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Any APR from 0.1% to 25% and any compounding frequency — the true annual yield, instantly.
REFERENCE TABLE · MONEY
APR to APY Conversion Table
A 6.5% APR compounded monthly is really 6.6972% a year — the rate on the brochure (APR, nominal) and the rate that actually hits your balance (APY, effective) are never the same once compounding kicks in. Look up any rate below, or check the full 1–20% chart for monthly, quarterly, daily, and continuous compounding.
The full APR → APY chart (1–20%)
Read across from any nominal APR to its true annual yield at four compounding frequencies. Print it, pin it, or cite it — the lookup above handles any rate the chart skips.
| Nominal APR | APY, monthly | APY, quarterly | APY, daily | APY, continuous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1% | 1.0046% | 1.0038% | 1.0050% | 1.0050% |
| 2% | 2.0184% | 2.0151% | 2.0201% | 2.0201% |
| 3% | 3.0416% | 3.0339% | 3.0453% | 3.0455% |
| 4% | 4.0742% | 4.0604% | 4.0808% | 4.0811% |
| 5% | 5.1162% | 5.0945% | 5.1267% | 5.1271% |
| 6% | 6.1678% | 6.1364% | 6.1831% | 6.1837% |
| 7% | 7.2290% | 7.1859% | 7.2501% | 7.2508% |
| 8% | 8.3000% | 8.2432% | 8.3278% | 8.3287% |
| 9% | 9.3807% | 9.3083% | 9.4162% | 9.4174% |
| 10% | 10.4713% | 10.3813% | 10.5156% | 10.5171% |
| 11% | 11.5719% | 11.4621% | 11.6260% | 11.6278% |
| 12% | 12.6825% | 12.5509% | 12.7475% | 12.7497% |
| 13% | 13.8032% | 13.6476% | 13.8802% | 13.8828% |
| 14% | 14.9342% | 14.7523% | 15.0243% | 15.0274% |
| 15% | 16.0755% | 15.8650% | 16.1798% | 16.1834% |
| 16% | 17.2271% | 16.9859% | 17.3470% | 17.3511% |
| 17% | 18.3892% | 18.1148% | 18.5258% | 18.5305% |
| 18% | 19.5618% | 19.2519% | 19.7164% | 19.7217% |
| 19% | 20.7451% | 20.3971% | 20.9190% | 20.9250% |
| 20% | 21.9391% | 21.5506% | 22.1336% | 22.1403% |
Output · formula · meaning
| Output | Formula | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| APY (effective yield) | (1 + r/m)m − 1 | What 6.5% APR compounded monthly really earns: 6.6972%. That’s $669.72 of interest on $10,000 in a year. |
| Continuous APY | er − 1 | The mathematical ceiling as compounding gets infinitely frequent: 6.7159% at 6.5%. |
| Compounding bonus | APY − APR | Free extra yield from compounding itself: 0.1972pp at 6.5% monthly. The higher the rate, the bigger the bonus. |
Who uses this
- Savers: comparing two accounts when one quotes APR and the other quotes APY — convert first, then compare.
- Borrowers: decoding what “nominal rate” on a loan disclosure really costs per year before fees.
- Students & teachers: the compounding formula made visible across every frequency — the chart is the lesson.
- Researchers & writers: a citable, printable reference for nominal-vs-effective rate examples.
Accuracy & limitations
Values are rounded to four decimals — plenty for any real decision. Two caveats: on loans, the legal APR already folds in fees, so a loan’s APR and a savings account’s APR are not the same animal — compare APY to APY for deposits and all-in cost for loans. And compounding frequency matters less than it looks: at 5%, daily vs monthly compounding is a 0.01-point difference — the rate itself moves the needle, not the schedule.
See compounding grow money over time in the compound interest table, or what it costs on debt in the loan payment table.
Cite this reference tableBright Side Kit. “APR to APY Conversion Table.” brightoolbox.com, 2026.
Bright Side Kit. "APR to APY Conversion Table." https://brightoolbox.com/apr-to-apy-table/ Accessed October 22, 2026.Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between APR and APY?
APR (annual percentage rate) is the nominal yearly rate before compounding is applied. APY (annual percentage yield) is the effective yearly rate after compounding — the number that actually hits your balance. APR answers “what rate is quoted”; APY answers “what do I really earn.”
Is APY always higher than APR?
Whenever interest compounds more than once a year, yes — compounding adds interest on interest, so the effective yield exceeds the nominal rate. With annual compounding they are equal. (Loan APRs can look higher than deposit APYs because loan APR legally includes fees — different definition, same letters.)
Which compounding frequency do banks actually use?
Most savings accounts compound daily and credit monthly; CDs often compound daily or monthly; bonds typically pay semiannual coupons. The table shows daily vs monthly differs by only hundredths of a point — shop the rate, not the schedule.
How is APY calculated?
APY = (1 + r/m)m − 1, where r is the nominal APR as a decimal and m is the number of compounding periods per year. For 6.5% compounded monthly: (1 + 0.065/12)12 − 1 = 6.6972%. Continuous compounding is the limit: er − 1.
Why does the table stop at 20% APR?
The formula works for any rate — the lookup calculator above handles 0.1% to 25% with any frequency. The printed chart covers 1–20% because that spans essentially every savings, CD, and mortgage rate you will ever compare.