The best 18-month CD rate is 5.25% APY from DR Bank and NASA Federal Credit Union. The minimum deposit requirement to open this top 18-month CD is $10,000. CD rates are near historic highs, with the top 18-month CD rates ranging from 5.00% to 5.25% APY.
To find you the best CD rates nationwide, we review CD rates from hundreds of banks and credit unions every weekday morning. We've been tracking 18-month CD rates since 2019, and the top CD rates in our rankings typically pay three to five times as much as the national average—or even more.
Below are the top CD rates available from our partners, followed by the best 18-month CD rates we've found from our research that are available to U.S. customers everywhere.
IN THE NEWS
The Fed held rates steady for a seventh consecutive time at its June 12 meeting. The federal funds rate is at its highest level since 2001, but Fed officials are projecting one or possibly two rate cuts before the end of the year. CD yields closely follow the fed funds rate. Back in October, CD rates reached peaks not seen in more than 20 years, but once the Fed starts cutting rates, CD rates will fall.
Where more than one institution pays the same top rate, our rankings prioritize CDs by the shortest term, then the CD requiring the smallest minimum deposit. If there is still a tie, we then rank alphabetically by institution name.
Best 18-Month CD Rates
- DR Bank - 5.25% APY
- NASA Federal Credit Union - 5.25% APY
- State Department Federal Credit Union - 5.20% APY
- FedChoice Federal Credit Union - 5.15% APY
- Credit Human - 5.10% APY
- MYSB Direct - 5.10% APY
- Soarion Credit Union - 5.05% APY
- The Federal Savings Bank - 5.05% APY
- Northern Bank Direct - 5.00% APY
- Technology Credit Union - 5.00% APY
- CFG Bank - 5.00% APY
- Bask Bank - 5.00% APY
- Seattle Bank - 5.00% APY
- CommunityWide Federal Credit Union - 5.00% APY
- Newtek Bank - 5.00% APY
- LendingClub - 5.00% APY
- My eBanc - 5.00% APY
- West Town Bank and Trust - 5.00% APY
The annual percentage yield (APY) is the interest rate earned on an investment in one year, including compounding interest. A higher APY is better as your return will be higher.
Detailed information on these top-paying nationally available 18-month CDs is provided below, including specifics about minimum deposits and early withdrawal penalties. For credit union CDs, information is also provided on how to easily join the credit unions offering them.
Why You Can Trust Our Expert Recommendations for the Best 18-Month CD Rates
Googlawi collects thousands of CD rates from hundreds of banks and credit unions every weekday. When ranking CD rates, we look at factors like term, early withdrawal penalty, and minimum opening deposit. We also research banks and credit unions to provide unbiased, comprehensive reviews to ensure our readers make the right decisions for their needs.
Googlawi launched in 1999 and has been helping readers find the best CD rates since 2019. Back when we first started tracking 18-month CD rates, the top interest rate on an 18-month CD was 2.70% APY. By October 2023, the top 18-month CD rate was 6.00%—over two times what it was four years earlier. While CD rates have fallen since then, they remain high in 2024.
The CDs we recommend must be available nationwide and these certificates typically pay three to five times as much as the national average—or even more. To be eligible for our rankings, each CD's minimum opening deposit requirement cannot exceed $25,000 and must be offered by an FDIC-insured bank or NCUA-insured credit union (which covers up to $250,000 per depositor).
DR Bank - 5.25% APY
- Term (months): 15
- Minimum deposit: $500
- Early withdrawal penalty: 6 months of interest
- Overview: DR Bank was founded in 2006 in Connecticut, where it still operates two branches. Accounts are available nationally through digital banking.
NASA Federal Credit Union - 5.25% APY
- Term (months): 15
- Minimum deposit: $10,000
- Early-withdrawal penalty: All earned interest up to 6 months
- Overview: Anyone can join NASA FCU by signing up for a free membership in the National Space Society and holding $5 or more in a savings account. NASA FCU was founded in 1949 and is headquartered in Maryland.
