A two-year CD can be a useful financial tool for those looking to secure a higher interest rate on their savings without committing to locking up their money long term. It may also pay a higher rate of return than a high-yield savings account.
Think of a CD as a higher-paying savings account that’s stashed in a safe with a time lock. But unlike a savings account with a variable annual percentage yield (APY), the yield on a CD is fixed and won’t change during the term.
At the end of the term, you can renew the CD or shop around for another one, potentially with a higher yield, if the interest rate environment has improved. After a CD’s maturity date, it likely will renew automatically after a grace period, typically within seven to 10 days.
Though you may be able to withdraw the interest before the end of the term, you usually can’t touch the principal without incurring an early withdrawal penalty.
Here are some of the top widely available two-year CD rates. Compare these offers, then calculate how much interest you could earn when your CD matures.
The best 2-year CD rates for May 2022
- Live Oak Bank: 2.20% APY; $2,500 minimum deposit
- Marcus by Goldman Sachs: 2.00% APY; $500 minimum deposit
- Popular Direct: 1.90% APY; $10,000 minimum deposit
- Bread Savings (formerly Comenity Direct): 1.80% APY; $1,500 minimum deposit
- Pentagon Federal Credit Union: 1.75% APY; $1,000 minimum deposit
- American Express National Bank: 1.70% APY; $0 minimum deposit
- Barclays: 1.70% APY; $0 minimum deposit
- Capital One: 1.70% APY; $0 minimum deposit
- Synchrony Bank: 1.65% APY; $0.01 minimum deposit
- TAB Bank: 1.65% APY; $1,000 minimum deposit
- Discover Bank: 1.60% APY; $2,500 minimum deposit
- CIBC Bank USA: 1.55% APY; $25,000 minimum deposit to earn APY
- Bethpage Federal Credit Union: 1.50% APY; $50 minimum deposit
- TIAA Bank: 1.40% APY; $1,000 minimum deposit
- Vio Bank: 1.30% APY; $500 minimum deposit
- Alliant Credit Union: 1.25% APY; $1,000 minimum deposit
- BrioDirect: 1.00% APY; $500 minimum deposit
- Sallie Mae Bank: 1.00% APY; $2,500 minimum deposit
- Salem Five Direct: 1.00% APY; $10,000 minimum deposit
Note: Annual percentage yields (APYs) shown are as of May 2, 2022, and may vary by region for some products. Bankrate’s editorial team regularly updates this information.
Interest rates are often higher on CDs because, in addition to the normal deposit rate, banks pay CD account holders a liquidity premium, which is the additional return an investor expects for giving up the ability to liquidate their investment quickly.
The best two-year CD rates pay far more than the national average of 0.29 percent APY, according to Bankrate’s national index survey of banks and thrifts from April 27, 2022.
Today’s top widely available two-year CD pays 1.9 percent APY, which may be a good place to invest for midterm financial obligations, like paying off credit card debt.
Bankrate’s guide to choosing the right CD rate
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Methodology for Bankrate’s 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 some 70 widely available financial institutions, made up of the biggest banks and credit unions, as well as several popular online banks.
To find the best CDs, our editorial team analyzes various factors, such as: 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 Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) or by the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund (NCUSIF).
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.
Best 2-year CD rates of May 2022
Live Oak Bank: 2.20% APY; $2,500 minimum deposit
Live Oak Bank was founded in 2008 and is based in Wilmington, North Carolina. The online bank offers a competitive yield on its savings account. Like most online banks, Live Oak Bank’s Online Savings account doesn’t have a monthly service fee. It also doesn’t require you to keep a minimum balance.
In addition to its savings account, Live Oak Bank offers seven terms of CDs.
Marcus by Goldman Sachs: 2.00% APY; $500 minimum deposit
Marcus is Goldman Sachs’ consumer bank and debuted in 2016. It offers a variety of CDs, three terms of no-penalty CDs and a savings account. Marcus features competitive yields on its savings accounts and CDs, and also offers personal loans, as well as those for debt consolidation and home improvement.
Popular Direct: 1.90% APY; $10,000 minimum deposit
Popular Direct, an online bank, is a subsidiary of Popular Inc., a financial-services company that is more than 120 years old. Popular Direct was previously known as Banco Popular North America.
Popular Direct offers CDs in eight terms, from three months to five years, with a $10,000 minimum deposit to open and interest that compounds daily.
Popular Direct also offers a savings account with a competitive rate.
Bread Savings (formerly Comenity Direct): 1.80% APY; $1,500 minimum deposit
Bread Savings, formerly Comenity Direct, is an online bank that offers high-yield savings products and five terms of CDs ranging from one to five years.
Bread Savings is part of Comenity Capital Bank, which is a unit of Bread Financial.
Pentagon Federal Credit Union: 1.75% APY; $1,000 minimum deposit
Pentagon Federal Credit Union was established in 1935. It has more than 2 million members and is based in McLean, Virginia. PenFed has nine terms of CDs, ranging from six months to seven years.
