Certificates of deposit are having their best stretch in years. Top nationally available CDs pay roughly 4.3%–4.5% APY in 2026 — but the average CD pays far less, and the gap between a good rate and a lazy one is wider than it has been in a long time. With the Federal Reserve having cut three times in 2025 and projecting a lower policy rate by early 2027, the case for locking a strong CD rate is unusually clear. Here is how to find one.

1. Shop nationally, not just locally

The single biggest rate mistake is walking into the branch where you already bank and taking whatever is on the board. Online banks and credit unions routinely out-pay large traditional banks by multiple percentage points on deposits — the same institutions paying under 1% on standard savings are often uncompetitive on CDs too. Any FDIC-insured online bank or NCUA-insured credit union protects your deposit to the same $250,000 per depositor, per institution, per ownership category as a branch on Main Street.

2. Compare APY, not the posted rate

Banks quote both a rate and an annual percentage yield. The APY accounts for how often interest compounds, so it is the number that lets you compare two offers directly. A CD that compounds daily at a slightly lower rate can beat one that compounds annually at a slightly higher one. When you line up offers, line up APYs.

3. Decide your term with the rate cycle in mind

The old rule — longer term, better rate — is not reliable in 2026. With markets expecting rate cuts, many banks pay as much or more on a 1-year CD than a 5-year. That flips the logic of the long CD: you are no longer stretching for extra yield today, you are insuring the yield you can get today against the 2027 and 2028 renewal rates nobody can promise. Lock a multi-year CD near 4.4% now and you keep earning it even if new-issue CDs pay 3.5% at your first renewal. Our full framework is in CD Rates in 2026: Lock Now, or Stay Liquid?

4. Use promotional and bump-up CDs — carefully

Promotional CDs are limited-time rates banks use to attract deposits, often on odd terms like 9 or 13 months. They are frequently the best APY on the menu. Check what the CD renews into — promo CDs often auto-renew into a standard term at a much lower rate if you do nothing at maturity.

Bump-up CDs let you exercise a one-time rate increase if the bank's rates rise during your term. In a falling-rate environment that option is worth less than it was in 2023 — do not give up much starting APY to get it.

5. Check the early-withdrawal penalty before you buy

Penalties commonly run from a few months of interest on short CDs to a year or more of interest on long ones, and they are the real cost of guessing wrong about when you will need the money. If there is a real chance you will need the cash early, a smaller CD plus a high-yield savings account around 4% APY beats one big CD you might have to break. Better still, stagger several CDs so something is always close to maturing — the CD ladder exists for exactly this.

6. Mind jumbo minimums — they are not automatically better

Jumbo CDs (traditionally $100,000 and up) sometimes pay a premium, but in 2026 the best nationally available standard CDs frequently beat jumbo rates at big banks. The deposit size that matters is the one that keeps you under the $250,000 insurance limit at any single institution.

The through-line: in a year when the Fed is done raising and pointing lower, CD shopping is less about squeezing an extra tenth of a percent and more about locking a good number while it is still on the table.