Top CD Rates Today, April 20

See how today's top nationwide rate is trending for every CD term

By
Sabrina Karl
Full Bio
Sabrina Karl is one of the country's top experts on how to earn as much as possible on the money you hold in the bank. She also covers a spectrum of additional personal finance topics for Investopedia, and previously wrote for Bankrate.com, CreditCards.com, DepositAccounts.com, and RateSeeker.
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Updated April 20, 2023
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As the next Federal Reserve rate-setting meeting looms on the horizon, banks and credit unions are holding firm on the elevated CD rates they've been offering. CD shoppers can continue to earn 5.25% APY or more on eight different certificates in our rankings, with one credit union CD paying the top nationwide rate of 5.35% APY.

The most you can earn from a nationally available certificate of deposit (CD) from a bank remains 5.25% APY, offered by Newtek Bank on a 6-month term and BrioDirect on 12 months. But you can earn more by expanding your search to easy-to-join credit unions. Two of them, Credit Human and USAlliance Financial, are offering that same 5.25% APY but on longer terms of 18 to 23 months, so you could earn more overall if you don't mind tying up your money for longer. And market leader Langley Federal Credit Union is paying 5.35% APY on 22-month certificates.

Key Takeaways

  • CD rates are holding steady as markets await the Fed's next rate decision in less than two weeks.
  • Today's top nationally available rate across all CD terms remains 5.35% APY for a 22-month term.
  • Rates of 5.00% or better are available in every term from 3 to 35 months, with eight certificates paying at least 5.25% APY.
  • The top return in each jumbo CD term has held firm for two weeks.

The credit unions in our rankings are open to online customers nationwide, and most make it just as easy to join as a bank. They're also covered by the same amount of federal deposit insurance as banks are, to keep you safe. Some do require you to make a small donation to their affiliated nonprofit organization in order to become eligible for credit union membership, but to qualify for our rankings, the required donation must be less than $40.

CD Term  Yesterday's Top National Rate  Today's Top National Rate Day's Change (percentage points)
3 months 5.00% APY 5.00% APY No change
6 months  5.25% APY 5.25% APY No change
1 year  5.25% APY  5.25% APY No change
18 months 5.25% APY 5.25% APY No change
2 years  5.35% APY 5.35% APY No change
3 years  5.00% APY  5.00% APY No change
4 years 4.73% APY 4.73% APY No change
5 years  4.68% APY  4.68% APY No change
10 years 4.30% APY 4.30% APY No change
To view the top 15–20 nationwide rates in any term, click on the desired term length in the left column above.

Dozens of the top CD rates still beat the 5% March inflation rate, released last week. This is a relatively rare occurrence, at least in recent years. No one knows what the April inflation figure will be, but this may be a good time to lock in an inflation-busting CD rate.

 CD Term Today's Top National Bank Rate Today's Top National Credit Union Rate Today's Top National Jumbo Rate
3 months  5.00% APY 4.50% APY  3.91% APY 
6 months  5.25% APY 5.01% APY  5.25% APY 
1 year  5.25% APY  5.25% APY 5.15% APY 
18 months  5.10% APY  5.25% APY  5.25% APY 
2 years  5.28% APY  5.35% APY  5.04% APY 
3 years  4.60% APY  5.00% APY  4.99% APY 
4 years  4.55% APY  4.73% APY  4.89% APY 
5 years  4.50% APY  4.68% APY  4.84% APY 
10 years 4.10% APY 4.30% APY None
To view our lists of the top-paying CDs across terms for bank, credit union, and jumbo certificates, click on the column headers above.

The top rate for a jumbo certificate is holding steady at 5.25%, offered in two terms. It's always smart to keep your search open to standard CDs, even when you have a jumbo-size deposit because you can typically find better rates among regular certificates. But right now, the best jumbo 4-year and 5-year APYs are better than other market leaders in those terms.

Will CD Rates Rise or Fall?

CD rates skyrocketed as a result of the Federal Reserve aggressively hiking the federal funds rate to combat inflation. Although the Fed has raised the fed funds rate twice this year, both times by 0.25%, that's far lower than the cumulative 4.25% in increases it implemented last year. As a result, rates on deposit accounts surged in 2022, and then have crept only slightly higher this year.

The Federal Reserve will conclude its next rate-setting meeting on May 3, and market predictions are currently running at an 84% probability that the Fed will hike rates a minimal quarter point. But after that, most federal funds futures traders are betting we'll see rates plateau and eventually decrease. So even though rates may possibly inch higher, they are already at their highest levels since 2007, making now a good time to consider locking in CD that will pay attractive dividends for months or years to come.

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.

Article Sources
Investopedia requires writers to use primary sources to support their work. These include white papers, government data, original reporting, and interviews with industry experts. We also reference original research from other reputable publishers where appropriate. You can learn more about the standards we follow in producing accurate, unbiased content in our editorial policy.

  1. CME Group. "CME FedWatch Tool."

  2. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. National Rates and Rate Caps.