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In the elevated interest rate environment of 2023 and 2025, opening a certificate of deposit (CD) account was less about timing and strategy and more just about taking rapid action. With interest rates on some accounts as high as 6% and 7%, it behooved savers to open an account with as much money as they could afford to leave untouched. If they did, they were often rewarded with interest earnings worth hundreds and potentially thousands of dollars.
However, the interest rate climate of March 2026 is noticeably different. Interest rates are lower than they were two years ago, and they could soon decline again if the Federal Reserve resumes its interest rate-cut campaign, as is widely expected later this spring and summer. And some banks may not even wait for that to happen to lower their rate offers to savers.
Against this different backdrop, savers will need to be much more judicious when approaching their CD account options. That doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t still pursue the account (they remain viable, secure and profitable), but it does extend to making the right moves this March. Below, we’ll detail three specific CD account moves these savers should consider now.
Start by seeing how much interest you could be earning with a high-rate CD account here.
3 CD account moves to make this March
While the following moves won’t guarantee CD investing success, they can help offset some simple mistakes and help savers better position their money for growth both this month and in the months ahead:
Look to long-term options over short-term ones
Historically, long-term CDs often had higher rates than short-term CDs thanks to the extended timeline in which savers would forego access to their funds. But that hasn’t been the case in recent years as market uncertainty has often led banks to offer better rates on those accounts, which mature under 12 months, versus those that last multiple years.
That said, the temptation to simply lock in the higher rate now should be avoided as the extended interest-earning timeline the long-term CD account offers will often negate the slightly higher interest rate the short-term counterpart offers. And by locking in a long-term CD rate now, you’ll essentially be protecting your funds for 18 months or longer, during which time interest rates will almost assuredly fall again. In other words, compare both short-term and long-term CDs, but strongly consider the latter over the former right now.
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Skip local banking branches for online institutions instead
This advice is applicable during most economic periods, but particularly now, when your local banking branch may be looking for a reason to reduce its CD interest rate offers even before the Fed does. And those rates already may be lower compared to what you can lock in with an online bank.
These institutions tend to offer higher rates to savers than those with local banking branches, thanks to the former saving on overhead and maintenance costs. Those savings are reflected in the form of higher CD rates. And while those won’t be immune from the current interest rate climate dynamics, they’ll still tend to be a bit higher, and every basis point counts with an account in which the interest rate is fixed.
Understand your ability to keep the funds frozen long-term
An 18-month CD can be difficult to keep intact for savers, let alone 2-year or 3-year options. That doesn’t mean that they can’t be lucrative homes for your money, but to ensure that they actually perform as intended, you’ll want to understand your ability to keep the funds frozen long-term. And this is an especially important concern to manage this March, as there isn’t likely to be a viable alternative to explore should you ultimately withdraw your funds early in six or nine months from now.
Not only will you pay an early withdrawal penalty for doing so, but the elevated CD interest rates still readily available right now are likely to be long gone by this point in 2027 or later. So, only open an account with an amount that you can comfortably leave untouched through its maturity date.
The bottom line
It’s always important to take an informed and smart approach with your savings vehicles, but especially with a CD that will lock your money away, and even more so this March with interest rate reductions looming in the not-too-distant future. By choosing a long-term CD over a short-term one, using an online bank versus your local branch and by depositing the right amount of money that you can keep frozen for an extended period, you can significantly boost your chances of success. And, depending on the deposit amount, you may be rewarded with interest worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars once the account matures.
