, First National Bank of America offers the same rate.

Term options: First Internet Bank of Indiana offers CD term lengths from 3 months to 5 years.

Penalties: The following early withdrawal penalties may apply to First Internet Bank of Indiana CDs:

• 90 days interest for CD terms of 3 months
• 180 days interest for CD terms between 6 months and 18 months
• 360 days interest for CD terms of 2 years or more

First Internet Bank of Indiana Review

DollarSavingsDirect 3 Year CD

DollarSavingsDirect, an online division of Emigrant Bank, currently offers the best 3-year CD rate. If you're interested in a CD with a non-traditional term length, DollarSavingsDirect could be a good choice for you. In addition to many standard term lengths, DollarSavingsDirect also offers a 16-month CD.

Unlike many banks, DollarSavingsDirect doesn't offer 4-year terms. If you're interested in opening CDs with those term lengths, DollarSavingsDirect might not be the ideal choice for you.

Term options:DollarSavingsDirect offers CD term lengths ranging from 6 months to 5 years.

Penalties:The following early withdrawal penalties may apply to DollarSavingsDirect:

• 90 days interest for CD terms less than 1 year
• 180 days interest for CD terms 1 year or more

CD FAQs

Best CD Rates by Term

Below, you'll find our picks for the best CD rates right now. There isn't one particular CD that will work for everyone, but we combed through offerings at around a dozen national banks to find the strongest options available right now.

Best 3-Month CD Rates

Best 6-Month CD Rates

Best 1-Year CD Rates

Best 18-Month CD Rates

Best 2-Year CD Rates

Best 3-Year CD Rates

Best 4-Year CD Rates

Best 5-Year CD Rates

Best No-Penalty CD Rates

Best Rates for No Opening Deposit

Best Rates for Other CD Terms

Why You Should Trust Us: Experts' Advice on Choosing the Best CD

We consulted banking and financial planning experts to inform these picks and provide their advice on finding the best CDs to use for your money. You can read their insights at the bottom of this post.

Here's what they had to say about CDs. (Some text may be lightly edited for clarity.)

What makes a CD good or not good?

Mykail James, MBA, certified financial education instructor,BoujieBudgets.com:

"You always want to look at how much money you need to start up. And then if you can continuously add money in. Also, check not just what the interest rate is, but how often they pay out interest, whether it's monthly or quarterly."

How should someone choose a CD term length?

Roger Ma, certified financial planner withlifelaidout®and author of"Work Your Money, Not Your Life":

"I would think about when you need the money and then compare that with what the prevailing CD rates are, and then what makes sense from a financial perspective, but also from your own personal timing perspective."

Mykail James, CFEI:

"I believe in having a plan for whatever the funds are. If it's supposed to be a house fund, and you want to wait for another two years to buy a house, that's what you should be thinking of when you want to have this money."

How should someone decide whether to put their money in a high-yield savings account, money market account, or CD?

Tania Brown, certified financial planner and vice president of coaching strategy at OfColor:

"So I guess we'll start off with how much money you want to put in and the level of transactions you want to have. If you want to have any transactions, that automatically takes out CDs. Then you're stuck between the high-yield savings and the money market account."

Sophia Acevedo, certified educator in personal finance, banking editor, Business Insider:

"Generally, I think a high-yield savings account or money market account could be good options for an emergency fund or short-term savings goals. A high-yield savings account offers a higher interest rate than traditional savings accounts at brick-and-mortar banks. Meanwhile, money market accounts might be worth considering if you want more account accessibility — several offer paper checks, ATM cards, or debit cards. CDs could be worthwhile if you don't need access to some of your money, since they have a fixed interest rate for a specific term."

Methodology: How We Chose the Best CDs

At Business Insider, we aim to help smart people make the best decisions with their money. We understand that "best" is often subjective, so in addition to highlighting the clear benefits of a financial product or account — a high Annual Percentage Yield (APY), for example — we outline the limitations, too. We spent hours comparing and contrasting the features and fine print of various products so you don't have to.

We reviewed CD offerings from over three dozen national banks using our CD methodology. All banks included on our list are FDIC-insured and do not impose monthly maintenance fees on CDs.

In the event two banks offered the same APY on a CD product, we considered factors like the minimum deposit requirements and early withdrawal penalties.