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Brian McKay

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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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| August 17, 2026 | 5 min read

High-Yield Savings Rates Cross 2.00% While Other Savings Rates Slip

High-yield savings rates jumped 0.140 points to 2.115% over the past two weeks, clearing the 2.00% line they had approached three reports in a row. Every other savings category slipped, which leaves the gap between the best accounts and the average account wider than ever this summer.

For three reports in a row, high-yield savings rates came within a few hundredths of 2.00% and stopped. Over the past two weeks they went through it. The national average for high-yield savings accounts jumped 0.140 points to 2.115%, the biggest move in any direction in our recent savings account rates reports. The rest of the market didn't follow. Standard savings rates eased to 0.809%, jumbo savings to 1.295%, business savings to 0.479%, and credit union savings to 0.246%. The banks competing hardest for deposits just got more generous; the average bank got a little less so.

What happened to savings rates over the past two weeks

Savings rates by account category, national average APY since late March

Average APYs from MonitorBankRates.com's nightly collection, the same series this report's figures come from, updated daily.

The jump in high-yield savings rates stands alone in this report. No other category moved more than 0.032 points in either direction, and all four moved down. Standard savings rates, the broad market that most branch accounts fall into, eased 0.025 points to 0.809%. Jumbo savings rates slipped 0.018 points to 1.295%, business savings fell 0.032 points to 0.479%, and credit union share savings eased 0.020 points to 0.246%, still the lowest average of the five. The ranking across categories didn't change; the distance between first place and everything else did.

The reward for switching accounts just got bigger

Two weeks ago, the difference between the average high-yield savings account and the average standard account was 1.141 points. It's now 1.306 points, the widest in our summer reports. In dollars: $25,000 sitting in an average standard savings account earns about $202 a year, while the same balance at the average high-yield rate earns about $529, a difference of roughly $326 a year for filling out one application. That difference has been large all summer; what changed is that it's growing, because the banks that compete for deposits are raising rates while the banks that don't are quietly trimming them.

Change since July 27, by savings category (percentage points)

This report's averages, July 27 to August 17. Green bars rose; red bars fell.

Compare savings rates: July 27 vs. August 17

Savings rates didn't wait for the Fed

Savings rates are variable; a bank can change them any day, and they usually move when the Federal Reserve moves. That's what makes this report notable. The Fed hasn't touched its benchmark rate since holding it at 3.50% to 3.75% on July 29, the fifth straight hold, yet high-yield savings rates jumped anyway. The push came from the banks themselves, competing for deposits, and the July vote gave them cover to do it: three committee members wanted a quarter-point increase, and inflation remains above the Fed's 2 percent goal. A bank that thought rate cuts were coming soon wouldn't be raising what it pays on savings. Until the Fed meets again in September, the pressure on competitive savings rates looks more up than down.

Is a savings account or a CD the better home for your cash?

The two-week move changed this math in savings accounts' favor. 12-month CD rates average 2.855% in today's CD rate report, which is 0.740 points above the high-yield savings average, down from 0.878 two weeks ago. A CD still pays more, but the case for keeping cash liquid at 2.115%, where you can reach it anytime and where the rate just moved up on its own, is stronger than it was in July. Our CD vs high-yield savings calculator runs the comparison on your actual balance. If you're opening a new account, this checklist for opening a savings account covers what to look for beyond the rate, and savers comparing local options can line up Colorado savings rates against the national averages. Category history is on our savings rate history charts.

The bottom line

The savings market is splitting in two. Banks that want your deposits are now paying above 2% on average after a month of falling just short, and banks that don't are drifting the other way. Which side your money sits on is entirely your choice: the average standard savings account pays 0.809%, while the high-yield average pays more than two and a half times as much. If you haven't looked at your savings account's rate lately, this is a good week to check it.