State Department Federal Credit Union - 5.20% APY
- Term (months): 15
- Minimum deposit: $500
- Early withdrawal penalty: All earned interest up to 6 months' worth
- Overview: Anyone is eligible for membership with SDFCU by joining the nonprofit American Consumer Council. SDFCU was chartered in 1935 and is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia.
FedChoice Federal Credit Union - 5.15% APY
- Term (months): 15
- Minimum deposit: $500
- Early withdrawal penalty: 3 months of interest
- Overview: Anyone is eligible for membership by allowing FedChoice to make a donation on their behalf to the FedChoice Charitable Foundation and keeping a minimum balance of $5 in a savings account. Headquartered in Lanham, Maryland, FedChoice originally was established in 1935 to serve employees of the IRS.
Credit Human - 5.10% APY
- Term (months): 18-23
- Minimum deposit: $500
- Early-withdrawal penalty: 9 months of interest ($50 minimum)
- Overview: Anyone can join Credit Human by agreeing to a complimentary membership in the nonprofit American Consumer Council and keeping at least $5 in a member savings account. The credit union is headquartered in San Antonio and dates back to 1935.
MYSB Direct - 5.10% APY
- Term (months): 18
- Minimum deposit: $500
- Early-withdrawal penalty: All earned interest (3 months minimum)
- About: MYSB Direct is the online banking arm of M.Y. Safra Bank, which is headquartered in New York City and operates a single branch there.
Soarion Credit Union - 5.05% APY
- Term (months): 18
- Minimum deposit: $1,000
- Early withdrawal penalty: 50% of interest
- Overview: Headquartered in San Antonio, Soarion was established in 1952 as Lackland Federal Credit Union. Anyone nationwide is eligible for membership by joining the Dream Educational Foundation for $10.
The Federal Savings Bank - 5.05% APY
- Term (months): 18
- Minimum deposit: $5,000
- Early withdrawal penalty: 6 months of interest
- Overview: The Federal Savings Bank is a national bank with a network of over 55,000 ATMs across the U.S. It offers checking and savings accounts, as well as mortgages and loans.
Northern Bank Direct - 5.00% APY
- Term (months): 15
- Minimum deposit: $500
- Early withdrawal penalty: 12 months of interest
- Overview: Northern Bank Direct is the online division of Northern Bank. FDIC-insured since 1960, Northern Bank is headquartered in Woburn, Massachusetts.
Technology Credit Union - 5.00% APY
- Term (months): 15
- Minimum deposit: $1,000
- Early-withdrawal penalty: 6 months of interest
- Overview: Membership in the credit union is available to anyone who joins the Financial Fitness Association for $8, or one of several other affiliated organizations. Chartered in 1960, Technology Credit Union is headquartered in San Jose, California.
CFG Bank - 5.00% APY
- Term (months): 18
- Minimum deposit: $500
- Early withdrawal penalty: 6 months of interest
- Overview: Headquartered in Baltimore with two brick-and-mortar branches in that area, CFG offers select banking products online to customers throughout the country. It dates back to 1927.
Bask Bank - 5.00% APY
- Term (months): 18
- Minimum deposit: $1,000
- Early withdrawal penalty: 6 months of interest
- Overview: Bask Bank is a division of FDIC-insured Texas Capital Bank, headquartered in Dallas. As an online-only bank, Bask has no physical branches.
Seattle Bank - 5.00% APY
- Term (months): 18
- Minimum deposit: $1,000
- Early withdrawal penalty: 6 months of interest
- Overview: Seattle Bank began as a mortgage company in the 1940s. It serves online customers across the country and operates a branch in downtown Seattle, Washington.
CommunityWide Federal Credit Union - 5.00% APY
- Term (months): 18
- Minimum deposit: $1,000
- Early withdrawal penalty: Complex formula; refer to disclosures and exercise caution.
- Overview: Anyone can join CommunityWide by donating $15 to the credit union's local chapter of the Marine Corps, as well as keeping $5 or more in a savings account. CommunityWide was founded in 1967, and now operates in Michigan and Indiana.
Newtek Bank - 5.00% APY
- Term (months): 18
- Minimum deposit: $2,500
- Early withdrawal penalty: 6 months of interest
- Overview: Newtek Bank is a subsidiary of Newtek One (NASDAQ: NEWT), a financial company that dates back to 2000. Newtek Bank is headquartered in Miami.
