Best 1-year credit union CD rates - November 2023
Matthew Goldberg is a consumer banking reporter at Bankrate. Matthew has been in financial services for more than a decade, in banking and insurance.
Marc Wojno is a seasoned and accomplished finance editor and writer with more than two decades of experience editing and writing across a variety of news platforms including newswires, newsletters, magazines and online news sites.
Before joining Bankrate, Marc was Senior Editor at CNET Money and Senior Editor of Finance for ZDNet, both Red Ventures companies, where he wrote and edited news articles and features on a variety of topics including banking, blockchain, credit cards, cryptocurrency, fintech, home equity, investing and taxes.
Allyson Johnson leads marketing and fundraising for Gateway Partners. She is a CAIA charter holder and has passed the CFA Level II examination.
Best available rates across different account types for Tuesday, November 28, 2023
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What To Know First
Returns on savings are on the rise. To find the best rate it pays to shop around and compare yields tied to share certificates offered by credit unions.
Bankrate’s picks for the top 1-year credit union CD rates
Here are some credit unions offering today’s best widely available one-year CD rates:
- America First Credit Union: 5.25% APY, $500 minimum deposit
- Alliant Credit Union: 5.25% APY, $1,000 minimum deposit
- Pentagon Federal Credit Union: 5.25% APY, $1,000 minimum deposit
- State Employees’ Credit Union: 5.10% APY, $250 minimum deposit
- Bethpage Federal Credit Union: 5.00% APY, $50 minimum deposit
- Suncoast Credit Union: 5.00% APY, $500 minimum deposit
- Delta Community Credit Union: 5.00% APY, $1,000 minimum deposit
- Randolph-Brooks Federal Credit Union: 4.95% APY, $20,000 minimum deposit
- Navy Federal Credit Union: 4.90% APY, $1,000 minimum deposit
- First Technology Federal Credit Union: 4.55% APY, $500 minimum deposit
Note: Annual percentage yields (APYs) shown are as of Oct. 31, 2023, and may have changed since they were last updated. Bankrate’s editorial team updates this information regularly, typically monthly.
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The following accounts can be found at most banks and credit unions. They’re federally insured for up to $250,000 and offer a safe place to put your money while earning interest.
Certificate of Deposit (CD)
CDs are best for individuals looking for a guaranteed rate of return that’s typically higher than a savings account. In exchange for a higher rate, funds are tied up for a set period of time and early withdrawal penalties may apply.
Checking account
Checking accounts are best for individuals who want to keep their money safe while still having easy, day-to-day access to their funds. ATM and other transactional fees may apply.
Savings / Money Market Accounts (MMA)
Savings and MMAs are good options for individuals looking to save for shorter-term goals. They’re a safe way to separate your savings from everyday cash, but may require larger minimum balances and have transfer limitations.
Bankrate’s picks for the top 1-year credit union CD rates
America First Credit Union: 5.25% APY, $500 minimum deposit
America First Credit Union offers regular CDs, individual retirement account (IRA) CDs and bump-rate CDs.
- Membership restrictions: America First serves people who live, work, worship, volunteer or attend school in select counties in Utah, Washington, Nevada, Arizona, Idaho, Oregon and New Mexico.
- Early withdrawal penalty: 60 days of dividends, with a minimum fee of $5
Alliant Credit Union: 5.25% APY, $1,000 minimum deposit
Alliant offers competitive APYs with low minimum balance requirements for CDs. It also has traditional individual retirement account CDs, Roth IRA CDs and SEP IRA CDs.
- Membership restrictions: Current or retired employees from a business that partners with Alliant Credit Union may be eligible to join. You may also be able to join by belonging to an organization that Alliant Credit Union partners with. You can also qualify to join Alliant Credit Union if you live or are employed in a community near its Chicago headquarters. If those circumstances don’t apply to you, you can make a one-time $5 payment and Alliant Credit Union will donate that money to Foster Care to Success so you can become an Alliant Credit Union member.
- Early withdrawal penalty: Dividends on the number of days the CD is open, up to 90 days. (For example, if funds are withdrawn after 180 days, the penalty is 90 days of dividends; if funds are withdrawn after 20 days, the penalty is 20 days of dividends.)
Pentagon Federal Credit Union: 5.25% APY, $1,000 minimum deposit
PenFed has nine terms of CDs, ranging from six months to seven years.
- Membership restrictions: Anyone is eligible to apply for PenFed membership. All that is needed is to open and maintain a savings account with at least $5. Some products may require military affiliation to receive certain benefits of the product.
