Best 3-year CD rates for September 2024 (up to 4.75% APY)

Editor’s Note: APYs listed in this article are up-to-date as of the time of publication. They may fluctuate (up or down) as the Fed rate changes. CNBC Select will update as changes are made public.

A three-year CD, also commonly referred to as a 36-month CD, allows you to put away a chunk of savings that you know you’ll need in a few years — ensuring it grows and is kept safe.

CNBC Select compared dozens of accounts to determine which three-year CDs are best. Our top picks offer APYs well above the national three-year CD average and all are FDIC- or NCUA-insured. (See our methodology for more information on how we chose the best three-year CD accounts.)

American 1 Credit Union offers one of the highest APYs we found for the specific three-year CD term at 4.75% APY. If you want to maximize the return you earn over three years, this CD account is for you. Credit union membership is open to anyone who joins Community 1 Cooperative, where membership is only $3.

CD terms offered

180 days, 1 year, 18 months, 2 years, 3 years, 4 years, 5 years

Monthly fee

None

Early withdrawal penalty fee

Early withdrawal penalties may apply if funds are removed before maturity date

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The Federal Savings Bank’s three-year CD offers 4.60% APY. It stands out as a solid online banking option since many of the top three-year CD rates we found came from credit unions.

CD terms offered

12 months, 18 months, 2 years, 3 years, 4 years, 5 years

Monthly fee

None

Early withdrawal penalty fee

A penalty may be imposed for early withdrawal

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Credit Human Federal Credit Union offers 4.355% APY on its three-year CD term with only a $500 minimum deposit. This is a good option if you don’t have much to put away in a CD. Credit union membership is available to anyone through enrollment at the American Consumer Council, where Credit Human even handles the enrollment fee for you.

CD terms offered

3 to 5 months, 6 to 11 months, 12 to 17 months, 18 to 23 months, 24 to 35 months, 36 to 59 months, 60 to 83 months, 84 to 119 months, 120 months

Monthly fee

None

Early withdrawal penalty fee

A penalty will be imposed for early withdrawal, including substantial penalties on tax-deferred instruments

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NexBank offers 4.55% APY on its three-year CD, but the required minimum deposit is $10,000 — making it a good choice if you have a large deposit. A 4.55% APY on a $10,000 balance would net you $1,428.05 in interest earnings over the three years.

CD terms offered

3 months, 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, 24 months, 36 months, 48 months, 60 months

Monthly fee

None

Early withdrawal penalty fee

The penalty for early withdrawal on a 12-month CD is 6 months of interest; the penalty for early withdrawal on a 3- or 6-month CD is 1 month of interest; other early withdrawal penalty fees may apply for additional CD terms

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Lafayette Federal Credit Union is a good credit union option if you want the community feel. Its three-year CD offers 4.52% APY. Credit union membership is open to everyone through a lifetime Home Ownership Financial Literacy Council membership for only $10.

CD terms offered

7 months, 1 year, 18 months, 2 years, 3 years, 4 years, 5 years

Monthly fee

None

Early withdrawal penalty fee

Penalties for the fixed-rate certificates and IRA certificates will be imposed on amounts withdrawn whether dividends have been earned or not at the rate paid or payable for the term as follows:

• 7-month, 90 days of dividends
• 1-year & 1-year jumbo, 180 days of dividends
• 2-year & 2-year jumbo, 270 days of dividends
• 3-year & 3-year jumbo, 360 days of dividends
• 4-year & 4-year jumbo, 480 days of dividends
• 5-year & 5-year jumbo, 600 days of dividends

Penalties for the variable-rate certificates and IRA certificates will be imposed on amounts withdrawn whether earned or not at the rate paid or payable for the term as follows:

• 18-month, 180 days of dividends
• 3-year, 360 days of dividends
• 5-year, 600 days of dividends

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CD stands for “certificate of deposit” — and is just that: a deposit account that earns interest. With a CD, you earn a fixed rate of interest for a fixed period. CDs come with different terms, such as six months, one year or five years, and you can’t touch your funds in your CD for the entirety of that specified term length unless you pay an early withdrawal penalty fee plus possibly lose out on accrued interest.

A three-year CD, specifically, is a CD term of three years.

