My Money Blog

For those that are newer members of the US Bank checking/savings/credit card/brokerage ecosystem, most likely for the up to 4% cash back rewards from their Smartly credit card (current terms for new applicants are poor, but the grandfathered terms are still excellent), you may choose to park some assets in their self-directed brokerage arm in order to meet the (grandfathered) qualification requirements. I personally did, and it has been working out fine.

Notably, as with many brokerage firms, US Bank pays rather pathetic rates on idle cash (0.23% APY as of 5/15/25). The cash sweep that we forget about is a reliable profit source for them. I tend to forget, everyone tends to forget.

Thus, when I need to move assets to a new brokerage, my two preferred options are my holdings of Berkshire Hathaway (BRKB) because they don’t pay out any dividends at all and iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF (SGOV) because it pays a competitive yield from T-Bills (that’s also exempt from state/local taxes). The final touch is to set up automatic dividend reinvestment on the shares to avoid losing interest on idle cash sweep. This way, each month the interest paid out is automatically reinvested into more shares of SGOV at the current market price.

Earning a ~5% return from SGOV over the last year was much better (20X better!) than earning ~0.25%.

For US Bank brokerage, there is no online option available to set this up. You must call them on the phone and request it manually. The phone number for US Bank Wealth Management Brokerage Services is 800-888-4700. There were no sales-related hassles and it only took about 5 minutes. Worth the effort. Now I don’t have to worry about making manually trades or manually transferring out the idle cash every month.

Here’s my monthly survey of the best interest rates on cash as of May 2025, roughly sorted from shortest to longest maturities. Banks love taking advantage of our idle cash, and you can often earning more money while keeping the same level of safety by moving to another FDIC-insured bank or NCUA-insured credit union. Check out my Ultimate Rate-Chaser Calculator to see how much extra interest you could earn from switching. Rates listed are available to everyone nationwide. Rates checked as of 5/14/2025.

TL;DR: Savings account interest rates are stable overall. Short-term T-Bill rates at around 4.3%. Top 5-year CD rates are ~4.25% APY, while 5-year Treasury rate is ~4.15%.

High-yield savings accounts*
Since the huge megabanks still pay essentially no interest, everyone should at least have a separate, no-fee online savings account to piggy-back onto your existing checking account. The interest rates on savings accounts can drop at any time, so I list the top rates as well as competitive rates from banks with a history of competitive rates and solid user experience. Some banks will bait you with a temporary top rate and then lower the rates in the hopes that you are too lazy to leave.

The top saving rate at the moment: Axos One Savings at 4.66% APY (no min). Roger.bank is right behind at 4.65% APY (no min), but does require an additional companion checking account. OnPath FCU has a new account paying 5.00% APY but requires $25,000 min and has some ACH withdrawal hoops. CIT Platinum Savings is now at 4.10% APY with $5,000+ balance, but also has a $225/$300 deposit bonus you can stack on top. There are many banks in between.
SoFi Bank is at 3.80% APY + up to $325 new account bonus with direct deposit. You must maintain a direct deposit of any amount (even $1) each month for the higher APY. SoFi has historically competitive rates and full banking features. See details at $25 + $300 SoFi Money new account and deposit bonus.
Here is a limited survey of high-yield savings accounts. They aren’t the top rates, but a group that have historically kept it relatively competitive such that I like to track their history.

Short-term guaranteed rates (1 year and under)
A common question is what to do with a big pile of cash that you’re waiting to deploy shortly (plan to buy a house soon, just sold your house, just sold your business, legal settlement, inheritance). My usual advice is to keep things simple and take your time. If not a savings account, then put it in a flexible short-term CD under the FDIC limits until you have a plan.

