Promotional CD Rates 2025: How They Work

Some banks offer promotional CD rates alongside their rates for traditional CD terms, such as one year and five years. These rates can be a bank’s most competitive CD offerings, but bear in mind any downsides, such as irregular term lengths or automatic renewals into a lower-rate CD of a similar term. If you opt for a promo CD, stay organized for when the CD matures. As you choose your next CD, compare across several banks and credit unions before opening one. Here’s what to know.

» COMPARE: Best CD rates

What are promotional CD rates?

Promotional CD rates, or CD specials, are CDs with higher yields for generally nontraditional terms. Here’s a list of features they may have:

• Higher rates on shorter terms (at the same bank). For example, a bank’s promotional rate for a seven-month term might be higher than its standard rate on a five-year term. Typically, rates are higher for longer terms. Remember that a short term has less time to earn interest.

• Unconventional CD terms, such as seven, 13 and 19 months. Standard terms tend to be easier to remember, such as one year, three years or five years.

• Promotional rate that applies only to the original term. CD promos tend to renew for the same term or a similar one at a standard rate. For example, a 7-month special rate CD might roll into a 6-month standard rate, which may have a lower rate.

• A higher minimum deposit than a bank’s standard CDs. Wells Fargo, for instance, requires at least $5,000 to open one of its CD specials, and $2,500 to open its standard CDs. NASA Federal Credit Union’s featured certificates have a minimum deposit of $10,000, compared to the minimum of $1,000 for standard certificates.

• No expiration date listed. Unlike bank bonuses, you won’t typically find expiration dates on promotional rates, but some have them. Treat them like regular CDs in which rate offerings on new CDs are subject to change at any time.

» Want other deals? See NerdWallet’s best bank bonuses this month.

Are promotional CD rates worth it?

It depends. Promotional rates at traditional banks often have relatively low CD yields across the board. What they consider a deal might be far lower than the rates you can find elsewhere. However, online banks and some credit unions offer featured rates, generally for nontraditional terms, that can have some of the highest yields around. But bear in mind that an unusual term length may make it harder to use certain CD strategies, such as laddering or stacking CDs of different terms.

Here are some tips to consider:

• Set a reminder for a CD’s maturity date, especially if it has a nontraditional term. Being able to withdraw without a fee is important for a promo CD to be worthwhile.

• Compare promo CDs of different rates and term lengths by estimated total return. If you’re seeking top returns, the amount of time you earn interest in a CD can be as important as the rate. If you see six-month and one-year CDs with the same rate, for instance, remember that the one-year CDs earn twice as much.

• Look at competitive CD rates with standard terms too. Check out online banks and credit unions on our list of the best CD rates.

Other rate boosts that aren’t promotional

• Relationship rates: Some traditional banks may offer slightly or considerably higher CD rates if you have another account, generally a checking account, at the same institution.

• Step-up and bump-up CD rates: These two types of CDs offer rate increases within a CD term. For bump-up CDs, you must ask for a rate boost and new CD rates must be higher than your current rate, which is unlikely to occur in a falling-rate environment. See where rates are headed on our CD rate forecast.

• Loyalty rate bonus: At least one bank, Ally, offers customers who renew CDs a slight interest rate bump on top of the new CD rate.

If you’re considering a promotional rate CD, compare with high-yield online CD rates beforehand. What one bank calls competitive might be much lower than other banks’ standard rates.

Where to find better bank promotions