CD Maturity Calculator

About $500 in pre-tax interest, ending at $10,500. After 22% federal tax (typical middle-class bracket), you keep about $390 net interest, ending at $10,390. State tax is on top of that — California (13.3%) would shave another ~$67.

Depends on rate environment and liquidity needs. CDs lock in a fixed rate (good when Fed is cutting), HYSAs vary daily (good when Fed is hiking). Top HYSAs and 6-month CDs are often within 0.5% of each other. Use HYSA for emergency funds; CDs for funds you won't touch for 6+ months and want rate certainty.

Typically 3 months of interest for terms up to 12 months, 6 months of interest for 12–60 month terms. Some banks charge longer (Marcus 9 months on 5-year). The penalty applies even if you withdraw before earning that much interest, meaning you can lose principal on a recently-opened CD.

Yes — CDs are FDIC-insured up to $250,000 per depositor, per bank, per ownership category. For balances above $250K, spread across multiple banks or ownership categories (joint, IRA, trust). Credit union CDs are NCUA-insured at the same $250K limit.

For tax-deferred or tax-free growth, yes — IRA CDs are common at credit unions. Inside a traditional IRA, interest grows tax-deferred. Inside a Roth IRA, interest is tax-free in retirement. Outside an IRA, you owe ordinary income tax on interest each year, even if you don't withdraw.

A strategy of dividing CD investments across multiple maturity dates — e.g., $10,000 each in 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5-year CDs. As each matures, reinvest in a new 5-year. Result: 20% becomes liquid each year, average yield near the 5-year rate, and you continually capture current market rates rather than locking in at one point.

A callable CD lets the bank redeem early (return principal) if rates drop. The bank gets the option, you get a slightly higher rate. Most retail savers should avoid callables — you bear all the risk of rate drops while the bank captures the upside. Stick to non-callable CDs unless the rate premium is substantial (1%+).

Brokered CDs are CDs purchased through a broker (Schwab, Fidelity, Vanguard) on a secondary market. They're still FDIC-insured by the originating bank, but you don't pay early-withdrawal penalty — you sell on market for whatever price (potentially below par if rates rose). Brokered CDs offer more variety and can be slightly higher-yielding than direct bank CDs.