--- title: I Swore Off CDs. Now I’m Wondering If I’ve Been Saving Money Wrong description: I've always relied on my high-yield savings account — but could using CDs help me meet my financial goals faster? Which is better, for what? authors: - name: Julia Glum role: Managing Editor url: https://money.com/author/julia-glum/ bio: Julia Glum joined Money in 2018 and specializes in covering financial trends that affect everyday Americans' wallets. She also writes Dollar Scholar, a weekly newsletter that teaches young adults how to navigate the messy world of money. education: University of Florida at_money_since: 2018 articles: 454 covers: - Personal Finance - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Economy and Politics - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology also_seen_in: - Newsweek - International Business Times - CBS News - Good Morning America - WUSA9 - Pix 11 - The New York Times - Mashable - The Washington Post - CNBC - Politico social: - https://x.com/superjulia - https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-glum editors: - name: Katherine Peach role: Associate Editor url: https://money.com/author/katherine-peach/ bio: Katherine Peach is an associate editor with a focus on news and email at Money. Her writing and editing work has been featured in Investing Daily, Clever, Investor Junkie, The Palm Beach Letter, Truth & Plenty, Independence Monthly, NICHE, AmericanStyle, AntiqueWeek, Millennial Money, Money Done Right, TheStreet, Sure Dividend and many others. education: University of Maryland, Baltimore County at_money_since: 2025 articles: 14 covers: - Personal Finance - Banking - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Economy and Politics - Education - Federal Reserve Rate Cuts - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes published: '2026-09-29T16:55:24.000Z' modified: '2026-09-29T16:55:24.000Z' section: Personal Finance tags: - dollar scholar - News word_count: 760 canonical: https://money.com/dollar-scholar-cds-savings/ type: NewsArticle source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![Certified deposit forms being signed](https://img.money.com/2026/07/News-CDS.jpg) *This is an excerpt from Dollar Scholar, the Money newsletter where managing editor Julia Glum teaches you the modern money lessons you NEED to know. Don't miss the next issue! Sign up at [money.com/subscribe](https://money.com/subscribe/dollar-scholar/) and join our community of 300,000+ Scholars.* * * * Like hiking, enjoying the taste of beer or finding love, I gave up on certificates of deposit a long time ago. When I [wrote about CDs in 2022](https://money.com/dollar-scholar-cds-saving/), I decided they simply weren't for me. CDs work in some situations, I thought, but not mine. So for the past four years, I've stuck with my trusty high-yield savings account. That changed last week. I started thinking about splurging on an expensive concert ticket to see Harry Styles in 2027 and wondering whether the interest I'd [earn in a CD](https://money.com/best-cd-rates/) over the next few months would make the purchase a little less painful. Then I promptly spiraled: Was overlooking CDs a mistake? Have I been going about saving money all wrong? ## Should I be using CDs more often? CDs are a kind of savings account offered by banks and credit unions. They're linked to a specific time period, generally ranging from one month to five years, during which the account holder earns a fixed interest rate. The longer the term, the higher the rate. If the person takes their money out early — before the CD matures — they incur a penalty. CDs are often praised because they let people lock in high yields (as opposed to having to deal with fluctuations in rates due to market conditions). But the locking-up-money aspect isn't always desirable. "CDs are very much a tool that a lot of people don't think about or, potentially, do write off as an option," says Matt Marinovich, director of financial planning at SignatureFD. Whoops. [High-yield savings accounts](https://money.com/best-high-yield-savings-accounts/) are a solid choice for "today money" because they keep my cash liquid and accessible, Drew Burchard, Santander US head of digital banking, tells me in an email. CDs, on the other hand, can offer a better rate for "tomorrow money" — savings I'd like to use for a future vacation, tax bill or down payment. In the past, CDs definitely had an edge: Three-month CD rates surged above 18% in the 1980s. But right now, rates on CDs and high-yield savings accounts are pretty similar, says Felicia Greenwald, a certified financial planner and the founder of Aventurine Planning. I looked it up. Ally's three-month CD has an annual percentage yield (APY) of 2.8%, which would net me $3.46 on a $500 deposit. Its high-yield savings account has an APY of 3.1%. Happen Bank boasts a 4.2% APY on 11-month CDs; its high-yield savings account comes with 4.2% with stipulations. In my concert example, Greenwald says that if I have the funds to buy the [ticket](https://money.com/why-are-ticket-service-fees-so-high/) now, I may want to "bite the bullet" so I can plan my life and "make sure that if there were any fluctuations in the market, you're not losing out on your buying power." That's especially true because the splurge in question is a few hundred dollars — not several thousand. Such small returns might not be worth the hassle. "You're maybe talking about saving, like, $3 between a high-yield savings account and a CD," she adds. "In the grand scheme of things, in that respect, it probably makes sense not to have your money tied up in a CD for a few months." However, there's no hard-and-fast rule on which product reigns supreme. In fact, Marinovich presents two other options for my consideration: [money market funds](https://money.com/dollar-scholar-money-market-funds/) and Treasury bills. The former are mutual funds that invest in securities with short maturities, and the latter are short-term government debt obligations. Income earned from Treasury bills isn't taxed at the state and local level, which can be a nice perk. I could also look into [creating a ladder](https://money.com/high-interest-rates-cd-ladder/) in which I have multiple CDs that reach maturity in waves, essentially replenishing my cash as I reinvest my deposits and earnings. But "really, it's the accessibility that drives a lot of individuals to determine which one is better than another," he says. ## The bottom line I haven't made a huge mistake. Choosing the best vehicle for my money depends on how liquid I need the cash to be, my time horizon and convenience. I can use whatever I want to achieve my savings goals, including CDs, high-yield savings accounts, money market funds and Treasury bills. "They're all great tools," Marinovich says, adding that the "best" one hinges upon "the intent and the goal of the individual." ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://money.com/dollar-scholar-cds-savings/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://money.com" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Personal Finance", "item": "https://money.com/personal-finance/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Dollar Scholar", "item": "https://money.com/dollar-scholar/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I Swore Off CDs. Now I’m Wondering If I’ve Been Saving Money Wrong" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://money.com/#website", "url": "https://money.com", "name": "Money", "publisher": { "@id": "https://money.com/#organization" } }, { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://money.com/dollar-scholar-cds-savings/#webpage", "url": "https://money.com/dollar-scholar-cds-savings/", "name": "I Swore Off CDs. Now I’m Wondering If I’ve Been Saving Money Wrong", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://money.com/#website" }, "datePublished": "2026-09-29T16:55:24.000Z", "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://money.com/dollar-scholar-cds-savings/" }, "inLanguage": "en-US", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://money.com/dollar-scholar-cds-savings/#breadcrumb" }, "dateModified": "2026-09-29T16:55:24.000Z" }, { "@type": "NewsArticle", "headline": "I Swore Off CDs. Now I’m Wondering If I’ve Been Saving Money Wrong", "articleSection": "Personal Finance", "image": [ { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://img.money.com/2026/07/News-CDS.jpg", "width": 2880, "height": 1920, "caption": "News-CDS" } ], "author": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Julia Glum", "url": "https://money.com/author/julia-glum/", "@id": "https://money.com/author/julia-glum/#author", "description": "Julia Glum joined Money in 2018 and specializes in covering financial trends that affect everyday Americans' wallets. She also writes Dollar Scholar, a weekly newsletter that teaches young adults how to navigate the messy world of money. ", "image": "https://img.money.com/2021/10/a_julia-glum.jpg?quality=85&w=400&h=440&crop=1", "email": "julia.glum@money.com", "jobTitle": "Managing Editor", "alumniOf": "University of Florida", "subjectOf": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.newsweek.com", "name": "Newsweek" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.ibtimes.com/", "name": "International Business Times" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.cbsnews.com/news/home-office-tax-deduction-who-qualifies/", "name": "CBS News" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/living/story/coupon-queen-woman-tik-tok-share-tips-couponing-66302189", "name": "Good Morning America" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.wusa9.com/video/entertainment/television/programs/great-day-washington/tips-to-being-better-with-money-in-2021/65-a5b83e05-73ba-4d60-b9a8-1d47f9ac6018", "name": "WUSA9" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://pix11.com/news/coronavirus/rebound/making-ends-meet/millenials-taking-biggest-financial-hit-from-pandemic/", "name": "Pix 11" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/10/opinion/active-shooter-drill-schools.html", "name": "The New York Times" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://mashable.com/article/forrest-fenn-treasure-found", "name": "Mashable" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2014/08/13/theres-an-app-for-that-authorities-say-man-asked-siri-for-help-dumping-body/", "name": "The Washington Post" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/08/treasure-buried-by-forrest-fenn-finally-found-after-10-years.html", "name": "CNBC" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.politico.com/tipsheets/florida-playbook/2017/03/gillum-for-governors-rollout-stumble-florida-woman-gets-trump-shout-out-rubios-tampa-office-problems-218973", "name": "Politico" } ], "sameAs": [ "https://x.com/superjulia", "https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-glum" ], "worksFor": { "@id": "https://money.com/#organization" } } ], "publisher": "https://money.com/#organization", "datePublished": "2026-09-29T16:55:24.000Z", "description": "I've always relied on my high-yield savings account — but could using CDs help me meet my financial goals faster? Which is better, for what?", "abstract": "I've always relied on my high-yield savings account — but could using CDs help me meet my financial goals faster? Which is better, for what?", "@id": "https://money.com/dollar-scholar-cds-savings/", "inLanguage": "en-US", "dateModified": "2026-09-29T16:55:24.000Z", "editor": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Katherine Peach", "url": "https://money.com/author/katherine-peach/", "@id": "https://money.com/author/katherine-peach/#author", "description": "Katherine Peach is an associate editor with a focus on news and email at Money. Her writing and editing work has been featured in Investing Daily, Clever, Investor Junkie, The Palm Beach Letter, Truth & Plenty, Independence Monthly, NICHE, AmericanStyle, AntiqueWeek, Millennial Money, Money Done Right, TheStreet, Sure Dividend and many others.", "jobTitle": "Associate Editor", "alumniOf": "University of Maryland, Baltimore County", "worksFor": { "@id": "https://money.com/#organization" } } ], "wordCount": 760, "keywords": [ "dollar scholar", "News" ], "about": [ { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Personal finance", "sameAs": [ "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_finance" ] }, { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dollar Scholar", "sameAs": [ "https://money.com/dollar-scholar/" ] } ] } ] } ```