What the 5-year Treasury yield measures
The 5-year Treasury yield is the annual return an investor earns by buying a five-year US government note and holding it to maturity. The series is the constant-maturity yield published by the Federal Reserve, interpolated from actively traded Treasuries and averaged over each month.
How to read this chart
Five years sits in the middle of the yield curve, so this rate reacts strongly to expected Fed policy over the next few years while also carrying some of the inflation and growth expectations that move long-term yields. It usually rises ahead of rate-hike cycles and falls before the Fed starts cutting.
The latest reading in context
- At 4.93%, the latest reading is above its 5-year average of 3.76% and above its 10-year average of 2.69%.
- Of all 778 monthly readings since January 1962, 47% were lower than today’s and 53% were higher.
- Direction: up 0.13 points over the past month; up 0.99 points over the past six months; up 1.28 points over the past year.
- The highest value on record is 15.93% (September 1981, 45 years ago); the lowest is 0.27% (August 2020, 6 years ago).
- The full history spans 8 US recessions, shaded grey on the chart.
Why it matters
Many borrowing costs are priced off the middle of the curve: auto loans, five-year certificates of deposit, adjustable-rate mortgages that reset after five years, and many corporate loans and bonds. Together with the 5-year TIPS yield it also gives the 5-year breakeven inflation rate.
What moves the 5-year Treasury yield
- Expected path of the federal funds rate over the next few years
- Inflation expectations
- Economic growth and recession risk
- Treasury supply and demand for safe assets
Key moments in its history
- 1981Close to 16% as the Fed under Paul Volcker fought double-digit inflation.
- 2012Below 1% while the Fed held rates near zero after the financial crisis.
- 2020About 0.3%, a record low, during the pandemic.
- 2023Near 5% after the Fed’s fastest rate hikes in four decades.
5-Year Treasury Yield data tables
Average by decade
| Decade | Average | High | Low |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s (so far) | 2.93% | 4.93% | 0.27% |
| 2010s | 1.65% | 3.00% | 0.62% |
| 2000s | 3.91% | 6.69% | 1.52% |
| 1990s | 6.32% | 8.77% | 4.18% |
| 1980s | 10.41% | 15.93% | 6.64% |
| 1970s | 7.38% | 10.93% | 5.00% |
| 1960s | 4.84% | 7.96% | 3.56% |
Last 12 months
| Period | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2026 | 4.93% | +0.13 pts |
| Sep 2026 | 4.80% | +0.42 pts |
| Aug 2026 | 4.38% | +0.05 pts |
| Jul 2026 | 4.33% | +0.12 pts |
| Jun 2026 | 4.21% | +0.06 pts |
| May 2026 | 4.15% | +0.21 pts |
| Apr 2026 | 3.94% | +0.09 pts |
| Mar 2026 | 3.85% | +0.17 pts |
| Feb 2026 | 3.68% | −0.10 pts |
| Jan 2026 | 3.78% | +0.08 pts |
| Dec 2025 | 3.70% | +0.03 pts |
| Nov 2025 | 3.67% | +0.02 pts |
Monthly values. Decade figures are averages of the monthly values in each decade. The complete history is available as a CSV file.
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5-Year Treasury Yield: questions and answers
What is the 5-year Treasury yield used for?
It is a benchmark for medium-term borrowing: auto loans, five-year CDs, adjustable-rate mortgages that reset after five years and many corporate loans.
Why does the 5-year yield move with the Fed?
Investors compare holding a five-year note with rolling over short-term bills for five years. If they expect the Fed to raise rates, the five-year yield rises in advance, and it falls when they expect cuts.
Where does the data on this chart come from?
From the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. ChartWidgets downloads the series (DGS5) from FRED, the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis database, and checks for new releases every day. The last update was on November 4, 2026.