Savings rates in September 2026
What happened to US savings, money market and CD rates in September 2026, measured on 1,577 deposit products from 296 banks and credit unions whose rates we verify at the source.
Key findings
- The median high-yield savings APY was unchanged: 25 of 147 accounts raised their rate, 8 cut it and 114 held steady.
- Money market accounts: median 3.20% to 3.25% (up 5 basis points); high-yield checking: 4.25% to 4.50% (up 25 basis points).
- 6 of 7 CD terms ended the month with a higher median APY; the 18-month term moved most (+10 bps, 3.65% to 3.75%).
- CDs saw 129 recorded increases and 20 decreases across 143 products at 45 institutions.
Median CD APY by term
Median APY by account type
| Account type | Sep 1 | Oct 1 | Change | Rose / fell / same | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High-yield savings | 3.25% | 3.25% | no change | 25 / 8 / 114 | 147 |
| Money market | 3.20% | 3.25% | +5 bps | 11 / 7 / 85 | 103 |
| High-yield checking | 4.25% | 4.50% | +25 bps | 5 / 5 / 75 | 85 |
| 3-month CD | 3.51% | 3.51% | no change | 18 / 4 / 46 | 68 |
| 6-month CD | 3.58% | 3.68% | +9 bps | 45 / 7 / 82 | 134 |
| 12-month CD | 3.70% | 3.75% | +5 bps | 70 / 11 / 106 | 187 |
| 18-month CD | 3.65% | 3.75% | +10 bps | 37 / 3 / 69 | 109 |
| 2-year CD | 3.54% | 3.63% | +9 bps | 49 / 7 / 80 | 136 |
| 3-year CD | 3.50% | 3.53% | +2 bps | 35 / 3 / 84 | 122 |
| 5-year CD | 3.55% | 3.65% | +10 bps | 38 / 5 / 70 | 113 |
Same products on both dates. A median needs at least 5 products; 1 basis point (bp) = 0.01 percentage point. Each account type links to today’s full ranking on YourBestSavings.
Recorded rate changes by product type
| Product type | Increases | Decreases | Products | Institutions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High-yield savings | 8 | 1 | 9 | 9 |
| Money market | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| CDs | 129 | 20 | 143 | 45 |
| High-yield checking | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| HSA cash accounts | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
Every real change in an institution’s published APY recorded September 1, 2026 to September 30, 2026, including changes to products that have since been discontinued. Corrections to our own earlier data are not counted. The full change log, which includes those corrections, is on the YourBestSavings rate history page.
Biggest movers
Largest net APY changes from September 1, 2026 to October 1, 2026 among the products above. A rate that was changed and changed back nets to zero and is not listed. Only products with a real rate change at the institution in the period are considered. Net changes larger than 1 percentage point (2 products) are left out because, on review, most combined a bank change with corrections of our own earlier data.
Largest increases
| Institution | Product | Before | After | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CIBC Bank USA | CIBC Bank USA 24-Month CD 2-year CD · last change Sep 23 | 3.00% | 4.00% | +100 bps |
| First National Bank of America | First National Bank of America 10-Year CD 10-year CD · last change Sep 27 | 4.00% | 4.60% | +60 bps |
| Neighborhood Credit Union | 18-Month CD 18-month CD · last change Sep 21 | 3.50% | 4.10% | +60 bps |
| CIBC Bank USA | CIBC Bank USA 30-Month CD 30-month CD · last change Sep 26 | 3.00% | 3.50% | +50 bps |
| First National Bank of America | First National Bank of America 36-Month CD 3-year CD · last change Sep 27 | 3.80% | 4.30% | +50 bps |
Largest decreases
| Institution | Product | Before | After | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Members Choice Credit Union | 18-Month CD 18-month CD · last change Sep 21 | 3.75% | 3.00% | −75 bps |
| Members Choice Credit Union | 24-Month CD 2-year CD · last change Sep 21 | 3.51% | 3.00% | −51 bps |
| Digital Federal Credit Union | 6-Month Jumbo Certificate 6-month CD · last change Sep 21 | 3.75% | 3.50% | −25 bps |
| Partners Federal Credit Union | Partners FCU 3 Month Emergency Fund Certificate 3-month CD · last change Sep 27 | 3.25% | 3.00% | −25 bps |
| Members Choice Credit Union | 36-Month CD 3-year CD · last change Sep 21 | 3.25% | 3.00% | −25 bps |
Find today’s best rates
This study describes the whole market we track, not the best deals. For the top accounts right now, ranked by ByTheMath score, see the best high-yield savings accounts, the best CD rates (or by term: 12-month, 5-year) and money market accounts on YourBestSavings, or the network-wide best rates this week. Interest from all of these accounts is taxable; YourBestTaxes explains how savings and CD interest is taxed.
Methodology
- Data source
- The ByTheMath deposit database that powers YourBestSavings. Rates are read from each institution’s own website by a daily scanner and confirmed in review; every change is written to a change log with its date. Only US products are included; Canadian products are excluded.
- Products measured
- Personal (not business) high-yield savings, money market, high-yield checking and CD products that are live and ranked on October 7, 2026 and were in our database before September 1, 2026: 1,577 products from 296 institutions. CD terms are exact (12-month means a 12-month term); IRA and brokered CDs are excluded.
- How medians are computed
- For each product we take the headline APY in effect at the start and at the end of the period, reconstructed from the change log (the “before” rate of the first change after that moment, or today’s rate if nothing changed since), then take the median across the same set of products on both dates. Effective-rate adjustments for conditions or balance caps are not applied.
- How changes are counted
- Each recorded APY change in the period counts once (duplicate log entries are merged). Only genuine bank rate changes are counted: changes our scanner detected on the institution’s own page, including those a reviewer approved. Our own data corrections, manual or agent edits and backfills are excluded, so the counts measure what institutions changed, not what we fixed. HSA cash accounts are counted but have no median here.
- Limits
- Products discontinued before October 7, 2026 are not in the median sample. A completed month is published once and not recalculated. Rates change often: confirm any rate with the institution before you open an account.
FAQ
- What was the median high-yield savings rate in September 2026?
- Among 147 US high-yield savings accounts we tracked on both dates, the median APY was 3.25% on September 1, 2026 and 3.25% on October 1, 2026 (unchanged). 25 accounts raised their rate, 8 cut it and 114 were unchanged.
- Did CD rates go up or down in September 2026?
- 6 of 7 CD terms we measure had a higher median APY at month-end than on September 1, 2026. The median 12-month CD went from 3.70% to 3.75%; the largest move was the 18-month term (+10 bps).
- How many savings and CD rates changed in September 2026?
- 140 APY increases and 23 decreases were recorded during the month across savings, money market, CD, checking and HSA cash products, including 129 CD increases and 20 CD decreases. The counts include only real changes to the institution’s published rate, not our own data corrections.
- Where does this data come from?
- From the ByTheMath database behind YourBestSavings: rates are read from each bank's or credit union's own website by a daily scanner and confirmed in review. This study covers 1,577 US personal deposit products from 296 institutions. Canadian products are not included.
- Can I use these numbers?
- Yes. Cite "ByTheMath" and link to this page. The figures are also available as JSON at bythemath.com/studies/data/savings-rates-september-2026.json.
More studies
Next: Savings rates in October 2026 (month to date). All monthly studies are listed on the studies page. Data: JSON. Licensing the full dataset: ByTheMath API.