CommBank, NAB, Westpac or ANZ - how do the big 4 term deposits compare?

Are you feeling the squeeze from continually high expenses? A term deposit could be your financial fortress, offering a way to lock your cash up with a high interest rate while it lasts.

For a while, short terms offered substantially better rates than longer terms. However, most terms have evened out more recently. Only a few of the most competitive term deposit rates are still as high as 5%, and most are for 1 year terms and lower. But, if you’d rather stick with one of the major banks, you’ll still find some fairly good options. 

Check out where the best rates from the big four sit now:

• The Westpac Term Deposit: 4.00% (1 year) to 3.60% (5 years)

• The Commonwealth Bank Term Deposit 4.35% (1 year) to 3.45% (5 years)

• The NAB Term Deposit 4.50% (1 year) to 3.30% (5 years)

• The ANZ Advance Notice Term Deposit: 4.50% (1 year) to 4.00% (5 years)

What features do the big banks term deposits have? 

You’ll want to look out for a few things in a term deposit, including interest rates, deposit limits, and whether you can choose how often your interest is paid (monthly, quarterly, annually, or at maturity). 

Here’s a breakdown of what term deposit features and conditions Westpac, Commonwealth Bank, NAB and ANZ have to offer at the moment:  

How do the Big Four rates compare to smaller term deposit providers?

Always shop around to make sure your bank is giving you the best rates possible. You can start by comparing different term periods across different providers. But it’s also useful to take a handful of smaller providers and see how they look against the big banks. You’ll quickly see that some actually offer higher rates than the Big Four. Part of the reason for this is that smaller providers need to work harder to attract more savers.

Here are a few to consider: Heartland Bank and Family First bank’s 5.05% p.a. 1-year term deposit is 65 basis points higher than NABs 4.40% p.a. 1-year term deposit; and Judo Bank’s 4.50% p.a. 5-year term deposit is 90 basis points higher than Westpac’s 3.60% p.a. 5-year term.

Below is a breakdown of some providers offering rates near or above the big 4 banks:

While smaller providers have historically offered significantly higher rates, it’s notable that the gap between their rates and those of the big four banks has narrowed, especially on some of the 1 and 2 year terms. However, providers like Heartland Bank, Judo Bank, and AMP Bank still maintain a slight edge, so these providers could be a good option if you’re looking to maximise the rates you get.

Want to see how the big four banks’ term deposits stack up against other providers? Check out the table below for a bunch of options, or head over to our term deposit comparison tool for more!