If you want to put your savings to work without taking on market risk, a 1-year certificate of deposit (CD) could be the right place for your money. With guaranteed returns and federal insurance, 1-year CDs are a favorite among savers who want better yields than a traditional savings account can offer, but without the commitment of longer-term savings products.
Not sure where to start? Our team evaluated dozens of accounts to determine the 10 best 1-year CDs available today. Find out where you can earn the most on your savings with minimal fees, low deposit requirements, and excellent customer service. (See our full methodology here.)
The following is a snapshot of our picks for the best 1-year CDs available today. Keep reading for more details about these accounts.
Ally Bank’s 1-year CD offers a competitive 3.75% APY and $0 minimum deposit, making it a great option for savers who are just getting started. Interest compounds daily.
The penalty for making an early withdrawal is 60 days’ interest.
Read our full review of Ally Bank
Synchrony Bank’s 1-year CD is free to open and offers a competitive 3.8% APY. Interest compounds daily. However, this account poses a stiffer penalty for early withdrawals (90 days’ simple interest at the current rate).
Read our full review of Synchrony Bank
The Marcus by Goldman Sachs 1-year CD offers 4% APY — more than double the national average rate for this term. Interest compounds daily. A minimum of $500 is required to open an account.
The early withdrawal penalty for this CD is equal to 90 days’ interest on the original principal balance at the interest rate in effect for the CD.
Read our full review of Marcus by Goldman Sachs
America First Credit Union’s 1-year CD offers a competitive rate of 3.95% APY with a minimum deposit requirement of $500. Interest compounds monthly, which is less frequent than some of the other accounts on our list.
Early withdrawals from this CD incur a penalty of 60 days’ dividends.
Read our full review of America First Credit Union
Capital One’s 1-year CD offers a competitive 3.9% APY. There is no minimum deposit required to open an account. However, your CD may not exceed $1,000,000.
Early withdrawal from a Capital One CD results in a penalty of three to six months’ interest, depending on the term.
Read our full review of Capital One
The 1-year CD from American Express National Bank offers 3.25% APY and requires no minimum opening deposit. The early withdrawal penalty is equal to 270 days’ interest on the amount withdrawn at the current rate.
Read our full review of American Express National Bank
Bask Bank’s 1-year CD offers 3.75% APY, though it does require a higher minimum opening deposit of $1,000. On the plus side, it does not come with any monthly fees. Interest on this account compounds daily.
Early withdrawals result in a penalty of 90 days’ simple interest based on the principal amount withdrawn.
Read our full review of Bask Bank
TAB Bank’s 1-year CD has one of the highest minimum opening deposits on our list at $1,000. However, this account also offers a competitive 3.9% APY. Interest compounds daily.
The early withdrawal penalty for this account is equal to 90 days’ interest on the amount withdrawn.
Read our full review of TAB Bank
Live Oak Bank’s 1-year CD offers one of the highest rates available at 4% APY, though the minimum opening deposit is also the highest of all banks on our list at $2,500.
The early withdrawal penalty for this 1-year CD is 90 days’ simple interest.
Quontic Bank
Quontic Bank rounds out our top 10 list with a 1-year CD that earns 3% APY. The minimum opening deposit is a modest $500. Interest compounds daily and is credited monthly.
For CDs with terms up to 12 months, the early withdrawal penalty is equal to the interest for the full length of the stated term.
Currently, the highest 1-year CD rate among the best CDs available today is 4% APY, offered by both Marcus by Goldman Sachs and Live Oak Bank. The minimum opening deposit required is $500 and $2,500, respectively.
The amount of interest you can expect to earn on a 1-year CD depends on your CD rate.
For example, if you open a 1-year CD with the current national average rate of 1.61%, you can expect to earn about $162 in interest over one year (assuming daily compounding interest).
However, if you choose a 1-year CD with an interest rate of 4%, your interest earnings would be $408 over the same period.
A $100,000 CD will earn varying amounts of interest over the course of a year, depending on your CD term and interest rate.
Average national rates range from 0.23% for a 1-month CD to 1.61% for a 6-month CD. However, many financial institutions offer rates well above those national averages and could yield significantly higher returns on a balance of $100,000.
If you deposited $100,000 into a 1-year CD earning 4% APY, for example, you’d receive $4,081 in interest.
The length of your CD term should be chosen based on your savings goals. The longer your CD term, the longer you agree to keep your money on deposit. So, in addition to interest rates, minimum deposit requirements, and early withdrawal penalties, you should also consider the timeline for your savings goal and when you’ll need to access the funds.
Our grading system, collected and carefully reviewed by our personal finance experts, comprised over 300 data points for federally insured CDs with 1-year terms. We used this data to develop our list of the best CDs.
We evaluated these accounts according to several key metrics, including annual percentage yield, minimum opening deposit, compounding frequency, and more.
The accounts on our list could earn a maximum of 25 points across all metrics. Here’s a closer look at the categories we considered:
Annual percentage yield (APY): Accounts with higher APYs were rewarded with more points than those with lower APYs. Note that rates on our list are current at the time of publishing, but are subject to change at any time.
Minimum opening deposit: Many CDs require a minimum deposit to open an account. Accounts with no or low minimum deposit requirements ranked more favorably than those with higher opening deposit requirements.
Compounding frequency: Compounding can occur daily, monthly, quarterly, or even annually. We awarded more points to accounts that compound interest frequently.
Customer service contact methods: Our team awarded one point for every contact method available to customers (phone, email, chat).