No Penalty CDs offer a fixed interest rate that can never go down, but you can still take out your money (once) without any fees if you want to use it elsewhere. Marcus has a 7-month No Penalty CD at 4.00% APY ($500 minimum deposit) and 13-month at 3.90% APY. Farmer’s Insurance FCU has 9-month No Penalty CD at 4.25% APY ($1,000 minimum deposit). Kinecta FCU has 9-month Liquid CD at 4.25% APY ($10,000 minimum) that allows for daily penalty-free withdrawals of up to 50% of the start of day balance. Consider opening multiple CDs in smaller increments for more flexibility.
Security State Bank has a 12-month certificate special at 4.65% APY ($25,000 min). Early withdrawal penalty is 180 days of interest.

Money market mutual funds
Many brokerage firms that pay out very little interest on their default cash sweep funds (and keep the difference for themselves). Note: Money market mutual funds are highly-regulated, but ultimately not FDIC-insured, so I would still stick with highly reputable firms.

Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund (VMFXX) is the default sweep option for Vanguard brokerage accounts, which has an SEC yield of 4.20% (changes daily, but also works out to a compound yield of 4.28%, which is better for comparing against APY). Odds are this is much higher than your own broker’s default cash sweep interest rate.
Vanguard Treasury Money Market Fund (VUSXX) is an alternative money market fund which you must manually purchase, but the interest will be mostly (100% for 2024 tax year) exempt from state and local income taxes because it comes from qualifying US government obligations. Current SEC yield of 4.23% (compound yield of 4.31%).

Treasury Bills and Ultra-short Treasury ETFs
Another option is to buy individual Treasury bills which come in a variety of maturities from 4-weeks to 52-weeks and are fully backed by the US government. You can also invest in ETFs that hold a rotating basket of short-term Treasury Bills for you, while charging a small management fee for doing so. T-bill interest is exempt from state and local income taxes, which can make a significant difference in your effective yield.

You can build your own T-Bill ladder at TreasuryDirect.gov or via a brokerage account with a bond desk like Vanguard and Fidelity. Here are the current Treasury Bill rates. As of 5/14/25, a new 4-week T-Bill had the equivalent of 4.32% annualized interest and a 52-week T-Bill had the equivalent of 4.14% annualized interest.
The iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF (SGOV) has a 4.17% SEC yield (0.09% expense ratio) and effective duration of 0.10 years. SPDR Bloomberg Barclays 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF (BIL) has a 4.13% SEC yield (0.136% expense ratio) and effective duration of 0.15 years. The new Vanguard 0-3 Month Treasury Bill ETF (VBIL) has a 4.20% SEC yield (0.07% expense ratio) and effective duration of 0.10 years.

US Savings Bonds
Series I Savings Bonds offer rates that are linked to inflation and backed by the US government. You must hold them for at least a year. If you redeem them within 5 years there is a penalty of the last 3 months of interest. The annual purchase limit for electronic I bonds is $10,000 per Social Security Number, available online at TreasuryDirect.gov.

“I Bonds” bought between May 2025 and October 2025 will earn a 3.98% rate for the first six months. The rate of the subsequent 6-month period will be based on inflation again. More on Savings Bonds here.
In mid-October 2025, the CPI will be announced and you will have a short period where you will have a very close estimate of the rate for the next 12 months. I will post another update at that time.

Rewards checking accounts
These unique checking accounts pay above-average interest rates, but with unique risks. You have to jump through certain hoops which usually involve 10+ debit card purchases each cycle, a certain number of ACH/direct deposits, and/or a certain number of logins per month. If you make a mistake (or they judge that you did) you risk earning zero interest for that month. Some folks don’t mind the extra work and attention required, while others would rather not bother. Rates can also drop suddenly, leaving a “bait-and-switch” feeling.

