Compare one-year term deposits

The table below displays a snapshot of some of the highest term deposit interest rates around for one-year terms.

12-month term deposit

As the name probably suggests, a 12-month term deposit is a fixed deposit that locks away your money for one year, which is the period of time known as the term. This means for one year you generally won’t be able to touch the money you deposit, but in exchange you will earn a fixed amount of interest over this period.

For example, a 1.00% p.a. term deposit for 12 months would return $100 in interest over the term if you deposited a total of $10,000.

12-month term deposits are considered to be the upper limit for ‘short’ term deposits. Other terms considered short-term offered by banks include any terms ranging from one-month to 11 months, with 6-month terms usually being the most popular.

Any longer than this and you’ll be getting a ‘long' term deposit, such as terms that are:

• 18 months
• Two years
• 30 months
• Three years
• Four years
• Five years

While some banks offer term deposits for up to seven years, five is more commonly the longest term offered to the general public.

12-month fixed deposit interest rates

With the cash rate as low as it is at the time of writing (0.10% as at May 2021), interest rates on term deposits are pretty poor in general at the moment. The average term deposit rate from the big four banks across all terms is just 0.30% p.a, according to Reserve Bank data, while Savings.com.au’s analysis of a broader section of the market found an average closer to 0.43% p.a.

Historically speaking, that’s very low, and one-year terms don’t fare much better. The average term deposit rate for one-year terms is 0.49% p.a, while the highest the typical customer can get is about 1.00% p.a in 2021. 

Given the current rate of inflation is 1.10%, a lot of these one-year term deposit rates will barely even give you a real rate return (real=adjusted for inflation), so funds in a term deposit with an interest rate below the inflation rate can be considered to be going backwards in value.

But as you’ll see below, other terms don’t really fare much better.

How do 12-month deposit rates compare to other terms?

The general rule used to be ‘the longer the term the higher the rate’ and this is still somewhat true, but not by much. For example, the highest five-year rate Savings.com.au could find is 1.60% p.a at the time of writing, which is 60 basis points higher than the highest one-year rate.

The table below displays a snapshot of some of the highest term deposit interest rates around for five-year terms.

However, when you average out the rates offered by most banks among the different terms, one-year products seem to fare better. For example, Savings.com.au research found one-year terms had an average rate of 0.49% p.a across the market, compared to:

• Average rate for 2-year terms: 0.52% p.a.
• Average rate for 3-year terms: 0.54% p.a.
• Average rate for 4-year terms: 0.51% p.a.
• Average rate for 5-year terms: 0.52% p.a.

The highest average Savings.com.au found is the 0.54% p.a for a three-year term, but note that all rates are listed in per-annum figures, even for terms under 12 months. For three months, for example, the total rate of return would be a quarter of the per annum (p.a.) rate of 0.39%, which works out to be less than 0.10%. 

Why should you pick a 12-month term deposit?

Perhaps the biggest reason to pick a one-year term deposit is that it could provide the best of both worlds. One-year is short enough to be considered a short-term investment, while the interest rates on offer are equal (if not better on average) than longer-term deposits.

Term deposits with longer-terms require you to lock your money away for longer without necessarily offering much higher rates, although our term deposit comparison tables show there are still some high longer-term deposit rates available if you know where to look.

What about shorter terms?

Short term deposits (terms shorter than a year) often earn less interest but can still be a quick and easy way to earn something on your investment. They can be good for short-term savings goals, like for a holiday or for Christmas presents, but you could argue savings accounts are also good for this while being a more flexible product.

Short term deposits also mean you might not have to worry as much about potentially breaking from the term deposit early, which is a flaw with longer terms.

Should you pick a longer-term deposit?

Term deposits are available from most banks for terms of up to five (and sometimes seven) years, which is a long time to have your money locked away. Should you need this money in an emergency, for example, you’d probably have to suffer an interest rate reduction relevant to how much of your term has elapsed, as well as providing at least 31 days of notice to the bank.

A common example of how banks lower your interest rate if you decide to cash out from a term deposit early.

But there are benefits to long-term deposits. For one, it’s possible to get higher interest rates, and two, they’re also useful for avoiding interest rate cuts. If you’d taken out a five-year term deposit a few years ago, you’re likely to still be earning an interest rate in excess of 3% or even 4% p.a, whereas you’d be lucky to get one above 1.00% p.a now.

This also means you could miss out on potential interest rate increases, however.

The pros and cons of short vs long-term deposits

Here’s a summary of the advantages and disadvantages of short and long-term deposits: