Par yield as of September 9, 2026 · official U.S. Treasury data
| Date | Yield | Change |
|---|---|---|
| September 9, 2026 | 4.01% | +1 bp |
| September 8, 2026 | 4.00% | +2 bp |
| September 4, 2026 | 3.98% | +3 bp |
| September 3, 2026 | 3.95% | -5 bp |
| September 2, 2026 | 4.00% | +0 bp |
| September 1, 2026 | 4.00% | +1 bp |
| August 31, 2026 | 3.99% | -3 bp |
| August 28, 2026 | 4.02% | +8 bp |
| August 27, 2026 | 3.94% | +0 bp |
| August 26, 2026 | 3.94% | — |
The 6-month Treasury yield comes from the 26-week bill, one of the two most heavily auctioned securities the government issues. For savers it is the maturity where a Treasury bill starts to look like a genuine alternative to a savings account, and for markets it is a clean read on policy expectations over the next couple of Fed meetings.
A 26-week bill locks in a known return for half a year. Bought at auction and held to maturity it returns exactly the yield shown, with no credit risk in dollar terms and no dependence on a bank’s promotional rate surviving the period. Interest is exempt from state and local income tax, which raises the effective return for savers in high-tax states.
The comparison people usually want is against a high-yield savings account or a money-market fund. Those float with the market, so they benefit if rates rise and suffer if rates fall. The bill does the opposite: it fixes the outcome, which is an advantage precisely when the Fed is expected to cut.
Six months covers roughly four Federal Reserve meetings. The 6-month yield therefore reflects the average overnight rate expected across that window, and comparing it with the current fed funds target shows how much change is priced in over the near term.
When the 6-month sits clearly below fed funds, the market is confident cuts are coming soon. When it sits above, further tightening is expected. Because the horizon is short, this reading is unusually clean: there is very little term premium or inflation expectation mixed into it.
The Treasury auctions 13-week and 26-week bills every week, making them among the most regularly issued securities in the world. That steady supply, combined with enormous demand from money-market funds and corporate treasurers, makes the bill market exceptionally liquid.
Liquidity matters because it means a bill can usually be sold before maturity at close to fair value. The price will still reflect where yields have moved, but the cost of exiting is small compared with less-traded parts of the curve.
The gap between the 6-month and the 1-year is one of the shortest-horizon curve signals available. A 1-year yield below the 6-month means the market expects rates to be falling in the second half of that window, and it is often the first part of the curve to invert when a cutting cycle comes into view.
For a saver deciding between the two, that same gap is the practical question: whether the extra six months of commitment is being paid for. When the 1-year yields less, the market is telling you it expects the alternative to be worse by then.
| Maturity | Yield | 1-Day Change | vs 6M |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1M | 3.81% | +0 bp | -20 bp |
| 2M | 3.93% | +2 bp | -8 bp |
| 3M | 3.95% | +1 bp | -6 bp |
| 6M | 4.01% | +1 bp | — |
| 1Y | 4.17% | +2 bp | +16 bp |
| 2Y | 4.43% | +4 bp | +42 bp |
| 3Y | 4.49% | +5 bp | +48 bp |
| 5Y | 4.61% | +4 bp | +60 bp |
| 7Y | 4.71% | +3 bp | +70 bp |
| 10Y | 4.83% | +3 bp | +82 bp |
| 20Y | 5.28% | +2 bp | +127 bp |
| 30Y | 5.28% | +3 bp | +127 bp |
Source: U.S. Department of the Treasury daily par yield curve — official public-domain U.S. government data, published once per business day. This page is information, not investment advice; see our disclaimer.