The full article cont𝕴inues below 🌜these offers from our partners.

A Rare Chance to Still Lock in a 6% CD Rate

Thanks to the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Federal Reserve's historic rate-hiking campaign in 2022-2023, rates on 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:certificates of deposit (CDs) surged last fall to a peak of 6.50%, with only a few certificates breaching the 6% threshold. But now that inflation has cooled, the Fed has started cutting its benchmark rate, and today's leading national CD returᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚn is a lower 5.20% as a result.

That makes an offer from 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Financial Partners Credit Union a shining gem🌠, if you're fortunate enough to qualify. For an 8-month term, Financial Partners is offering a 6.00% AP⭕Y. That means opening one of these certificates today would guarantee your 6% return until the start of June 2025.

But there are restrictions on who can open this CD, as 🐟well as how much can be deposited. Here are the detailsꦇ:

• Only new members to the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:credit union are eligible for this promotional CD.
• To join Financial Partners, you must live, work, or go to school within the four-county region of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Diego counties, or within the cities of San Francisco or Alameda.
• The minimum deposit to open this CD is $1,000, and you cannot deposit more than $5,000.
• Only one promotional CD is allowed per new member.

It's an outstanding offer if you live in one of these areas, and only want to put in a modest deposit in a CD. But if you live elsewhere, or you want to put more than $5,000 in a CD—or want to lock in a CD rate for longer than 8 months—we've still got you covered with plenty of other high-paying options.

Nationwide CDs Are Still Paying Very High Rates

The Fed lowered its benchmark interest rate on Sept. 18 by 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:a bold half percentage point. The anticipation of that decrease had already been pushing the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:best CD rates lღower for months, and the official arrival of the rate cut has put additional downward pressure on wh🍌at banks and credit unions are willing to pay customers for their deposits. As a result, CD rates have been falling daily.

But it's important to keep some perspective. While the top nationwide CD return is now 5.20%instead of the 6.50% you could earn for a few days last October, in most terms you still stand to collect three to six times as much as you could earn two and a half years ago. As you can see below, the top nationally available rate in each CD term ranged from just 0.50% to 1.70% APY in January 2022. Today the lowest term-leading rate is a robust 4.32%.

That means it's still an excellent time to lock in one of these CD rates, guaranteeing it far down the road. Our daily ranking of the best nationwide CDs will always take you to the top-paying offers. For instance, right now you can lock in a rate of at least 5.00% for a term as long as 30 months. Or if you can commit your funds longer, rates are available in the mid- to upper-4% range that you can hang onto 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:until 2028 or 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:even 2029.

Unfortunately for savers, the Fed is expected to continue lowering the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:federal funds rate, with one to two additional cuts this year and perhaps multiple reductions in 2025. The Fed could even keep cutting rates into 2026. If this long slide comes to pass, the rates you'll be able to earn on savings accounts and CDs in a year or two will be much lower that you can lock in today.

Unsure About Committing to a CD? Earn Up to 5.50♔% with a High-Yield Savings Account

If you're hesitant to lock any of your funds into a CD, a smart alternative is socking it away in a 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:high-yield savings account. The best of these currently pay 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:up to 5.50% APY, offering you an excellent return while leav🐲ing yo🍎ur money completely available anytime you need it.

But wit🌜h additional F꧑ed rate cuts likely this year and next, rates on savings accounts will decline. That means returns above 5% could fade away by year-end for savings accounts, and could fall much lower than that in 2025.

Still, shopping around and picking a top-paying account will help you earn a competitive rate over time. Yes, your 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:annual percentage yield (APY) will driftꦏ lower. But so will the rates of other savings accounts. It's much better than keeping your cash in an account that pays little or nothing.

How We Find the Best Savings and CD Rates

Every business day, Investopedia tracks the rate data of more than 200 banks and credit unions that offer CDs and savings accounts to customers nationwide and determines daily rankings of the top-paying accounts. To qualify for our lists, the institution must be federally insured (FDIC for banks, NCUA for credit unions), and the account's minimum initial deposit must not exceed $25,000. It also cannot specify a maximum deposit amount that's below $5,000.

Banks must be available in at least 40 states to qualify as nationally available. 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, 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:read our full methodology.