American Express National Bank: 1.70% APY; $0 minimum deposit
American Express is best known for its credit cards, but the FDIC-insured bank also offers deposit products like savings accounts and CDs. Its CD rates are often competitive. AmEx CDs require no minimum balance and offer terms ranging from six months to five years.
American Express offers a high-yield savings account with a yield that’s well above the national average, and it doesn’t require a minimum deposit or charge a monthly fee. The bank doesn’t offer a checking account or ATM card, however, so savers looking for one-stop banking will have to look elsewhere.
Barclays: 1.70% APY; $0 minimum deposit
Barclays is a global bank founded in London more than 300 years ago. It introduced the first ATM machine to the world in 1967.
Barclays has no minimum balance requirements to open an online CD. It offers nine CD terms ranging from three months to 60 months.
Capital One: 1.70% APY; $0 minimum deposit
Capital One is an online bank that also has branches. It is based in McLean, Virginia.
Capital One offers nine competitive terms of regular CDs. Capital One’s CDs and 360 Performance Savings account don’t have minimum balance requirements.
Synchrony Bank: 1.65% APY; $0.01 minimum deposit
Synchrony Bank offers competitive yields across 12 CD terms. Synchrony’s Best Rate Guarantee promises that CDs funded within 15 days of opening will pay a higher yield should rates increase during the period.
The bank also offers savings and money market accounts. The savings account offers a competitive APY and has no minimum balance requirement.
TAB Bank: 1.65% APY; $1,000 minimum deposit
Transportation Alliance Bank was established in Ogden, Utah, in 1998. It started as a banking service operating inside truck stops before expanding its financial services with a range of personal and business products.
TAB Bank offers several checking and savings account options, a money market account and eight terms of CDs ranging from six months to five years.
Discover Bank: 1.60% APY; $2,500 minimum deposit
Discover Bank may be known for its credit cards, but it also offers other banking products, including checking, money market and savings accounts.
Discover Bank CDs range in terms from three months to 10 years, with most paying competitive yields.
CIBC Bank USA: 1.55% APY; $25,000 minimum deposit to earn APY
CIBC Bank USA, formerly The PrivateBank and Trust Co., was founded in 1991 and is based in Chicago. Its online banking unit is known as CIBC Agility, which offers four terms of Agility Online CDs: nine months, one year, 18 months and two years. It also offers the CIBC Agility Online Savings Account, which earns a competitive yield.
Bethpage Federal Credit Union: 1.50% APY; $50 minimum deposit
Bethpage Federal Credit Union was founded in 1941 for employees of airplane-maker Grumman. It’s based in Bethpage, New York.
Bethpage FCU has more than 400,000 members and offers nine terms of CDs ranging from three months to five years. Bethpage also offers a 39-month bump-up CD, as well as checking and savings accounts, loans and other financial products.
First Internet Bank of Indiana: 1.41% APY; $1,000 minimum deposit
First Internet Bank of Indiana opened in February 1999 and was the first FDIC-insured financial institution to operate entirely online, according to the bank’s website. Its products are available in all 50 U.S. states.
First Internet Bank offers eight terms of CDs, a money market savings account with a competitive yield, a savings account and two checking accounts.
TIAA Bank: 1.40% APY; $1,000 minimum deposit
TIAA Bank is a division of TIAA FSB and has 10 branches, all in Florida. TIAA Bank offers its Basic CDs with terms ranging from three months to five years. It also offers a 42-month bump-up CD, as well as checking and money market accounts, and other products.
Vio Bank: 1.30% APY; $500 minimum deposit
Vio Bank offers both a High Yield Online Savings account and 10 terms of CDs that range from six months to 10 years.
Established in 2018, Vio Bank is the national online division of Oklahoma City-based MidFirst Bank.
Alliant Credit Union: 1.25% APY; $1,000 minimum deposit
Alliant Credit Union was founded in 1935 as United Airlines Employees’ Credit Union. It has about 600,000 members nationwide. Alliant offers competitive APYs with low minimum balance requirements for CDs. Alliant also has traditional individual retirement account (IRA) CDs, Roth IRA CDs and SEP IRA CDs.
BrioDirect: 1.00% APY; $500 minimum deposit
BrioDirect is an online subsidiary of Webster Bank. Its CDs, savings account and money market account earn competitive yields.
BrioDirect offers 11 terms of CDs, ranging from 30 days to five years, all of which require a $500 deposit to earn the disclosed APY. Within this range of terms, the two-year CD offers the highest APY.
Sallie Mae Bank: 1.00% APY; $2,500 minimum deposit
Sallie Mae Bank offers 11 terms of CDs, as well as a savings account and a money market account with no minimum balance requirements or monthly fees. All of these products offer competitive yields.
Sallie Mae Bank was established in 2005 and has its headquarters in Salt Lake City. In 2014, Sallie Mae became a standalone consumer-banking business.
