Treasury set a 1.40% fixed rate on Series I savings bonds issued from Nov. 1, 2026 through April 30, 2027, the highest fixed rate on I bonds since 2006. TreasuryDirect lists the composite rate for that period at 5.51%, up from 4.26% for bonds issued May through October 2026. The last time the fixed rate was this high was November 2006, when it was also 1.40%.
Savers deciding where to park money they cannot risk should look at what the fixed rate actually does. It is only one of two pieces of an I bond’s return, and it is the only piece that stays put once a bond is bought. The question is whether a bond issued this November, with a 1.40% fixed rate, fits money that can sit for years.
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A fixed rate that never changes
TreasuryDirect states that “the fixed rate never changes,” and that Treasury announces it every May 1 and November 1. A bond issued between Nov. 1, 2026 and April 30, 2027 therefore keeps the 1.40% fixed component for as long as it is held. Bonds issued in the previous period carry the fixed rate of 0.90% that was set in May 2026, according to the Treasury rate history.
The same page shows the semiannual inflation rate set on Nov. 1, 2026 at 2.04%. That piece resets every six months, so it is the part of an I bond’s return that moves with inflation.
How the 5.51% composite rate adds up
The composite rate combines both pieces. TreasuryDirect’s worked example for this period adds the 1.40% fixed rate (0.0140), twice the 2.04% semiannual inflation rate (0.0408) and the product of the two (0.0002856), which comes to 5.51%.
The composite rate applies to bonds issued November 1, 2026 to April 30, 2027. Each bond’s inflation component then resets every six months from its own issue month, according to the Tipswatch report on the announcement, which also lists the purchase limit as $10,000 per person per year.
Where 1.40% sits in the rate history
The comparison to 2006 is exact. TreasuryDirect’s history shows fixed rates of 1.40% on May 1, 2006 and on Nov. 1, 2006, so the new rate matches the 2006 level and is the highest set since then. Every period in between was lower: 1.30% in May 2007, 1.20% in November 2007, and then a long stretch of rates at or near zero.
More recent periods were also lower. The history lists 1.30% in November 2023 and May 2024, 1.20% in November 2024, 1.10% in May 2025, and 0.90% in both November 2025 and May 2026. Earlier fixed rates were higher, including 1.60% in November 2002, and the fixed rate stood at 1.00% in November 2005, just before the two 2006 settings of 1.40%.
The jump from 0.90% to 1.40% is a half-point increase in the fixed rate between two consecutive resets, measured against the 0.90% set in November 2025 and again in May 2026.
What the November reset means for the next one
The fixed rate is set again on May 1, 2027, which is when bonds issued after April 30 would pick up a new one. A bond bought now keeps 1.40% whatever that reset brings. Treasury does not say in the rate history what it will set in May.
Tipswatch, which tracks I bond rates, called the 1.40% fixed rate the highest since November 2006, which matches the Treasury table. It also noted that the 5.51% composite rate is up from 4.26%, the figure TreasuryDirect lists for bonds issued May through October 2026.
Because the inflation piece resets every six months while the fixed piece does not, the 5.51% figure describes only the first six months of a bond issued in this period. The 1.40% is the part a buyer can count on for the whole holding period.
Does money that can sit for years belong in a bond with a 1.40% fixed rate?
A fixed rate that is locked in for the life of a bond is a long commitment, and an I bond is only one of the places insured savings can sit. Savers comparing options have to weigh rates, access and how much of the money they may need this year.
“Make Your Savings Pay You” is an 11-page guide to the safe places that pay more than a near-zero bank account. It covers I bonds whose rate adjusts with inflation every six months and Treasury bills from $100, which are free of state and local income tax, and it includes a ladder that makes money come due on a schedule.
Compare I bonds and Treasury bills from $100 side by side in Make Your Savings Pay You →
This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
David M. Keller is a finance writer based in Columbus, Ohio, covering personal finance and consumer-focused economic topics. He earned his degree in journalism from Ohio University and began his career reporting on local business and economic trends for a regional media outlet. Since then, he has contributed to a variety of online publications, focusing on clear, practical coverage of topics such as cost of living, debt, and everyday financial decision-making.
