The top-paying certificates of deposit (CDs) remained fairly steady for🌳 the fourth day in a row, with only the best 4-year CD rate dropping to 4.85%, down from 5.00% the last several days. Otherwise, rates remained at their highs, even despite the Federal Reserve pausing rate hikes and Fed officials hinting at potential increases to the federal funds rate later this year. The highest rate you can earn on a nationally available CD of any length is still 5.65% APY, offered for a 9-month term.

Even though the top rate didn't budge, we've got two more CDs in our daily rankings of the best nationwide CDs paying 5.25% APY or better, bringing our count to 35. We've come a long way since the last Fed meeting in May—on May 4, we only counted 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:seven CDs paying 5.25% or more.

There's no guarantee that rates will stay where they are or even go up again, so now is a good time to take advantage of the high rates while they're still available.

Where Are CD Rates Headed This Year?

CD rates are very directly linked to the federal funds rate, with each change announced by the Fed typically driving CD rates in the same direction. But while today's CD rates are alrꦍeady at their highest levels since 2007, the Fed held rates steady after its meeting this week, announcing yester✨day that there would be no rate hike—the first in 15 months.

While rates did not increase this time, Fed officials did signal that there could be hikes coming this year still—with poteꦅntially another 50 basis points added to the fed funds rate, which is currently at a range of 5.00% to 5.25%.

Whether CD rates are in for another hike or not will depend on what the Fed decides to do during the remaining meetings this year, with the next one concluding on July 26.

Over the past 15 months, the Fed has been on a campaign to combat decades-high inflation with aggressive rate increases totaling 4.25% in 2022, plus three 2023 increases to date totaling another 0.75%. That ascent has been a boon for CD shoppers, in addition to people holding cash in 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:high-yield savings or 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:money market accounts.

Fed Pauses Rate Hikes

This month's Fed meeting marks the first time in over a year without a new Fed rate hike announcement. While the Fed’s rate-setting committee decided to keep rates steady for the time being, the Fed's announcement indicates that there will likely be two additional rate increases this year, which may elevate the federal funds rate another 50 basis points.

Additionally, this hold is being viewed as more of a skip than a pause, with approximately 65% of futures traders currently predicting the Fed rate will be higher after the July 26 meeting.

Whatever the rate-setting committee announces next month, CD rates are expected to follow suit, either plateauing if the Fed maintains the pause or rising further if it announces a new increase. That said, since CD rates are already at their highest levels since 🎃2007, locking in a top-paying certificate now would still secure an excellent rate that will pay dividends far down the road.

Rate Collection Methodology Disclosure

Every business day, Investopedia tracks the rate data of more than 200 banks and credit unions that offer CDs to customers nationwide and determines daily rankings of the top-paying certificates in every major term. To qualify for our lists, the institution must be federally insured (FDIC for banks, NCUA for credit unions), and the CD's minimum initial dep🀅osit must not exceed $25🎐,000.

Banks must be available in at least 40 states. 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开奖号码历史查询:read our full methodology.