A certificate of deposit (CD) is a savings product that holds a fixed amount of money for a set term, ranging from a few months to several years, in exchange for a fixed interest rate. The trade-off for that predictable return is reduced flexibility: withdrawing before the maturity date typically triggers a penalty, so the money is generally treated as off-limits until the term ends.
Two factors tend to separate strong CD offerings from weak ones. The first is the interest rate relative to other terms and to high-yield savings accounts, since longer terms and larger minimum deposits sometimes unlock meaningfully better yields. The second is the fine print around early withdrawal penalties, renewal policies, and minimum balance requirements, which can quietly turn a competitive headline rate into a worse real-world return.
On this page, readers can compare CDs side by side across these dimensions. The focus is on the structure of each product, the conditions attached to its rate, and how it fits different savings timelines, rather than on any single featured institution.