OnPath Federal Credit Union (my review) pays 7.00% APY on up to $10,000 if you make 15 debit card purchases, opt into online statements, and login to online or mobile banking once per statement cycle. Anyone can join this credit union via $5 membership fee to join partner organization. You can also get a $100 Visa Reward card when you open a new account and make qualifying transactions.
Genisys Credit Union pays 6.75% APY on up to $7,500 if you make 10 debit card purchases of $5+ each per statement cycle, and opt into online statements. Anyone can join this credit union via $5 membership fee to join partner organization.
La Capitol Federal Credit Union pays 5.75% APY on up to $10,000 if you make 15 debit card purchases of at least $5 each per statement cycle. Anyone can join this credit union via partner organization, Louisiana Association for Personal Financial Achievement ($20).
First Southern Bank pays 5.50% APY on up to $25,000 if you make at least 15 debit card purchases, 1 ACH credit or payment transaction, and enroll in online statements.
Credit Union of New Jersey pays 6.00% APY on up to $25,000 if you make 12 debit card purchases, opt into online statements, and make at least 1 direct deposit, online bill payment, or automatic payment (ACH) per statement cycle. Anyone can join this credit union via $5 membership fee to join partner organization.
Andrews Federal Credit Union pays 5.50% APY (down from 6%) on up to $25,000 if you make 15 debit card purchases, opt into online statements, and make at least 1 direct deposit or ACH transaction per statement cycle. Anyone can join this credit union via partner organization.
Find a locally-restricted rewards checking account at DepositAccounts.

Certificates of deposit (greater than 1 year)
CDs offer higher rates, but come with an early withdrawal penalty. By finding a bank CD with a reasonable early withdrawal penalty, you can enjoy higher rates but maintain access in a true emergency. Alternatively, consider building a CD ladder of different maturity lengths (ex. 1/2/3/4/5-years) such that you have access to part of the ladder each year, but your blended interest rate is higher than a savings account. When one CD matures, use that money to buy another 5-year CD to keep the ladder going. Some CDs also offer “add-ons” where you can deposit more funds if rates drop.

Mountain America Credit Union (MACU) has a 5-year certificate at 4.25% APY ($500 minimum), 4-year at 4.20% APY, 3-year at 4.15% APY, 2-year at 4.00% APY, and 1-year at 4.20% APY. Early withdrawal penalty for the 4-year and 5-year is 365 days of interest. Anyone can join this credit union via partner organization American Consumer Council for a one-time $5 fee (or try promo code “consumer”).
Lafayette Federal Credit Union (LFCU) has a 5/4/3/2/1-year certificates at 4.28% APY ($500 min). Slightly higher rates with jumbo $100,000+ balances. Note that the early withdrawal penalty for the 5-year is a relatively large 600 days of interest. Anyone nationwide can join LFCU by joining the Home Ownership Financial Literacy Council (HOFLC) for a one-time $10 fee.
You can buy certificates of deposit via the bond desks of Vanguard and Fidelity. You may need an account to see the rates. These “brokered CDs” offer FDIC insurance and easy laddering, but they don’t come with predictable early withdrawal penalties. Right now, I see a 5-year non-callable brokered CD at 4.20% APY (callable: no, call protection: yes). Be warned that both Vanguard and Fidelity will list higher rates from callable CDs, which importantly means they can (and will!) call back your CD if rates drop significantly later.

Longer-term Instruments
I’d use these with caution due to increased interest rate risk (tbh, I don’t use them at all), but I still track them to see the rest of the current yield curve.

Willing to lock up your money for 10 years? You can buy long-term certificates of deposit via the bond desks of Vanguard and Fidelity. These “brokered CDs” offer FDIC insurance, but they don’t come with predictable early withdrawal penalties. You might find something that pays more than your other brokerage cash and Treasury options. Right now, I see a 10-year CDs at 4.05% (non-callable) vs. 4.53% for a 10-year Treasury. Watch out for higher rates from callable CDs where they can call your CD back if interest rates drop.

All rates were checked as of 5/14/25.

* I no longer recommend fintech companies due to the possibility of loss due to poor recordkeeping and lack of government regulation. (Ex. Evergreen Wealth at 5% APY is a fintech.)

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