Certificate of Deposit Comparison Calculator

Entry Fields

Starting Amount- Also called principal, this is the initial amount deposited into the certificate of deposit (CD); Or, if rolling over a CD, it's the CD value at maturity.

CD Term - The length of time your principal is to stay in the CD account, during which time the APY remains in effect. Examples: 6 month CD, 18 month CD, 1 year CD, 2 year CD.

First Certificate of Deposit, Second CD

APY (%) - The CD's annual percentage yield (APY). An APY is, as the name implies, a percentage. To compound interest, that percent is converted to a decimal, which is done by dividing by 100. So a 2% CD, as a decimal, is .02, and a .2% CD is .002 as a decimal.

Compound Frequency - How often the financial institution compounds interest on the CD: daily, monthly, quarterly or annually. The shorter the compounding frequency, the more money a CD will make, since compounding enables you to earn interest on interest credited.

For each CD, enter its APY and compounding frequency.

Note: This calculator provides an excellent way to what-if calculate CDs and compounding. For example, you might be reviewing CDs at one or more banks, and want to see how much you would earn based on the amount of your initial deposit. Also, you can compare how compounding time periods affect interest earned; For example, how much more would you earn if the CD compounds daily versus quarterly.

Formula to compound interest is