The savings and fixed-income investment landscape is constantly evolving, offering a wide range of options to grow your wealth. Whether you’re considering high-yield savings accounts, certificates of deposit, bonds or other fixed-income investments, it’s important to have a good idea of the potential returns so you can make informed financial decisions. Before committing to any investment, evaluate how much your money can earn over time, factoring in interest rates, risk levels and market conditions. Here’s a breakdown of how much interest $500,000 can generate per year.
To ensure your investments align with your financial goals and risk tolerance, consider consulting with a financial advisor for a customized strategy and guidance.
Interest on Fixed-Income Investments
Interest is the driving force behind fixed-income investments, providing the incentive to invest rather than simply holding onto cash. For many, the goal of generating passive income through interest is a key part of their financial strategy. When people discuss living off interest, they’re typically referring to returns from fixed-income investments. We’ll review the interest rates you can expect from four common fixed-income instruments. As well as if you can get high interest on $500k (though that depends on what you consider “high”).
1. Bonds
Bonds are a popular fixed-income investment, as they’re associated with a lower risk of negative outcomes compared to stocks. With bonds, the return on your investment is often known at the point of purchase. Although it’s often a lower return than the best-case scenario of riskier investments, it provides value when balancing a portfolio.
When you purchase a standard bond, you agree to receive a set percentage of the price of your bond in interest. This percentage is called the coupon rate. Its size is largely dependent on the interest rates in the market at the time you purchase the bond.
Say you bought $500,000 in bonds that have a 3.45% coupon rate. You would then receive 3.45% of your balance in interest throughout the term of your bond.
Most bonds compound semi-annually. So if you put a bond with a term longer than six months, you will also have the opportunity to earn interest on your interest.
2. Treasury Bonds
Many investors are drawn to U.S. Treasury bonds (T-bonds) because they are considered the safest investment. The U.S. government guarantees their return, virtually eliminating the risk of loss.
Buying newly issued T-bonds can be complex. The purchase price isn’t fixed beforehand because bonds are sold through government auctions. This means you may pay slightly more or less than expected. Treasury bonds pay interest every six months throughout their term.
For example, say you buy a 30-year bond with a $500,000 face value and a 3.5% coupon rate. You’ll receive $17,500 in annual interest, split into two payments. Interest is based on the bond’s face value, but buying below face value increases your effective return.
Shorter-term bonds follow the same interest calculation and payment schedule. However, their interest rates are usually lower. As of March 2025, two-year Treasury bond rate is 3.99%. On $500,000, this would generate about $19,950 annually.
3. Corporate Bonds
Many corporations choose to issue bonds as a fundraising strategy. Since even the sturdiest companies can’t quite match the guarantee of Treasury bonds, they’ll often issue those bonds with higher interest rates. This makes them an attractive proposition for investors who don’t mind marginally more risk.
Similar to Treasuries, most corporate bonds have a fixed interest rate attached to the par value of the bond. That interest rate determines the annual amount of interest to be paid out most frequently in semi-annual installments.
According to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, high-grade corporate bonds currently have an average yield of 5.92%. For the sake of our example, let’s say you purchased these corporate bonds with a par value of $500,000.
Would you get high interest on $500k? That depends. However, you would be looking at annual interest payments of $29,600.
4. Certificates of Deposit (CDs)
A certificate of deposit (CD) is similar to a bond. You agree to lend money to a bank in exchange for interest. CDs come in various term lengths, often offering more options than bonds. Terms range from as short as seven days to 10 years or more.
One advantage CDs have over bonds is the variety of choices. Most large banks offer multiple CD options, making it easier to find one that fits your needs. Additionally, CD interest compounds monthly, which can increase earnings over time.
With equal term lengths and interest rates, CDs typically generate more interest than bonds due to monthly compounding. However, because of this advantage, CDs often have slightly lower interest rates than comparable bonds.
For example, investing $500,000 in a Capital One 60-month CD with a 3.50% interest rate and monthly compounding would yield $95,471 in total interest. That amounts to an annual return of $19,094.
5. Savings Accounts
If saying goodbye to your principal for a period of up to 30 years seems a bit worrisome to you, you can also earn interest on your money by placing it in a high-yield savings account. Keep in mind, having immediate access to your funds comes at the trade-off of much lower interest rates.
For this example, let’s say you placed $500,000 in a high-yield savings account with a 2.15% APY. After one year, you will have earned $10,750 in interest. This rate is likely insufficient to keep up with annual inflation. This means your money will become less valuable at a higher rate than when it’s accruing interest. You’ll also want to check the fine print of your savings account for things like maximum balance thresholds and tiered interest rates, if you’re considering this approach.
6. Money Market Accounts
Say you feel the need to have even greater access to your funds than a savings account can provide. After all, many savings accounts limit how many times you can make a withdrawal per year without paying a fee. In this case, a money market account could serve as an alternative.
Keep in mind, however, that while you may be able to withdraw from the account more freely, you pay the price of even lower interest rates. Most competitive money market accounts offer APYs between 1.6% and 1.8%. A 1.8% APY would mean you earn $9,074.62 in the first year after depositing $500,000. As it’s unlikely that you’ll need that much money with that level of liquidity, this is likely not the wisest approach.
Can You Retire With $500,000?
As always, the answer to this question depends on a number of factors specific to the individual asking, including but not limited to how much money the asker needs to live in retirement. Many financial experts point to a rule of thumb known as the 4% Rule. This rule states that retirees are usually safe to withdraw four percent of their retirement savings on an annual basis without risking running out of money.
Four percent of $500,000 is $20,000, and the average annual benefit for someone receiving Social Security is also around $20,000. An annual retirement income of $40,000 may be sufficient for some people, while for others it’s not enough to cover the costs of day-to-day life, as well as medical expenses.
How Should You Invest $500,000?
As mentioned above, your primary goals with any retirement investment are to outpace inflation and to earn enough of a return to withdraw comfortably without dangerously depleting the principal.
The conventional wisdom among financial experts is to diversify any investment portfolio between things like stocks and mutual funds that can earn a higher return and fixed-income instruments like the ones we’ve discussed that can hedge against the risk of losses. Ultimately there’s no golden ratio of investment products that will work for every investor.
Bottom Line
Striving to achieve high interest on $500k looks different depending on the individual. Factors like how much risk you’re assuming, the term length you choose, the broader economic environment at your time of purchase and the frequency at which your interest compounds will all play a role in calculating how much you earn on your principal investment.
Tips for Investing
- Before diving into options trading, consider talking with a seasoned financial advisor. Finding a financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to three vetted financial advisors who serve your area, and you can interview your advisor matches at no cost to decide which one is right for you. If you’re ready to find an advisor who can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.
- One of the most useful tools investors have is an investment calculator, which helps portfolios maintain the desired balance among asset classes.
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