Top CD Rates Today, May 3

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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Published May 03, 2023
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All eyes were on the Federal Reserve today, which announced this afternoon that it is implementing another quarter-point increase. With markets widely expecting the move, banks and credit unions generally held their CD rates steady this morning. The industry-wide leading rate of 5.50% APY can still be earned on two 9-month certificates, and the longest CD term on which you can earn at least 5.00% continues to be 24 months, at 5.15% APY. However, yesterday's new opportunity to earn 5.35% APY on a 24-month jumbo CD evaporated today as quickly as it came on the scene.

Key Takeaways

  • CD rates held steady today, even though the Federal Reserve announced a widely expected rate increase of a quarter percentage point this afternoon.
  • The highest rate you can earn on any nationally available CD is still 5.50% APY, offered on two 9-month CDs.
  • You can find seven certificates in our daily CD rankings that pay 5.25% APY or better.
  • The longest term on which you can score a rate of at least 5.00% is 24 months, at 5.15% APY.
  • A top rate of 5.00% APY or better is available on CD terms from 6 months to 2 years.
CD Term  Yesterday's Top National Rate  Today's Top National Rate Day's Change (percentage points)
3 months 4.90% APY 4.90% APY No change
6 months  5.50% APY 5.50% APY No change
1 year 5.25% APY  5.25% APY No change
18 months 5.30% APY 5.30% APY No change
2 years  5.15% APY 5.15% APY No change
3 years  4.90% APY  4.90% 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 4.20% APY 4.20% 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.
 CD Term Today's Top National Bank Rate Today's Top National Credit Union Rate Today's Top National Jumbo Rate
3 months  4.90% APY 4.75% APY  4.35% APY 
6 months  5.50% APY 5.50% APY  5.15% APY 
1 year  5.25% APY  5.25% APY 5.25% APY 
18 months  5.20% APY  5.30% APY  5.27% APY 
2 years  5.05% APY  5.15% APY  5.04% APY 
3 years  4.76% APY  4.90% 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 
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 nationwide rates on jumbo certificates, which typically require a deposit of $100,000 or more, are often not competitive against standard CD rates, where you can usually find a higher rate. Currently, jumbo certificates have matched or beat out the best standard rate in only four of the eight terms above.

Where Are CD Rates Going This Year?

CD rates follow the federal funds rate and with today's slight rate increase, it's possible CD rates could edge slightly higher this year. Last year, they skyrocketed as a result of the Federal Reserve aggressively hiking the fed funds rate to combat inflation. Although the Fed has raised the fed funds rate three times this year, each time 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 inched only slightly higher this year.

The Fed's next meeting is scheduled for June 13-14. Based on the language in the Fed's press release today, current market predictions are running at over 60% probability that this will be the Fed's last hike of its current campaign. That makes the next few weeks a good time to consider locking in a guaranteed CD rate that will pay attractive dividends for months or years into the future.

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. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. "Open Market Operations."

  2. CME Group. "CME FedWatch Tool."

  3. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. "May 3, 2023: Federal Reserve Issues FOMC Statement."