Last updated: May 2026

5-Year CD Calculator

A 5-year CD is the longest standard CD term offered by most banks — the highest rate when the yield curve slopes up, and the largest compounding effect of any common term.

Calculate a 5-Year CD

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

CD Term
5-Year CD (60 months)

Use the full calculator to pick a different term.

Maturity Value
—
Matures on —
Initial Deposit —
Total Interest Earned —
APY —
Term 5-Year CD

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

A 5-year CD commits funds for 60 months in exchange for a fixed APY. It's the longest standard term most banks offer (a few have 7- or 10-year options, but they're uncommon), so it locks in today's rate for the longest meaningful window. In a normal upward-sloping yield curve, 5-year CDs pay the highest APY of any single CD term; in flat or inverted curves, they may pay the same or slightly less than 3-year CDs but still anchor the long end of any ladder.

Common uses: low-volatility long-term savings, a 5-year ladder's longest rung, retirement-side IRA CDs, or money earmarked for an expense roughly five years out (a college tuition payment, a planned move, a major renovation). A $10,000 5-year CD at 4.50% APY grows to about $12,461.82 over the term — roughly $2,461.82 in compound interest, more than 5× the 1-year return at the same rate because of compounding inside the CD.

5-Year CD Interest by Deposit and APY

Total interest earned (and maturity value) on a 5-year cd at common deposit sizes and APYs, calculated as Deposit × (1 + APY)5 − Deposit.

Deposit 4.00% APY4.25% APY4.50% APY4.75% APY5.00% APY
$1,000
$216.65
$1,216.65 total
$231.35
$1,231.35 total
$246.18
$1,246.18 total
$261.16
$1,261.16 total
$276.28
$1,276.28 total
$5,000
$1,083.26
$6,083.26 total
$1,156.73
$6,156.73 total
$1,230.91
$6,230.91 total
$1,305.80
$6,305.80 total
$1,381.41
$6,381.41 total
$10,000
$2,166.53
$12,166.53 total
$2,313.47
$12,313.47 total
$2,461.82
$12,461.82 total
$2,611.60
$12,611.60 total
$2,762.82
$12,762.82 total
$25,000
$5,416.32
$30,416.32 total
$5,783.67
$30,783.67 total
$6,154.55
$31,154.55 total
$6,529.00
$31,529.00 total
$6,907.04
$31,907.04 total
$50,000
$10,832.65
$60,832.65 total
$11,567.33
$61,567.33 total
$12,309.10
$62,309.10 total
$13,058.00
$63,058.00 total
$13,814.08
$63,814.08 total
$100,000
$21,665.29
$121,665.29 total
$23,134.66
$123,134.66 total
$24,618.19
$124,618.19 total
$26,115.99
$126,115.99 total
$27,628.16
$127,628.16 total

Top number: interest earned over the 5-year cd term. Bottom number: maturity value (deposit + interest). Linked deposit amounts open the deposit-anchored CD calculator page with full APY × term tables.

5-Year CD: Real Return After Inflation

At 4.50% APY on a $10,000 deposit, here is what a 5-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) $1,014.43 $2,461.82 $11,014.43
3.0% (recent average) $749.67 $2,461.82 $10,749.67
3.5% (above-target) $492.52 $2,461.82 $10,492.52

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

5-Year CD Interest After Federal Tax

CD interest is taxed as ordinary income each year. Below: net interest earned on a 5-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
$2,166.40
−$295.42 tax
$5,416.00
−$738.55 tax
$10,832.01
−$1,477.09 tax
22% bracket
$1,920.22
−$541.60 tax
$4,800.55
−$1,354.00 tax
$9,601.10
−$2,708.00 tax
24% bracket
$1,870.98
−$590.84 tax
$4,677.46
−$1,477.09 tax
$9,354.91
−$2,954.18 tax
32% bracket
$1,674.04
−$787.78 tax
$4,185.09
−$1,969.46 tax
$8,370.19
−$3,938.91 tax
35% bracket
$1,600.18
−$861.64 tax
$4,000.46
−$2,154.09 tax
$8,000.91
−$4,308.18 tax

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

5-Year CD: Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a 5-year CD earn? +

A 5-year CD earns deposit × ((1 + APY)⁵ − 1) in compound interest. At 4.50% APY: $10,000 earns $2,461.82, $25,000 earns $6,154.55, $50,000 earns $12,309.10, and $100,000 earns $24,618.20. At 5.00% APY: $10,000 earns $2,762.82, $25,000 earns $6,907.04, $50,000 earns $13,814.08, and $100,000 earns $27,628.16. Compounding for 5 years is what makes the longer-term return meaningfully higher per year than a 1-year CD held five times back to back.

Is a 5-year CD worth it in a rising-rate environment? +

It depends on whether you think rates will rise above your locked-in APY. If you expect rates to climb significantly during the 5 years, the locked-in CD becomes a relative drag — you can't take advantage of higher rates without paying an early-withdrawal penalty. If you expect rates to stay flat or fall, the 5-year CD looks better and better as time passes. A common compromise is a CD ladder, which trades a slightly lower average rate for the ability to roll a maturing rung into a higher-rate CD each year if rates do rise.

What is the early-withdrawal penalty on a 5-year CD? +

Most 5-year CDs charge 6 to 12 months of interest as the early-withdrawal penalty. On a $10,000 5-year CD at 4.50% APY, a 12-month penalty is about $450. The penalty is calculated against the deposit, so withdrawing very early — before enough interest has accrued — can reduce your principal. Some no-penalty CDs exist with shorter terms but rarely at 5 years, and the rate is usually 0.50 percentage points or more below a standard 5-year CD.

Should I open a 5-year CD or split the money into a CD ladder? +

A single 5-year CD usually earns slightly more total interest than a 5-rung ladder of the same total deposit when the yield curve slopes up, because every dollar gets the highest rate for the full 5 years. The ladder usually earns less but gives you a maturing rung every year — you can access ~20% of the funds annually without paying any penalty. The ladder also reduces reinvestment risk: if rates rise, you can roll a maturing rung into a higher-rate CD. Use the CD Ladder Calculator linked below to compare the dollar-level trade-off for your specific deposit.

How is a 5-year CD taxed? +

CD interest is taxed as ordinary federal income in the year it is credited to your account, even if you don't physically withdraw it. So a 5-year CD generates a Form 1099-INT every year, not just at maturity. On a $10,000 5-year CD at 4.50% APY, year-1 interest is about $450, year-2 about $470, etc. — all reportable annually. Holding a 5-year CD inside a traditional IRA defers this tax until withdrawal in retirement; inside a Roth IRA, the interest grows tax-free if Roth rules are met.

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