Salem Five Direct: 1.00% APY; $10,000 minimum deposit
Salem Five Direct is an online division of Salem Five, which was founded in Salem, Massachusetts in 1855. Salem Five Direct offers products not available through the Salem Five branch network.
Salem Five Direct offers seven terms of CDs from one to five years. The minimum deposit to open a CD at Salem Five Direct is $10,000.
2-year CD yields offered by popular banks – May 2022
- Navy Federal Credit Union: 0.80% APY; $1,000 minimum balance
- CIT Bank: 0.40% APY; $1,000 minimum balance
- PurePoint Financial: 0.25% APY; $10,000 minimum balance
Navy Federal Credit Union: 0.80% APY; $1,000 minimum balance
Navy Federal Credit Union has about 10 million members and is the world’s largest credit union. It has a global network of 340 branches and is headquartered in Vienna, Virginia.
In addition to CDs, Navy Federal Credit Union also offers checking and savings accounts, loans and credit cards.
CIT Bank: 0.40% APY; $1,000 minimum balance
CIT Bank, an online bank, is a division of First Citizens Bank. CIT Bank offers seven terms of CDs ranging from six months to five years, as well as jumbo CDs and a no-penalty CD with an 11-month term. In addition to CDs, CIT Bank offers savings and money market accounts.
PurePoint Financial: 0.25% APY; $10,000 minimum balance
PurePoint Financial is a division of MUFG Union Bank. It offers nine regular CD terms and three terms of no-penalty CDs. It also has a savings account that offers a competitive yield. But, like all of PurePoint Financial’s products, it comes with a $10,000 minimum deposit to open the account.
Finding the best 2-year CD rates
When looking for a two-year CD, it might be tempting to just sign up with the bank that handles your checking account. But if you want to get the best rate, it pays to shop around and not just accept what your current bank offers.
“Brick-and-mortar banks have a lot of overhead to cover, plus they have a lot of competition from online banks,” says Sheryl Garrett, CFP and founder of the Garrett Planning Network. “Don’t just settle for the first CD rate that’s offered by your bank. Focus on the fact that it’s your money.”
No matter the size of the bank that’s offering the best terms, as long as it’s a member of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. you can feel secure parking your money there. Consumer deposits at all FDIC-insured banks are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government up to $250,000.
Credit unions chartered by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) credit unions, have a standard share insurance amount of $250,0000 per share owner, for each account ownership category.
Best CD rates by term
In general, you’ll find the best CD rates on longer-term CDs. With a five-year CD, for example, you usually end up with a higher yield than what’s available for a two-year CD. Also, as with most certificates of deposit, if you withdraw money from a five-year CD, before the term matures, you’ll likely incur a penalty.
Building a CD ladder
In addition to helping you meet your midterm financial goals, two-year CDs can be used as a rung when you’re building a CD ladder.
Done correctly, laddering allows you to benefit from high rates on longer maturities while still getting regular infusions of cash to spend or reinvest.
With a CD ladder, you divide your deposit amount into CDs with different terms. For example, you could open a three-rung ladder made up of a one-, two- and three-year CD. The one- and two-year CD rates are generally lower than the three-year CD rates, but you might not want all of your money tied up for three years.
A laddering strategy allows you to take advantage of the higher interest rates you earn on longer-term CDs, while still allowing you access to some of your money at regular intervals. As your one-year and two-year CDs mature, you can access that money for spending or investing in higher-yield assets. Or, you can put them in another three-year CD, and it would become the longest-term rung on your CD ladder.
Carefully consider how a two-year CD can fit into a ladder strategy that combines the benefits of a higher overall yield while still allowing you some access to a portion of your funds when the shorter-term CDs mature.
The best 2-year CD rates in May 2022
| Institution | APY | Minimum to earn APY |
| Live Oak Bank | 2.20% | $2,500 |
| Marcus by Goldman Sachs | 2.00% | $500 |
| Popular Direct | 1.90% | $10,000 |
| Bread Savings (formerly Comenity Direct) | 1.80% | $1,500 |
| Pentagon Federal Credit Union | 1.75% | $1,000 |
| American Express National Bank | 1.70% | $0 |
| Barclays | 1.70% | $0 |
| Capital One | 1.70% | $0 |
| Synchrony Bank | 1.65% | $0.01 |
| TAB Bank | 1.65% | $1,000 |
| Discover Bank | 1.60% | $2,500 |
| CIBC Bank USA | 1.55% | $25,000 |
| First Internet Bank of Indiana | 1.41% | $1,000 |
| TIAA Bank | 1.40% | $1,000 |
| Vio Bank | 1.30% | $500 |
| Alliant Credit Union | 1.25% | $1,000 |
| Brio Direct | 1.00% | $500 |
| Sallie Mae Bank | 1.00% | $2,500 |
| Salem Five Direct | 1.00% | $10,000 |
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