LendingClub - 5.00% APY
- Term (months): 18
- Minimum deposit: $2,500
- Early withdrawal penalty: All interest earned on amount withdrawn
- Overview: LendingClub began operations as an online full-spectrum bank in 2007, with the parent company, LendingClub Bank, being an FDIC member since 1987. It is headquartered in San Francisco.
My eBanc - 5.00% APY
- Term (months): 18
- Minimum deposit: $5,000
- Early withdrawal penalty: 6 months of interest
- Overview: My eBanc is an online banking arm of the brick-and-mortar institution BAC Florida Bank, established in 1973.
West Town Bank and Trust - 5.00% APY
- Term (months): 18
- Minimum deposit: $10,000
- Early withdrawal penalty: 3 months of interest
- Overview: Founded in 1922 and based in North Riverside, Illinois, West Town Bank and Trust also operates out of Raleigh, North Carolina. West Town Bank and Trust does not offer online account opening, but CD accounts are available nationwide and can be opened by phone.
What Is an 18-Month CD and How Does It Work?
Certificates of deposit (CDs) are fixed-interest accounts where you can deposit your money and then withdraw it later. You can get a CD from a bank or credit union. An 18-month CD requires you to keep the funds untouched for about a year and a half. For our rankings, we consider 18-month CDs to be anything with a term of 15 to 20 months.
In exchange for giving up access to your funds, you'll generally be rewarded with a higher interest rate than the bank pays on savings and money market accounts that allow flexible withdrawals.
When opening a CD, you deposit a lump sum of funds into the account at or above the minimum required deposit for that CD. The funds will then sit in the account for 18 months, earning interest along the way. When the CD hits its maturity date, you can take the funds plus their earned interest out of the account with no penalty.
Fast Fact
When asked in late April what they would invest in if they had an extra $10,000, 12% of Googlawi readers said they would open a CD. Back in December and January, 11% and 9% of readers (respectively) said they’d invest extra funds in CDs, with that share dipping even further to 8% in March. While CDs sit below individual stocks as the top response (at 19%), CDs are always a good option for those looking for safer investments.
Pros and Cons of 18-Month CDs
Pros
- Offers a guaranteed rate for 18 months: No matter what happens with the Federal Reserve and interest rates, the bank cannot change the APY you secure when you sign your CD agreement and make your deposit.
- May pay a higher APY than other terms: Shopping around is critical, as rates can vary widely across institutions and also across different CD lengths.
- Pays reliable and predictable earnings: Because your CD rate is fixed and your term is known, you can calculate exactly how much your earnings will amount to once the CD matures.
- Is safe and virtually risk-free: CDs opened at an FDIC bank or NCUA credit union are federally insured, protecting up to $250,000 of your deposits in the unlikely event that the institution fails.
- Can deter the temptation to spend since funds are tied up: Withdrawing your funds before the CD matures will trigger an early withdrawal penalty, which may be enough to stop you from pulling the funds out for unplanned spending.
Cons
- Incurs a penalty if you withdraw early: Every bank and credit union specifies their policy on how they'll calculate your penalty if you don't keep your CD funds deposited until maturity. Typically, the penalty is a number of months' interest that you'll forfeit.
- Allows only one deposit amount: With most CDs, you get one chance to decide how much you want to invest in the certificate. Additional deposits are generally not allowed.
- If rates fall, you may wish you'd opted for a longer term: Investing in a longer CD would have allowed you to retain a good rate for a longer period of time
- If rates rise, you'll be locked at a lower rate until maturity: If you lock into an 18-month CD and then rates rise, you'll be stuck with your current rate until you can withdraw your funds.
Though consumers tend to think about CD maturity terms in nice round numbers, be sure to consider odd-term CDs, such as 15-month, 18-month, or 21-month certificates. It's not uncommon for promotional rate CDs to have unusual durations, so don't limit yourself to only the conventional terms.
Factors to Consider When Choosing a CD
When choosing a CD, consider the following factors:
- Your goals: Both short-term financial goals and long-term financial goals are important.
