$60,000 CD vs. $60,000 high-yield savings account vs. $60,000 money market account: Which earns more interest now?

If you have a large five-figure amount of money, such as $60,000 in the bank right now, you may be thinking about how you can protect that principal and boost the interest on it. And while stock market investments can offer big returns, they can also offer big losses. That’s something millions of American savers are understandably looking to avoid right now. With inflation surging again, higher interest rates on pause for at least the next few weeks (if not months) and rising everyday costs, the search for a safe and profitable home for your money has taken on new urgency.

Fortunately, there are still multiple viable options to consider. While a traditional savings account with a minimal average rate of 0.38% now isn’t one, there are three others to evaluate. Certificates of deposit (CDs), high-yield savings and money market accounts all come with rates around 4% or higher right now. But they operate in different ways and have different rates and structures, too, which will need to be understood before moving your $60,000 into one. To start, however, savers should begin with a fundamental question: Which of the three will earn them the most interest on their money right now?

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$60,000 CD vs. $60,000 high-yield savings account vs. $60,000 money market account: Which earns more interest now?

Typically, a variable interest rate can make interest-earning projections difficult to complete with accuracy, as the rate can jump around. But with the Federal Reserve pausing interest rates again at the end of April – and with the likelihood that they will remain there for the next few months – savers can gain a relatively good idea of what they stand to earn with a high-yield savings or money market account now, both of which have variable rates. CD accounts, meanwhile, have fixed rates that will hold through the account’s maturity date. 

Here’s how much each can earn over the next year, assuming the variable rates don’t change and that no penalties are issued against any of the three:

• $60,000 6-month CD at 4.10%: $1,217.64
• $60,000 high-yield savings account at 4.03% after six months: $1,197.06
• $60,000 money market account at 3.90% after six months: $1,158.81
• Most profitable account: The CD account

• $60,000 9-month CD at 4.05%: $1,813.43
• $60,000 high-yield savings account at 4.03% after nine months: $1,804.51
• $60,000 money market account at 3.90% after nine months: $1,746.58
• Most profitable account: The CD account

• $60,000 1-year CD at 4.10%: $2,460.00
• $15,000 high-yield savings account at 4.03% after one year: $2,418.00
• $15,000 money market account at 3.90% after one year: $2,340.00
• Most profitable account: The CD account

In these three scenarios, then, the CD account is clearly the most profitable. And that interest will be guaranteed in a way that high-yield savings and money market accounts can’t offer. That noted, if rates on the latter two account types rise, the CD account won’t be positioned to rise with it. 

Still, if you want to earn as much interest as you can on your $60,000 and would prefer to avoid the daily volatility and evolving rate climate present now, the CD account is your best choice out of these three options.

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The bottom line

Savers can earn between $1,220 and $2,460 with $60,000 deposited into a CD account now. But they’ll need to be comfortable forgoing access to their funds to earn it. While high-yield savings and money market accounts may be less profitable, they’ll also be more flexible. Weigh all three account types carefully before getting started, and don’t diminish the potential benefits of splitting your funds between two or even all three accounts to exploit the advantages each comes with while minimizing the drawbacks of each at the same time.