- Initial deposit
- The amount of money you choose to open your CD with.
- Months
- The term of the CD, expressed in months.
- Interest rate
- The published interest rate for this CD. Make sure to enter the actual interest rate, not the annual percentage yield (APY). **ROR_SHORT_DEFINITION**
- Compounding
- The interest earned on your CD is added to your CD balance at regular intervals. This is called "compounding." This calculator allows you to choose the frequency that your CD's interest income is compounded. The more frequently this occurs, the sooner your accumulated interest income will generate additional interest. You may wish to check with your financial institution or account opening documents to find out how often interest is being compounded on your CD.
- Annual percentage yield (APY)
- This is the effective annual interest rate earned for this CD. A CD's APY depends on the frequency of compounding and the interest rate. Since APY measures your actual interest earned per year, you can use it to compare CDs that have different interest rates and compounding frequencies.