When you put your money in a CD, you earn a fixed interest rate for a fixed amount of time on the money you deposit when you open the account. Term lengths typically range from three months to five years. In this case, the CD term is three years.

While a CD is similar to a savings account, the traditional CD model differs in a couple of important ways:

1. You can only deposit money into the CD once at the beginning of the term. You can’t make additional contributions over the CD’s term. Sometimes, there’s a minimum deposit requirement (usually $500 and up).
2. You can’t access your money before your term ends or you’ll get hit with an early withdrawal penalty. The penalty fees can vary depending on your bank and your CD’s term length, but it’s usually the interest earned or the interest you would have earned, over a certain number of days or months. Generally, the longer the CD term length, the costlier the withdrawal penalty.

Once the CD matures (when the term is over), savers can get their money back, in addition to the interest earned over time, or move the money into a new CD. CD terms usually auto-renew at the rate offered at maturity if you don’t do anything.

One of the reasons you might want to consider a CD over a high-yield savings account is because savings accounts have variable APYs, and with a CD you lock in the rate the day you open the account. This can be good if you open an account when interest rates are high. It’s not so great if you open an account after the Federal Reserve slashes interest rates.

CDs typically don’t come with monthly fees and are federally insured so your money is protected, which makes them one of the safest savings vehicles.

When choosing a CD, first focus on how long you want to keep your money locked up. A three-year CD will keep your funds locked up for three years.

Pick a CD based on your preferred length and the rate will follow. For example, if you want to save up for a down payment on a home in a few years, consider a longer-term CD like a three- or five-year option and then look at what banks offer rate-wise for those specific CD terms. Shorter CD terms, such as three- to six-month CDs, are a good choice for beginners who want to save (and grow) their money for a short-term goal, such as a vacation.

When comparing CDs, make sure you’re looking at CDs with the same term across different banks; this way, you’re comparing “apples-to-apples.” In this instance, you’d look at what banks and credit unions offer on their three-year, or 36-month, CDs.

Once you know the CD term you want, you can compare the different interest rates, as well as the minimum deposit requirements and any fees like early withdrawal penalties.

Some of the pros and cons of CDs are quite the same, and whether you see something as good or bad depends on other factors. We list what we think below.

Pros of CDs

• Fixed interest rates (a good thing when rates are high)
• Can’t touch CD funds until the term is up (a good thing so you’re not tempted to spend)
• Different CD types allow you to have options, such as bump-up CDs (for raising your rate), no-penalty CDs (for easy withdrawals), add-on CDs (for making additional contributions), jumbo CDs (for large deposits) and IRA CDs (for retirement)

Cons of CDs

• Fixed interest rates (a bad thing when rates are low or if rates go up while you’re in the middle of a CD term)
• Can’t touch CD funds until the term is up (a bad thing if you need that money)
• Early withdrawal penalty fees may apply
• Can generally only deposit money into a CD once at the beginning of the term and can’t make additional contributions
• Usually a minimum deposit requirement, typically $500 and up

At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every CD review is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of savings and banking products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics. See our methodology for more information on how we choose the best three-year CDs.

To determine the best three-year CDs, CNBC Select compared dozens of options offered by online banks and credit unions. We found that many of the best three-year CD rates are offered by credit unions, but we only considered those credit unions that had membership eligibility open to anyone.

When ranking the top three-year CDs, we prioritized the ones offering the highest APYs. We then compared three-year CDs by looking at their minimum deposit requirements, penalties for early withdrawals, ease of use and industry rankings. We ranked our top picks by best for high APY, best from an online bank, best for low minimum deposit, best for a large deposit and best from a credit union.

All of the CDs included on this list are FDIC- or NCUA-insured up to $250,000 per person. The rates and fee structures banks advertise for their CD accounts are not guaranteed forever. They are subject to change without notice and they often fluctuate in accordance with the Fed rate. If you open a CD account, however, you’re often locked into that APY offered at account opening for the entire term length.

Your earnings depend on the CD term length, the amount you deposit, the APY offered when you opened the account and any associated fees. Generally, a larger deposit and a higher interest rate will earn you the most money. Any early withdrawals may result in penalty fees that lower your principal balance/earnings.

To open a CD account for the first time at a bank, most banks and institutions require a deposit of new money, meaning you can’t transfer money you already had in an account at that bank.

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