CD Ladder Calculator
Build a CD ladder and see each rung maturity value and the total interest, splitting a deposit across staggered terms.
How it's calculated
A CD ladder splits your money across several certificates of deposit with staggered terms, instead of locking it all into one. The classic build is equal amounts in CDs maturing in one, two, three, and more years. The result is that one CD matures every year, giving you regular access to cash, while most of your money still earns the higher rates that longer terms pay. When a rung matures, you can spend it or roll it into a new long CD at the top of the ladder.
Take the default. You put $50,000 into a 5-rung ladder, so $10,000 goes into each of a 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 year CD, all at a 4.5 percent APY. Held to maturity, the one-year rung grows to $10,450, the two-year to $10,920.25, and so on up to $12,461.82 for the five-year rung. Added together, the ladder is worth about $57,168.92 when every rung has matured, which is $7,168.92 of interest. The average term across the ladder is 3 years, so you get much of the yield of a medium-term CD while never having all your cash locked up at once.
The ladder is a middle path between chasing the highest rate and keeping everything liquid. A single long CD might pay a bit more, but ties up all your money and stings with an early-withdrawal penalty if you need it. A savings account stays liquid but usually pays less. The ladder balances the two. Change the number of rungs and the APY here to size a ladder to your own cash and timeline.
Assumptions
- The deposit is split equally across the rungs, with terms of 1 year up to the number of rungs. Each rung compounds annually at the APY and is held to maturity.
- The same APY is applied to every rung for simplicity. In practice each term carries its own rate, so adjust the APY to the middle of the ladder.
Last updated: 2026-08-08
These assumptions follow our general methodology.
Frequently asked questions
What is a CD ladder?
It is a strategy that spreads your money across several CDs with different maturity dates, such as one, two, three, four, and five years. One matures each year, giving you regular access to cash, while the rest keeps earning the higher rates that longer terms offer.
Why build a CD ladder instead of one CD?
A ladder keeps part of your money reachable every year without an early-withdrawal penalty, while still capturing most of the yield of longer terms. A single long CD may pay slightly more but locks up everything, and a single short CD stays liquid but earns less. The ladder is the balance.
What happens when a rung matures?
You choose. You can take the cash if you need it, or reinvest it into a new CD at the longest rung of your ladder, which keeps the ladder going and locks in the higher long-term rate. Rolling maturing rungs into new long CDs is how a ladder is maintained over time.
Are CD ladders worth it when rates are high?
They can be, because they hedge your bets. If rates keep rising, your maturing rungs reinvest at the new higher rates. If rates fall, the longer rungs you already locked in keep paying more. A ladder spreads that timing risk instead of betting it all on one term.