- How much money you can deposit: CDs have minimums, so if you only have $500 to deposit, you'll need to find a CD with that minimum balance requirement.
- How long you can leave that money in the CD without touching it: This will help you determine the right term—whether that's a 1-year CD or a 3-year CD.
- Interest rates offered for your term and minimum deposit: The higher the rate, the more you will earn on your deposit during the CD term.
- CD type: Is it a bump-up CD or a regular CD? This will ensure you're choosing one that meets your needs and goals.
Once you choose a CD, open the account, and deposit your money to start earning interest.
Hilarey Gould, Senior Editorial Director for Financial Products and Services at Googlawi
When choosing an 18-month CD, be sure to review the early withdrawal penalty. If you think you might need to withdraw your money before the CD matures, look for a CD with a lower penalty so that you end up with the most money possible when you withdraw. If you are positive that you won't touch the money in the CD until maturity, you may feel comfortable opening a CD with a more expensive penalty.
The 18-Month CD Penalties and Fees
Almost all CDs—not just 18-month CDs—come with an early withdrawal penalty. That means that if you decide to take your money out of the CD before the date the CD matures, you have to pay some sort of fee. The fee is typically in the form of interest you have earned, such as three or six months' worth of interest.
For example, let's say you deposited $1,000 in an 18-month CD with a 5.00% APY. The total interest you would earn by keeping it in the CD for 18 months is $75.93. If the CD comes with an early withdrawal penalty worth six months of interest, then you would have to pay $25.31 if you decided to take your money out early.
Other than the early withdrawal penalty, CDs don't typically come with any other fees (though the banking institution may require some).
How to Find the Best 18-Month CD Rates
This list includes the best 18-month CD rates, meaning that they are the highest 18-month CD rates nationwide. To find you the top 18-month CD rates, we look at hundreds of banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions every day and gather the CDs with the highest rates that are available nationwide, including CDs with terms of 15 to 20 months.
When looking for an 18-month CD, consider the amount of money you want to deposit, the interest rate on the CD, and the early withdrawal penalty. For example, if a 20-month CD offers a 5.00% interest rate on a $25,000 deposit, but a 12-month withdrawal penalty, you may want to compare it with a 15-month CD with the same deposit but a six-month withdrawal penalty.
This comparison is important to think about because if you need that money back sooner than maturity, you need to know what amount of interest you'll lose by withdrawing early. With that in mind, you'll need to first compare your options based on your deposit amount, then look at the rate and early withdrawal penalty.
Note
CD rates are the same for everyone who applies to open a CD. Your credit score and other financial history and experience are not determining factors like they are with credit cards or loans. So even if you have bad credit, you can earn a high interest rate on your savings by locking it up in a CD for a period of time.
How to Open an 18-Month CD
After you find the right CD for you, you'll need to apply to open the account. This may be easy if you're already a member of the bank or credit union. If you're not, you may need to open another savings account first, or apply to be a member of the credit union by joining another free or low-cost organization (the American Consumer Council is a popular one).
To open an 18-month CD, follow these steps:
- Find the CD you want to open, whether online or in-person at the bank or credit union.
- Have a current membership or relationship with the bank or credit union via an open account like a savings or a checking account, and/or through a non-profit organization (typically only applies to credit unions).
- Fill out the application with your name, deposit amount, and other personal info.
- Wait for approval.
- Fund the CD and let your money earn interest. You may be able to send a check, wire the money, or electronically transfer it, depending on the institution.
- Read the CD's terms. This fine print info will tell you the interest rate you'll be paid, the date of the CD's maturity, how often your interest will be paid and compounded, and the early withdrawal penalty (if any) that you need to pay if you request to withdraw your money before maturity.
Once your 18-month CD is opened, it's a set-it-and-forget-it process to earn your interest. There are just two times when you may need to take action:
- When you need your money back before maturity: You'll likely pay an early withdrawal penalty and will need to withdraw the funds before transferring them into another account. Then the CD will be closed.
- When your CD matures: You may need to indicate if you want the CD to roll over into another CD at the institution or if you want the money withdrawn and deposited back into your other account.