Last updated: May 2026

1-Year CD Calculator

A 1-year CD is the most common short-term CD — long enough to qualify for a top-tier APY at most banks, short enough to avoid being locked into a rate if conditions change.

Calculate a 1-Year CD

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Use the APY from your bank's offer — already includes compounding.

CD Term
1-Year CD (12 months)

Use the full calculator to pick a different term.

Maturity Value
—
Matures on —
Initial Deposit —
Total Interest Earned —
APY —
Term 1-Year CD

Need an early-withdrawal penalty estimate or growth chart? Open the full CD calculator →

A 1-year CD is the entry point to CD savings for most people: it commits the funds for 12 months in exchange for a rate that's typically 0.25–0.75 percentage points higher than a high-yield savings account at the same bank. Common use cases include parking a tax refund, holding a year-end bonus, building a CD ladder's shortest rung, or earmarking money for an expense roughly a year out.

At today's rates, 1-year CDs are usually the highest-APY CD term offered by online banks — the yield curve has been flat or inverted, meaning shorter-term CDs sometimes pay more than longer ones. A $10,000 1-year CD at 4.50% APY earns $450; at 5.00% it earns $500. Returns scale linearly with deposit size.

1-Year CD Interest by Deposit and APY

Total interest earned (and maturity value) on a 1-year cd at common deposit sizes and APYs, calculated as Deposit × (1 + APY)1 − Deposit.

Deposit 4.00% APY4.25% APY4.50% APY4.75% APY5.00% APY
$1,000
$40.00
$1,040.00 total
$42.50
$1,042.50 total
$45.00
$1,045.00 total
$47.50
$1,047.50 total
$50.00
$1,050.00 total
$5,000
$200.00
$5,200.00 total
$212.50
$5,212.50 total
$225.00
$5,225.00 total
$237.50
$5,237.50 total
$250.00
$5,250.00 total
$10,000
$400.00
$10,400.00 total
$425.00
$10,425.00 total
$450.00
$10,450.00 total
$475.00
$10,475.00 total
$500.00
$10,500.00 total
$25,000
$1,000.00
$26,000.00 total
$1,062.50
$26,062.50 total
$1,125.00
$26,125.00 total
$1,187.50
$26,187.50 total
$1,250.00
$26,250.00 total
$50,000
$2,000.00
$52,000.00 total
$2,125.00
$52,125.00 total
$2,250.00
$52,250.00 total
$2,375.00
$52,375.00 total
$2,500.00
$52,500.00 total
$100,000
$4,000.00
$104,000.00 total
$4,250.00
$104,250.00 total
$4,500.00
$104,500.00 total
$4,750.00
$104,750.00 total
$5,000.00
$105,000.00 total

Top number: interest earned over the 1-year cd term. Bottom number: maturity value (deposit + interest). Linked deposit amounts open the deposit-anchored CD calculator page with full APY × term tables.

1-Year CD: Real Return After Inflation

At 4.50% APY on a $10,000 deposit, here is what a 1-year cd's nominal interest is worth after inflation eats some of the purchasing power. Real return uses the Fisher relation: (1 + APY) / (1 + inflation) − 1.

Inflation Assumption Real Interest Nominal Interest Real Maturity Value
2.5% (long-run CPI average) $195.12 $450.00 $10,195.12
3.0% (recent average) $145.63 $450.00 $10,145.63
3.5% (above-target) $96.62 $450.00 $10,096.62

Real interest = inflation-adjusted purchasing-power gain. Nominal interest is the dollar amount the bank credits. See the inflation calculator to model other rates.

1-Year CD Interest After Federal Tax

CD interest is taxed as ordinary income each year. Below: net interest earned on a 1-year cd at 4.50% APY after federal income tax at common marginal brackets, for several deposit sizes. State tax (where applicable) is on top of these numbers. Holding the CD inside a traditional IRA defers this tax until withdrawal.

Federal Bracket $10,000$25,000$50,000
12% bracket
$396.00
−$54.00 tax
$990.00
−$135.00 tax
$1,980.00
−$270.00 tax
22% bracket
$351.00
−$99.00 tax
$877.50
−$247.50 tax
$1,755.00
−$495.00 tax
24% bracket
$342.00
−$108.00 tax
$855.00
−$270.00 tax
$1,710.00
−$540.00 tax
32% bracket
$306.00
−$144.00 tax
$765.00
−$360.00 tax
$1,530.00
−$720.00 tax
35% bracket
$292.50
−$157.50 tax
$731.25
−$393.75 tax
$1,462.50
−$787.50 tax

Top number: net interest after federal tax. Bottom number: federal tax owed. Multi-year CD interest is taxed each year as it accrues.

1-Year CD: Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a 1-year CD earn? +

A 1-year CD earns deposit × APY in interest. At 4.50% APY: $10,000 earns $450, $25,000 earns $1,125, $50,000 earns $2,250, and $100,000 earns $4,500. At 5.00% APY: $10,000 earns $500, $25,000 earns $1,250, $50,000 earns $2,500, and $100,000 earns $5,000. The math is simple at a 1-year term — APY and stated rate produce the same return because compounding finishes after one period.

Is a 1-year CD better than a high-yield savings account? +

A 1-year CD typically pays 0.25–0.75 percentage points more than a high-yield savings account, in exchange for locking up the funds for 12 months. On $10,000 over a year, that's $25–$75 of extra interest. The trade-off: HYSAs are fully liquid, while breaking a 1-year CD early triggers an early-withdrawal penalty (usually 3 months of interest, or about $112 on a $10,000 CD at 4.50%). If you might need the money, the HYSA usually wins on practical grounds; if you're sure you won't, the CD wins on rate.

What is the early-withdrawal penalty on a 1-year CD? +

Most 1-year CDs charge 3 months of interest as the early-withdrawal penalty. On a $10,000 1-year CD at 4.50% APY, that's about $112. The penalty is calculated against the deposit, so if you withdraw before enough interest has accrued (very early in the term), the penalty can dip into your principal and you'd receive less than your original deposit. Some no-penalty CDs exist with similar 1-year terms but usually offer 0.25–0.50 percentage points lower APY.

Can I find a 1-year CD with no minimum deposit? +

A handful of online banks and credit unions offer 1-year CDs with no minimum deposit, but most institutions require at least $500–$1,000. The best APYs are usually reserved for deposits of $1,000–$10,000 or more. Brokered CDs sold through brokerages can have minimums as low as $1,000 and sometimes feature higher rates than direct-from-bank CDs at the same term.

Should I open a 1-year CD or a longer-term CD? +

Pick the term that matches when you'll need the money. If you might need access within a year, the 1-year CD is the right fit. If you have a longer time horizon, longer terms (3–5 years) typically pay similar or marginally higher rates — but you give up flexibility. A common middle ground is a CD ladder: split the deposit across 1-, 2-, 3-, 4-, and 5-year CDs so one rung matures every year and you keep both the longer-term rates and rolling liquidity.

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Inflation

See how inflation affects a CD's real purchasing-power return.

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