- Early withdrawal penalty: All dividends during the first year.
State Employees’ Credit Union: 5.10% APY, $250 minimum deposit
State Employees’ Credit Union serves approximately 2.7 million members and has 273 branch offices. It has been around since 1937 and has its main office in Raleigh, North Carolina.
- Membership restrictions: You’ll need to meet one of the State Employees’ Credit Union eligibility requirements to become a member. Some ways to become a member are by being an employee of the state of North Carolina, being a federal employee assigned to North Carolina state agencies, being an employee of public boards of education or by being a county employee of social services, health, mental health or civil defenses. Immediate family, which includes a spouse, children, parents or siblings, of a current member also may be eligible for membership.
- Early withdrawal penalty: You’ll lose 90 days’ worth of interest or all interest accrued, whichever is less.
Bethpage Federal Credit Union: 5.00% APY, $50 minimum deposit
Bethpage offers nine terms of CDs, ranging from three months to five years, and a 39-month bump-up CD. Anyone who opens a $5 savings account can become a member.
- Membership restrictions: Bethpage FCU membership is open to anyone who opens a savings account with $5.
- Early withdrawal penalty: 180 days of dividends
Suncoast Credit Union: 5.00% APY, $500 minimum deposit
Suncoast Credit Union was started in 1934 as Hillsborough County Teachers Credit Union, and it surpassed one million members in early 2022. Suncoast offers both standard and jumbo certificates of deposit, as well as a “Smart Start Certificate” that’s set up to receive monthly electronic deposits.
- Membership restrictions: Membership is open to people who attend school, live, work or worship in a county in Florida that Suncoast Credit Union serves are welcome to join.
- Early withdrawal penalty: 90 days of dividends on terms of 12 months or less and 180 days of dividends on terms longer than 12 months.
Delta Community Credit Union: 5.00% APY, $1,000 minimum deposit
Delta Community Credit Union began as the Delta Employees Credit Union in 1940. It was started by eight Delta Air Lines employees. Delta Community Credit Union has more than 400,000 members and has 26 branches in metro Atlanta and three branches outside of Georgia.
- Membership restrictions: Anyone living or working in metro Atlanta and employees of more than 150 businesses are welcome at Delta Community Credit Union. Delta Air Lines, Chick-fil-A and UPS are some of the eligible businesses.
- Early withdrawal penalty: 90 days of interest
Randolph-Brooks Federal Credit Union: 4.95% APY, $20,000 minimum deposit
In addition to CDs, Randolph-Brooks Federal Credit Union offers a Really Free Checking account that requires no minimum balance and charges no monthly fee.
- Membership restrictions: Where you live, attend school, work or worship are some of the more than 3,000 ways to become a member at Randolph-Brooks Federal Credit Union.
- Early withdrawal penalty: 60 days interest
Navy Federal Credit Union: 4.90% APY, $1,000 minimum deposit
Navy Federal Credit Union is the world’s largest credit union with over 11 million members. In addition to CDs, Navy Federal Credit Union also offers checking and savings accounts, loans and credit cards.
- Membership restrictions: Membership at Navy Federal Credit Union is open to all Department of Defense and Coast Guard Active Duty, civilian, contract personnel, veterans and their families.
- Early withdrawal penalty: The lesser of all dividends for 90 days on the amount that you withdraw or all of the dividends withdrawn since the certificate was issued or renewed.
First Technology Federal Credit Union: 4.55% APY; $500 minimum deposit
First Technology FCU’s CDs come in terms ranging from six months to five years. The minimum deposit is a reasonable $500.
- Membership restrictions: First Technology FCU is open to those who live or work in Lane County, Oregon; those who work for the State of Oregon or for a company on the credit union’s partner list; members of the Computer History Museum or the Financial Fitness Association; and those with a family member or household member who is already a First Tech member.
- Early withdrawal penalty: 180 days of simple dividends
What is a 1-year credit union CD?
Credit union share certificates are similar to certificates of deposit (CDs) offered by banks. For that reason, “share certificate” and “credit union CD” are often used interchangeably. Also, whereas CDs earn interest, share certificates earn dividends, but the effect for the saver is the same. By looking at annual percentage yields (APYs), consumers can compare interest and dividends on an apples-to-apples basis.
The average one-year CD yield was 1.74 percent APY, according to Bankrate’s weekly survey of institutions on Oct. 31, 2023.
