Last Updated: Sep 6, 2024
The bank’s featured CD offers a 4.60%APY for a seven-month term.
Written by Christopher Murray Christopher Murray is a professional personal finance and sustainability writer covering topics from budgeting to unique investing options like socially responsible investing and cryptocurrency. His work has been featured on Bankrate, Money Crashers, FinanceBuzz, Investor Junkie, ConsumerAffairs and Time.Learn more about Christopher Murray
Edited by RaShawn Mitchner RaShawn Mitchner is a MarketWatch Guides team senior editor covering personal finance topics and insurance. She’s spent over a decade writing and editing articles about how to save money on travel, entertainment, household services and more.Learn more about RaShawn Mitchner
Reviewed by Andrew Latham Andrew Latham is a Raleigh-based certified financial planner (CFP) and the content director at SuperMoney.com. He has over 10 years of experience specializing in debt, investment and retirement strategies. When he’s not working, Andrew enjoys hiking, traveling, learning languages and working out with his wife and son.Learn more about Andrew Latham
Edited by RaShawn Mitchner RaShawn Mitchner is a MarketWatch Guides team senior editor covering personal finance topics and insurance. She’s spent over a decade writing and editing articles about how to save money on travel, entertainment, household services and more.Learn more about RaShawn Mitchner
Reviewed by Andrew Latham Andrew Latham is a Raleigh-based certified financial planner (CFP) and the content director at SuperMoney.com. He has over 10 years of experience specializing in debt, investment and retirement strategies. When he’s not working, Andrew enjoys hiking, traveling, learning languages and working out with his wife and son.Learn more about Andrew Latham
Why Trust Us
Here’s a breakdown of how we reviewed and rated top banks and credit unions
154 Institutions Monitored Our team reviewed 154 of the country’s largest and most prominent financial institutions, from big banks like Chase and Bank of America to credit unions like Navy Federal Credit Union and PenFed Credit Union.
688 Products Studied Total number of checking, saving, CDs, and money-market accounts that inform our review ratings.
719 Rates Tracked The accounts with an annual percentage yield (APY) several times the national average rate receive the highest scores. Accounts with the lowest APY offering (under 1%) earn the least points.
10 Professionals Consulted Before we began our research process, we consulted with financial advisors and industry experts to ensure our evaluations covered the banking product aspects that matter most to potential customers.
Reaching your savings goals may require a higher return on your money than you can get given many banks’ low rates on traditional savings accounts. Other products, like a high-yield savings account or certificate of deposit (CD), can ramp up your savings and help you reach your goals faster.
Bank of America offers CDs with a wide range of terms and just a $1,000 minimum opening deposit. Some of these options provide higher interest rates than you’d typically see with online savings accounts.
Key Takeaways
- The highest Bank of America CD rate is a 5.00% APY, which is for its 13 months featured term.
- The bank’s one-year flexible CD offers a competitive rate and penalty-free withdrawals.
- The 13-month featured CD guarantees a 4.00% APY.
Featured CDs
Bank of America CD Rates
Bank of America has three types of CDs: featured, which offer promotional rates, fixed term and flexible, which is a no-penalty CD. They all share certain features, including a $1,000 minimum deposit, but they differ in term length, annual percentage yield and early withdrawal penalties.
Let’s look at each CD more in depth.
Bank of America Featured CD Rates
These CDs include Bank of America’s highest earners. Terms range from seven to 37 months. After the term ends, these CDs automatically renew into fixed-term CDs. Interest rates for the 10- and 37-month CDs are low, while the seven- and 13-month terms earn the highest APYs Bank of America offers for CDs.
| Bank of America Featured CD | APY* | $1,000 Deposit Value at Close of CD |
|---|---|---|
| 7 months | 4.60% | $1,027.14 |
| 10 months | 4.45% | $1,037.71 |
| 13 months | 4.00% | $1,044.21 |
| 25 months | 3.20% | $1,067.73 |
| 37 months | 0.05% | $1,001.54 |
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Bank of America Fixed-Term CD
These are Bank of America’s standard CDs. Each has a fixed term ranging from one month to 10 years. APYs for these CDs are generally lower than those for featured CDs.
