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Sallie Mae Bank (Member FDIC) is mainly known for its private student loans, but it also pays high interest rates on accounts like CDs.
Sallie Mae CD Rates
Sallie Mae CD rates are high overall — in fact, on certain terms, it pays some of the best CD rates out there. There is a Sallie Mae CD – Minimum Deposit minimum deposit for CDs, though.
CD TermAPY (Annual Percentage Yield)6 monthsSallie Mae 6 Month CD – APY9 monthsSallie Mae 9 Month CD – APY11 monthsSallie Mae 11 Month CD – APY12 monthsSallie Mae 1 Year CD – APY13 monthsSallie Mae 13 Month CD – APY15 monthsSallie Mae 15 Month CD – APY18 monthsSallie Mae 18 Month CD – APY24 monthsSallie Mae 2 Year CD – APY30 monthsSallie Mae 30 Month CD – APY36 monthsSallie Mae 3 Year CD – APY60 monthsSallie Mae 5 Year CD – APY
Sallie Mae CD Rates Pros and Cons
ProsCons
High CD rates
Interest compounds daily
Variety of CD terms
Low-to-standard early withdrawal penalties
Sallie Mae CD – Minimum Deposit minimum depositNo terms under 6 months or over 5 years
Sallie Mae CD FAQs
Is Sallie Mae a good CD option?
Sallie Mae is a good choice for CDs if you are comfortable with an online-only experience. It’s also a great option if you want to build a CD ladder, because it has more term options than many banks.
What is the interest rate for a Sallie Mae no-penalty CD?
You can open a Sallie Mae 14 Month No-Penalty CD – Product Name Only through Raisin, and it pays Sallie Mae 14 Month No-Penalty CD – APY APY. Raisin is an online marketplace that offers high savings account and CD rates through partner banks. You can’t open a no-penalty CD directly through the Sallie Mae website, but you can through its partnership with Raisin. And like all accounts with Raisin, you only need $1 to open a CD.
Is Sallie Mae safe for CDs?
Yes, Sallie Mae is a safe place to open CDs. It is a Member FDIC bank, so any deposits are insured for up to $250,000 per person, per category. If Sallie Mae shuts down, it will either mail you a check for your insured amount or move your money to another FDIC-insured institution.
What is the minimum deposit for a CD at Sallie Mae?
You need at least Sallie Mae CD – Minimum Deposit to open a CD with Sallie Mae.
How Sallie Mae CD Rates Compare
Sallie Mae CD Rates vs. Ally CD Rates
Sallie Mae pays Sallie Mae CD – APY APY on CDs, while Ally Bank CD rates are Ally High Yield CD – APY APY on its regular CDs. So if you want a standard CD, Sallie Mae is probably the better choice — the exception being if you don’t have at least Sallie Mae CD – Minimum Deposit to open an account. Then you’ll prefer Ally, because Ally has a Ally High Yield CD – Minimum Deposit minimum deposit on all accounts.
If you’re looking for other types of CDs, Ally is likely the better bet. The Ally Raise Your Rate CD – Product Name Only has a 2-year and 4-year term, both paying Ally Raise Your Rate CD – APY APY. If Ally rates go up, you can request a rate increase once during the 2-year term and twice during the 4-year term.
There is also an 11-month Ally No Penalty CD – Product Name Only that pays Ally No Penalty CD – APY APY. Sallie Mae doesn’t offer a no-penalty CD, unless you want to open one separately through its partnership with online marketplace Raisin.
Sallie Mae CD Rates vs. Capital One CD Rates
Capital One CD rates are Capital One 360 CD – APY APY, so Sallie Mae pays the same. But you’ll prefer Capital One over Sallie Mae if you don’t have Sallie Mae CD – Minimum Deposit, because Capital One has a Capital One 360 CD – Minimum Deposit minimum deposit.
The bottom line: Sallie Mae CD rates are some of the highest out there, and they’re great picks if you’re comfortable with online banking. Sallie Mae also offers more CD terms than most banks, so you have plenty of options when opening a CD.
Why You Should Trust Us: How We Reviewed Sallie Mae CDs
To review Sallie Mae CDs, we used Insider’s certificate of deposit methodology. We look at interest rates, minimum opening deposits, early withdrawal penalties, CD term variety, ethics, customer support, and the mobile app. We assign each category a rating between 0 and 5, then average the scores together to calculate the CDs’ overall ratings.
More on Sallie Mae:
Sallie Mae Student LoansSallie Mae Bank Review