How to find the best 1-year credit union CD rates
Brick-and-mortar banks can be pretty stingy when it comes to paying interest on deposit accounts. But finding a credit union offering competitive rates on CDs is fairly easy. As member-owned institutions, credit unions operate for the benefit of their customers.
The drawback? You may not have access to a credit union share certificate if you cannot qualify for membership. Many credit unions are easy to join, but there are still institutions that have restrictions based on certain conditions such as where you live or work or the groups you’re affiliated with.
Like certificates of deposit at banks, credit union share certificates may also automatically renew after the term expires. For that reason, it’s important to keep track of your investments. Should the need arise to use the funds before the certificate has matured, the result would likely be an early withdrawal penalty.
When choosing a one-year credit union CD, consider the interest rate you’re getting, how often the interest compounds, the minimum deposit, and your eligibility to join the credit union.
1-year credit union CD FAQs
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Before signing up for any bank account, it’s important to understand the terms and conditions. With share certificates — and CDs across the board — there’s typically a penalty for early withdrawal. By pulling money out of your share certificate (or CD) before it matures, you’ll likely forfeit some of the interest you’ve earned. Consequences for early withdrawals vary from one credit union to the next and sometimes vary within a single credit union for share certificates with different term lengths. Also, you may be required to ask for an early withdrawal in writing. Check with your credit union for its policy.
As long as the credit union you’ve chosen is federally insured by the National Credit Union Administration Share Insurance Fund, the money you’ve deposited in your share certificate will be safe. In the event that the credit union shuts down, you’ll still walk away with your savings. Just keep in mind that there’s a $250,000 threshold for single ownership accounts. Larger amounts won’t be automatically insured. -
A one-year credit union CD isn’t right for everyone. Check out these alternatives:
Savings or money market account
You may be able to score a higher interest rate with a money market account or a high-yield online savings account while still maintaining access to your money. Money market and high-yield savings accounts typically offer higher interest rates than standard savings accounts, but they normally require higher balances and may have restrictions on accessing the money.
Consider a traditional bank CD with a different term
CDs give savers a bit of a yield boost over savings accounts in exchange for a longer-term deposit. The longer savers agree to leave their money in the bank, the higher the yield. Investing in a one-year CD, for example, would require you to tie up your funds for 12 months.
Bankrate’s methodology for choosing the best CD rates
At Bankrate, we strive to help you make smarter financial decisions. We follow strict guidelines to ensure that our editorial content is unbiased and not influenced by advertisers. Our editorial team receives no direct compensation from advertisers and our content is thoroughly fact-checked to ensure accuracy.
Bankrate regularly surveys around 70 widely available financial institutions, made up of the biggest banks and credit unions, as well as a number of popular online banks.
To find the best CDs, our editorial team analyzes various factors, such as annual percentage yield (APY), the minimum needed to earn that APY (or to open the CD) and whether or not it is broadly available. All of the accounts on this page are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. or the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund.
When selecting the best CD for you, consider the purpose of the money and when you’ll need access to these funds to help you avoid early withdrawal penalties.
Banks we monitor
These financial institutions are featured in our CD rate research: Alliant Credit Union, Ally Bank, Amerant Bank, America First Credit Union, American Express National Bank, Axos Bank, Bank5 Connect, Bank of America, Barclays, Bask Bank, BECU (Boeing Employees Credit Union), Bethpage Federal Credit Union, BMO Harris Bank, Bread Financial (formerly Comenity Direct), BrioDirect, Capital One Bank, Chase Bank, CIBC USA, CIT Bank, Citibank, Citizens, Citizens Bank (Rhode Island), Comerica Bank, Customers Bank, Delta Community Credit Union, Discover Bank, Emigrant Direct, Fifth Third Bank, First Citizens Bank, First Internet Bank, First Technology Federal Credit Union, FNBO Direct, Golden 1 Credit Union, Marcus by Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley Private Bank, Huntington National Bank, Investors Bank, KeyBank, Limelight Bank, Live Oak Bank, M&T Bank, MySavingsDirect, Navy Federal Credit Union, NBKC Bank, PenFed Credit Union, PNC Bank, Popular Direct, PurePoint Financial, Quontic Bank, Randolph-Brooks Federal Credit Union, Regions Bank, Salem Five Direct, Sallie Mae Bank, Santander Bank, SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union, Security Service Federal Credit Union, State Employees’ Credit Union, Suncoast Credit Union, Synchrony Bank, TD Bank, TIAA Bank, Truist Bank, UFB Direct, U.S. Bank, USAA Bank, Vio Bank, VyStar Credit Union, Wells Fargo and Zions Bank.