Bank of America Flexible CD
Bank of America offers a one-year term for its flexible CD account. This type of CD lets you withdraw your principal balance and any interest before the maturity date, as long as you do so at least seven days after opening your account or making a withdrawal. Like the featured CDs, it tends to have a higher interest rate than the bank’s fixed-term CDs.
Bank of America CD Rates vs. Other Top Banks
Bank of America CD rates for some of its featured CDs are high, but APYs for most of its other options sit below national averages. The bank’s minimum deposit requirement to open a CD is on par with many other banks and is lower than requirements from competitors like Discover.
Here’s a look at how Bank of America competes on one-year CDs:
| Bank | APY on 1-Year CD* | Minimum Deposit | $2,500 Deposit Value at Close of CD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank of America | 0.03% (fixed-term CD) | $1,000 | $2,500.75 |
| Capital One | 4.25% | $0 | $2,608.34 |
| Chase | 0.01% (standard rate) | $1,000 | $2,500.25 (standard rate) |
| Citibank | 4.00% below $100,000 | $500 | $2,602.02 |
| Discover | 4.50% | $2,500 | $2,615.06 |
| Synchrony Bank | 4.60% | $0 | $2,617.68 |
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>> Related: Learn more about the types of CDs
Bank of America CD: Who It’s Best For
While Bank of America CDs don’t offer the highest rates on the market, several of its featured terms do have competitive APYs. Also, its one-year flexible CD offers a much higher APY than competitors such as Citi give for this type of CD.
Bank of America CDs are ideally suited for these types of savers:
Bank of America Customers
If you’re a current Bank of America customer, it’s easy to fund a CD by transferring the $1,000 minimum deposit from your checking or savings account. Several CDs, such as the seven- and 13-month fixed CDs, offer competitive rates for shorter time periods.
People Who Want a Competitive APY but May Need To Access Their Money
Bank of America’s one-year flexible CD offers you both a guaranteed APY and penalty-free access to your money. This could be a great CD if you’d like to lock in a competitive APY for the next year but aren’t sure if you’ll need your funds before then.
>> Related: Learn more about the best CD rates
CDs at Bank of America: Additional Information
We spoke to Mary Hines Droesch, head of Consumer and Small Business Products at Bank of America, for additional insights into CDs.
“If you’re considering opening a CD, it’s important to continue maintaining a savings account so you have easy access to funds when you need them. A good indicator that you’re ready to open a CD account is when you have a sizable financial savings cushion – outside of your CD funds – to rely on in case of unexpected expenses. This can be anywhere from three to six months’ worth of living expenses.”
While Bank of America has numerous CD term lengths and APYs to choose from, you should also consider early withdrawal penalties, required deposits and compounding schedules. We broke down these details for Bank of America CDs below.
Bank of America CD Early Withdrawal Penalty
Bank of America’s featured and fixed-rate CDs have early withdrawal penalties if you take money out before the CD’s maturity date. The amount of interest you’ll have to pay depends on the term length of your CD.
- CDs with terms of less than 90 days: You pay the greater of seven days’ worth of interest or all interest earned on the amount withdrawn.
- CDs with terms of 90 days to one year: You pay 90 days’ worth of interest on the amount withdrawn.
- CDs with terms of one to five years: You pay 180 days’ worth of interest on the amount withdrawn.
- CDs with terms of more than five years: You pay 365 days’ worth of interest on the amount withdrawn.
If you open a flexible CD through Bank of America, there are no early withdrawal penalties unless you make a withdrawal within six days of opening the account or taking money out.
Bank of America CD Minimum Deposit
All of Bank of America’s CDs require a $1,000 minimum opening deposit. This is roughly in the middle compared to other financial institutions, as some have higher minimum deposit amounts and some don’t have this requirement at all.
