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Effective Yields and Compounding

Banking terms for APY, AER, effective annual rates, compounding, money-market yields, and day-count conventions.

Effective yields and compounding terms translate quoted interest rates into comparable annualized costs or returns after compounding and day-count conventions are considered.

Use this branch when two rates look similar but are quoted on different bases, compound at different frequencies, or use different money-market conventions.

What This Branch Covers

AreaUse it for
Effective Annual and Percentage YieldsAPY, AER, effective annual rate, and nominal-versus-effective comparisons.
Money Market, Day Count, and Annuity RatesActual/360, banker-year, money-market yield, and annuity-rate conventions.

Why It Matters

A 5% nominal rate compounded monthly is not the same as a 5% effective annual yield. A money-market instrument quoted on an Actual/360 basis may not compare cleanly with a deposit account quoted by APY. The right comparison depends on cash-flow timing, compounding, fees, and disclosure rules.

What to Verify

  • Nominal rate, effective rate, compounding frequency, day-count basis, and quote period.
  • Whether the rate is for a deposit, loan, bill, note, money-market instrument, or annuity-style payment stream.
  • Whether fees, penalties, early-withdrawal rules, or minimum-balance requirements affect the realized yield.

These pages explain rate conventions for education; actual product outcomes depend on the contract and applicable disclosure rules.

In this section

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Revised on Sunday, June 21, 2026