Certificates of deposit (CDs) don't pay quite as much as they did last year, when APYs of over 5.00% were fairly easy to find. That said, today's best CD rates are still over 4.00%.

Six-month CDs offer some of the highest APYs available right now -- up to 4.50% in some cases. As far as guaranteed returns go, that's pretty tempting.

Still, CDs may or may not be the best place for your money.

Here's how much a 6-month CD could earn you now -- and why you might want to consider some alternatives.

Our Picks for the Best High-Yield Savings Accounts of 2025

Product	APY	Min. to Earn
American Express® High Yield Savings Member FDIC. APY 3.80% Rate info 3.80% annual percentage yield as of December 17, 2024. Terms apply. Min. to earn $0 Open Account for American Express® High Yield Savings On American Express's Secure Website. Member FDIC.	3.80% Rate info 3.80% annual percentage yield as of December 17, 2024. Terms apply.	$0	Open Account for American Express® High Yield Savings On American Express's Secure Website.
Capital One 360 Performance Savings Member FDIC. APY 3.70% Rate info See Capital One website for most up-to-date rates. Advertised Annual Percentage Yield (APY) is variable and accurate as of Feb. 6, 2025. Rates are subject to change at any time before or after account opening. Min. to earn $0 Open Account for Capital One 360 Performance Savings On Capital One's Secure Website. Member FDIC.	3.70% Rate info See Capital One website for most up-to-date rates. Advertised Annual Percentage Yield (APY) is variable and accurate as of Feb. 6, 2025. Rates are subject to change at any time before or after account opening.	$0	Open Account for Capital One 360 Performance Savings On Capital One's Secure Website.
Western Alliance Bank High-Yield Savings Premier Member FDIC. APY 4.30% Rate info The annual percentage yield (APY) is accurate as of Jan. 24, 2025, and subject to change at the Bank's discretion. Refer to product’s website for latest APY rate. Minimum deposit required to open an account is $500 and a minimum balance of $0.01 is required to earn the advertised APY. Min. to earn $500 to open, $0.01 for max APY Open Account for Western Alliance Bank High-Yield Savings Premier On Western Alliance Bank's Secure Website. Member FDIC.	4.30% Rate info The annual percentage yield (APY) is accurate as of Jan. 24, 2025, and subject to change at the Bank's discretion. Refer to product’s website for latest APY rate. Minimum deposit required to open an account is $500 and a minimum balance of $0.01 is required to earn the advertised APY.	$500 to open, $0.01 for max APY	Open Account for Western Alliance Bank High-Yield Savings Premier On Western Alliance Bank's Secure Website.

How much would $10,000 earn in a 6-month CD now?

Since CD rates vary from bank to bank, we'll look at a few different options and see how much a $10,000 deposit would earn:

• The average 6-month CD rate of 1.64% (according to the FDIC)
• A competitive rate of 3.80%
• A top-tier rate of 4.50%

As you can see, your APY makes a big difference. It pays to shop around for the highest 6-month CD rate you can find.

Should you open a 6-month CD?

There are worse places to put your money now, but you may have better options, too.

CDs lock up your money for the duration of the term. If you cash them out before their maturity date, you'll typically sacrifice some of the interest. (Some CDs come with no early withdrawal penalty, but they also typically pay lower rates.)

Meanwhile, savings accounts allow you to deposit, withdraw, and transfer money at any time. And the best high-yield savings accounts currently have APYs of up to 4.50% -- the same rate as the best 6-month CDs.

The only benefit of a 6-month CD over a high-yield savings account is that a CD's APY is guaranteed, while a bank account's APY can change at any time. But it's unlikely that your savings account APY will change dramatically in the next six months -- and it could even go up a little.

Want to earn 10 times the national average savings APY? Check out our list of the best high-yield savings accounts and start putting your money to work.

And if what you really need is growth, rather than safety, then you may want to invest in stocks through a brokerage account. Over the long term, the stock market has grown much faster than any CD. In the past six months alone, the S&P 500 Index -- a group of 500 companies that make up over half the market cap of the U.S. stock market -- has gone up 13%. That's nearly three times the return you would have earned with a 6-month CD.

Stock market returns are not guaranteed, and short-term losses are bound to happen from time to time. But buying stocks and holding them for the long term has proven time and again to be one of the best ways for ordinary investors to grow their wealth.