Rates on savings accounts are increasing as the Federal Reserve raises interest rates. You can now earn 4.97% or higher on your savings.
Searching for an account where you can park some cash? Here’s a look at some of the best savings rates you’ll find today.
Related: Compare the Best High-Yield Online Savings Accounts
Quoted rates are based on the highest clicked-on rate for each savings type. For banks and credit unions offering the top rates, check out our list of the best high-yield savings accounts.
Savings Rates Today: Traditional Savings Account
Traditional savings accounts, called “statement savings accounts” within the banking industry, have been known for paying puny interest in recent years. That’s slowly changing, thanks to the Fed.
Today’s highest interest rate on a standard savings account is 4.97%, according to data from Bankrate.com. If you score a basic savings account with a rate in that range, you’ve found a good deal. One week ago, the best rate was 4.89%.
The national average rate is just 0.40%, according to the most recent data from the FDIC, the government agency that insures bank deposits. Today’s average APY for a traditional savings account is 1.51%, Bankrate says.
APY, or annual percentage rate, reflects the actual return your account will earn during one year. It factors in compound interest, which is the interest that builds up on the interest in your account.
High-Yield Savings Account Rates Today
High-yield savings accounts generally pay substantially higher interest than a conventional savings account. But the thing to know is you’ll have to meet tough requirements set by the bank or credit union. Often, that means making a large deposit to open the account.
The average APY for high-yield accounts requiring a minimum deposit of $10,000 is now 0.47% APY, up from 0.24% a week ago.
The current average is 0.70% APY for a high-yield account with a $25,000 minimum deposit. That’s above last week’s 0.49%.
Money Market Account Savings Rates Today
Money market accounts (MMAs) are savings accounts that mix in some of the features of checking accounts. Typically, you can write checks and take advantage of debit card privileges.
MMAs tend to pay at least slightly higher interest than a standard savings account. The FDIC says the average MMA rate is 0.59%, versus 0.40% for a traditional savings account.
But today, the best money market accounts have rates as high as 4.07%. That’s steady with the top rate of 4.07% from one week ago.
The average APY for an MMA is now 0.54%, up from 0.53% last week at this time, according to Bankrate.
Related: Savings Rates Forecast 2023
How Often Do Savings Account Interest Rates Change?
Interest rates on savings accounts typically are variable, meaning they can go up or down as other rates change throughout the economy. Savings rates are often influenced by the Federal Reserve’s rate moves, and the central bank in recent months has been pushing up its benchmark federal funds rate to try to get inflation under control.
But while financial institutions are usually quick to boost credit card rates and other borrowing costs as the Fed raises rates, they tend to take their time with increasing the interest paid to savers. Rates on savings accounts have been rising slowly, and that’s likely to continue throughout 2023 as the Fed remains active.
How High Can Savings Rates Go?
That’s tough to say—it depends on the path of inflation and the overall economy.
The highest interest rates in recent memory were seen in 1980 and ‘81, when the Fed sent its federal funds rate soaring above 19%. That was in the face of runaway inflation that had prices rising at an annual rate of more than 14%.
In the early 1980s, the typical five-year CD was paying close to 12%, compared to less than 2% today, according to Bankrate data. Savings rates would eventually fall as inflation cooled off and the federal funds rate was brought back down.