Compounding Schedule
Bank of America has two compounding schedules. If you have a CD with a term of 27 days or less, interest is added at maturity. For CDs with terms of 28 days or more, interest is compounded monthly and credited to your account at the end of each month or on the schedule you choose.
>> Related: Learn more about how CDs work
Bank of America Savings Accounts
Bank of America doesn’t offer money market accounts, but it does offer its Advantage Savings account. This isn’t a high-yield savings account, but if you link a Bank of America personal checking account, you’ll get a higher APY through the Preferred Rewards program.
You must also maintain three-month combined minimum balances across your investment and deposit accounts. The higher the combined balance, the higher the APY on your Advantage Savings account.
- Gold tier: Combined average daily balance of $20,000 to less than $50,000
- Platinum tier: Combined average daily balance of $50,000 to less than $100,000
- Platinum Honors tier: Combined average daily balance of $100,000 to less than $1 million
- Diamond tier: Combined average daily balance of $1 million to less than $10 million
Bank of America’s Advantage Savings account has an $8 monthly fee after the first six months. The fee can be waived if you meet one of these requirements:
- Maintain a $500 minimum daily balance
- Link the account to your Advantage Relationship Banking account
- Have a Preferred Rewards membership
- Have an account owner under the age of 18
- Have an account owner who is a student under the age of 25
>> Related: Learn more about the best savings accounts of 2024.
The Bottom Line: Is a Bank of America CD Right for You?
With Bank of America CD rates for some terms exceeding competitors’ rates, a featured or flexible CD could be well worth it. However, many of the bank’s fixed-term CDs have APYs below 1%.
“If you’re looking for a stable investment that can provide guaranteed returns, CDs can be a great addition to other assets you have in your investment portfolio, such as stocks and bonds,” Droesch said. “They can be a smart way to save for longer-term goals without the risk of market downturns, especially for those with riskier assets in their portfolio.”
>> Related: Learn more about the bank in our Bank of America review
FAQ: Bank of America CD Rates
Bank of America’s current CD rates range from 0.03% to 5.00% APY. The highest Bank of America CD rate is a 5.00% APY, which is for its 13 months featured term.
While the best CD rates frequently change, the highest-paying CDs are mostly from credit unions and online banks. The highest rate available today is 5.92% from Merchants Bank of Indiana.
Many online financial institutions and local credit unions are paying 5% APY or higher for one-year CD terms right now.
BMO Alto and Quontic both offer one-year CDs that pay more than 5% APY. Check out our list of the best one-year CD rates for details.
**Rates accurate as of September 4, 2024. Rates may vary by location.
**Data accurate at time of publication
Editor’s Note: Before making significant financial decisions, consider reviewing your options with someone you trust, such as a financial adviser, credit counselor or financial professional, since every person’s situation and needs are different.
Editor’s Note: Parts of this story were auto-populated using data from Curinos, a research firm that collects data from more than 3,600 banks and credit unions. For more details on how we compile daily rate data, check out our methodology here.
If you have feedback or questions about this article, please email the MarketWatch Guides team at [email protected].
Meet the Team
Learn more about Christopher Murray
Christopher Murray Contributor
Christopher Murray is a professional personal finance and sustainability writer covering topics from budgeting to unique investing options like socially responsible investing and cryptocurrency. His work has been featured on Bankrate, Money Crashers, FinanceBuzz, Investor Junkie, ConsumerAffairs and Time.
Learn more about Christopher Murray
Learn more about RaShawn Mitchner
RaShawn Mitchner Senior Editor
RaShawn Mitchner is a MarketWatch Guides team senior editor covering personal finance topics and insurance. She’s spent over a decade writing and editing articles about how to save money on travel, entertainment, household services and more.
Learn more about RaShawn Mitchner
Learn more about Andrew Latham
Andrew Latham Reviewer
Andrew Latham is a Raleigh-based certified financial planner (CFP) and the content director at SuperMoney.com. He has over 10 years of experience specializing in debt, investment and retirement strategies. When he’s not working, Andrew enjoys hiking, traveling, learning languages and working out with his wife and son.
Learn more about Andrew Latham
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