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Brian McKay

Co-Founder & Lead Data Architect

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Brian is the Co-Founder of MonitorBankRates.com. For over 18 years, he has utilized his background in enterprise infrastructure to engineer proprietary systems that track rates from over 8,000 financial institutions.

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| September 14, 2026 | 5 min read

Average CD Rates Set New Summer Highs the Day Before the Fed Meets

Average CD rates rose on all eight terms for a second straight report, and 12-month CDs reached 2.901%, a new high for our summer reports. The Federal Reserve opens its two-day meeting tomorrow and announces its decision Wednesday afternoon.

The Federal Reserve sits down tomorrow with average certificate of deposit rates at the highest levels of our summer reports. All eight terms rose again since September 8: 12-month CD rates added 0.037 points to 2.901%, their first average above 2.9% in our reports, while 48-month CD rates posted the week's largest gain, up 0.060 points to 2.740%, and 60-month CDs reached 2.847%. Even 3-month CD rates, the only average still under 2%, added a third straight gain at 1.932%.

A second straight week of gains on all eight terms

Short and mid-term CD rates, national average APY since late March

Average APYs from MonitorBankRates.com's nightly collection, updated daily. Figures in the text and table are this report's verified averages and can differ slightly from the nightly series.

For a second report in a row, every CD term we track rose. 60-month CD rates climbed 0.058 points to 2.847% and 24-month CD rates 0.057 points to 2.819%, both their highest averages of our recent reports. 18-month CD rates added a third straight strong gain, 0.052 points to 2.771%, and 6-month CDs reached 2.720%. Across all eight terms the average rose to 2.683% from 2.637%, higher than at any point in our summer reports. One caution belongs next to those figures: the pool of institutions reporting CD rates to us grew substantially this week, and when a pool grows that much, an average can move on the mix of new reporters alone. Every term pointed the same direction, but the exact sizes of this week's gains deserve less weight than usual.

Longer-term CD rates, national average APY since late March

Average APYs from the nightly collection, updated daily.

12-month CD rates top 2.9% for the first time this summer

A month ago, 12-month CD rates were drifting in the low 2.8s. Two strong weeks later they stand at 2.901%, and a $10,000 deposit at that average earns about $290 over a year. The week's biggest mover sat further down the table: 48-month CD rates rose 0.060 points to 2.740%, edging ahead of 36-month CDs at 2.734% after the two spent the summer in the opposite order. Mid-length terms remain closely bunched, from 2.720% at 6 months to 2.771% at 18 months, so for savers in that stretch the choice still comes down to timeline more than rate.

Weekly change by CD term (percentage points)

This report's verified averages, September 8 to September 14. Green bars rose.

CD rates this week: September 8 vs. September 14

The decision arrives Wednesday afternoon

The Federal Reserve's meeting runs Tuesday and Wednesday, with the decision announced Wednesday afternoon. Late last week, futures markets priced a quarter-point increase near 60%, close enough to a coin flip that neither outcome should surprise anyone. The benchmark rate has held at 3.50% to 3.75% since December, and three committee members voted to raise it back in July. For a CD saver the mechanics are simple: a CD opened Monday or Tuesday locks its rate before the announcement and keeps it long after, while offers on CDs not yet opened can change once banks react. Our next report is the first that will show what banks actually did with CD rates after the decision, whichever way it goes.

Test a CD against live averages, not sample numbers

Our calculators now run on the same live data behind this report. The CD calculator starts from today's national average APY for whichever term you pick, computed from CD rates published by more than 8,000 banks and credit unions and updated every day, and it can load your state's averages instead of the national figures. The CD ladder calculator prices every rung of a ladder from the live average for that rung's own term, then compares the ladder against a single long-term CD, useful this week for savers who want money coming free at regular intervals no matter what the Fed does Wednesday. The strongest 12-month offers in our data reach 6.03%, more than double the 2.901% average, so comparing institutions still pays better than watching weekly moves. Savers checking local offers can line up California CD rates against the national averages, and term-by-term history is on our CD rate history page.

The bottom line with the decision two days out

CD savers head into the Fed's meeting with every average we track at its highest level of our summer reports and a second straight week of gains on all eight terms behind it. Wednesday's announcement decides what comes next, and our next report will show how banks answered it. What no decision changes is the distance between institutions: behind the 2.901% average, 12-month offers in our data run as high as 6.03%, and finding the strong offer is worth more than timing the meeting.