CIBC GIC rates by term

These are CIBC’s GIC rates as of October 4, 2026, read from CIBC’s official GIC rate page with every product panel opened. The first table compares the three ways to buy a standard CIBC GIC; the others cover specials, registered accounts, US-dollar GICs and CIBC’s other GIC types.

Why CIBC has several different 5-year GIC rates

Most people assume a bank has one GIC rate per term. CIBC has several, because it sells different GIC products through different channels, and the gap between them is larger than the gap between many banks:

• CIBC Long-Term GIC is the plain, always-available GIC. It pays the lowest rate of the group, as of October 4, 2026, 2.20% for five years.
• CIBC Bonus Rate GIC is the GIC CIBC advertises. Its 1- and 2-year terms carry a special rate on top of the posted rate; its longer terms pay the posted rate only, as of October 4, 2026, 2.75% for five years.
• CIBC Escalating Rate GICs pay a rate that rises each year. CIBC publishes an effective yield over the full five years, as of October 4, 2026, 2.98%, which is the number to compare, not the final-year rate.
• GICs in a CIBC Investment Account, held with CIBC Securities Inc. or CIBC Investor Services Inc. (the firm behind CIBC Investor’s Edge), pay the most: 3.60% for five years, with a $500 minimum. The CIBC EasyBuilder GIC, which splits your deposit equally across 1- to 5-year terms with a $2,500 minimum, paid the same rates at our October 4, 2026 check.

The practical rule: if you are buying a GIC at CIBC, never accept the plain Long-Term GIC rate without asking about the alternatives. At our October 2026 check, an investment-account GIC or EasyBuilder paid 0.70 to 0.85 percentage points more than the Bonus Rate GIC for 3- to 5-year terms. For the 1- and 2-year terms, the Bonus Rate special and the investment-account rate were the same.

How the CIBC Bonus Rate GIC special works

CIBC’s rate page states that your total rate is the posted rate plus the promotional rate, and that promotional rates apply only to new GIC purchases, not to renewals. Two consequences follow:

• The renewal trap. CIBC says a Bonus Rate GIC automatically reinvests into a Bonus Rate GIC for the same term, and that specials do not apply to renewals, so the renewed GIC earns the posted rate in effect at the time. Put a reminder in your calendar a week before maturity and choose where the money goes.
• The special is tied to terms and tiers. CIBC quotes its 1-year special for the $1,000 to $4,999 tier and the at-maturity interest option, and only the 1- and 2-year terms carry a special at present. Check the rate for your amount and payout choice before you commit.

Monthly interest costs more at CIBC

CIBC pays its quoted GIC rates for annual or at-maturity interest. Its footnotes state that choosing monthly interest lowers the annual rate by 0.25 percentage points, and semi-annual interest by 0.125 points, except that clients aged 60 and older keep the full rate on monthly payments. On $50,000, a 0.25-point cut is about $125 a year in interest. If you do not need the income, take annual or at-maturity interest; if you are 60 or older and want monthly income, the cut does not apply to you.

CIBC cashable, flexible and variable GICs

If you might need the money early, CIBC has three options, each with a catch:

• CIBC Flexible GIC: a 1-year GIC you can cash before maturity, as of October 4, 2026, 2.15% with its special. CIBC pays no interest on money withdrawn within 29 days of purchase.
• CIBC Cashable Escalating Rate GIC: a 5-year GIC you can cash on, or up to seven days after, each anniversary. Its effective yield was 2.90%.
• CIBC Variable Rate GIC: a 1-year GIC whose rate is the CIBC prime rate minus a fixed spread, as of October 4, 2026, 1.75%. It rises if prime rises and falls if prime falls.

All three pay noticeably less than a non-redeemable GIC. If flexibility is the priority, a high-interest savings account may beat them; our GIC vs HISA guide walks through the trade-off.

CIBC TFSA and RRSP GICs

CIBC offers its Bonus Rate GIC in a TFSA and an RRSP (and a RRIF or LIF), with a $500 minimum, at the same posted rates as the non-registered version; at our October 4, 2026 check the special applied to the 1-year TFSA and the 2-year RRSP versions. Its regular TFSA and RRSP GICs pay much less, around two percent at our October 4, 2026 check, so ask for the Bonus Rate version. Because GIC interest is taxed as ordinary income, holding a GIC in a TFSA keeps all of the interest. Our TFSA GICs guide covers the details, including how online banks compare.

CIBC US-dollar GICs

CIBC sells non-redeemable US-dollar GICs through a CIBC investment account, with a US$500 minimum; the US-dollar table above shows the current rates. They often pay more than CIBC’s Canadian-dollar GICs, but if you will spend the money in Canadian dollars, a move in the exchange rate can wipe out the difference.

CIBC GIC rate updates

When CIBC changes its GIC rates or specials, we publish a dated update with the old and new figures.

Weekly GIC rate updates →

CIBC vs online banks

CIBC’s GIC rates are in line with the other Big Six banks, and online banks pay more. At our October 3 check the best 1-year GIC in Canada was from Oaken Financial at 3.80% and the best 5-year from Oaken Financial at 4.50%, both standard rates with no conditions. Our best GIC rates in Canada weekly updates rank more than 20 banks and credit unions, and the guides to Oaken GIC rates and EQ Bank GIC rates cover the two online banks most often compared with the big banks.

Staying with CIBC can still make sense: everything is in one place, you can buy in a branch, and the investment-account GICs narrow the gap. CIBC is a member of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation, so eligible deposits are insured up to $100,000 per insured category, the same protection an online bank’s CDIC-member deposits have.

Frequently asked questions