This independent website was created to make one common CD question easier to understand: what might an early withdrawal penalty mean for the interest you have earned and the amount you could receive?
Who built it
The calculator is maintained by the publisher of this website. It is an educational utility, not a bank, credit union, tax preparer, financial adviser, or representative of any financial institution. We do not claim professional credentials or a relationship with a bank.
How the estimate works
The tool uses the principal, APY, months held, and penalty months you enter. It applies the simple-interest formulas shown on the calculator homepage. The estimate floors net interest at zero and does not reduce principal. Banks and credit unions may compound interest differently, use different day-count conventions, cap or apply penalties differently, or reduce principal under their account terms.
For those reasons, use the result as an illustration only. Read your CD agreement and ask your institution for its exact early-withdrawal amount before acting.
Sources and editorial approach
We prioritize primary sources for general rules and direct users to their own account disclosures for product-specific terms. These references provide background; they do not determine the terms of an individual CD:
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Regulation DD § 1030.4 — account disclosure requirements, including early-withdrawal penalty terms.
- Internal Revenue Service, Publication 550 — federal tax information about investment income and early-withdrawal penalties.
We review the calculator and its explanations when we make a material change. The figures are not bank-rate data, and the site does not maintain a bank-by-bank penalty database.
Contact and policies
Questions or corrections can be sent through the contact page. Read our privacy policy and terms of service.