Understanding APY and Calculating the Nominal Interest Rate
Annual Percentage Yield (APY) is a way to express the effective rate of return on an investment or savings account, taking into account the effect of compounding interest. It's important to distinguish APY from the nominal interest rate (often called the annual interest rate). The nominal rate is the stated interest rate before compounding is considered, while APY reflects the actual rate earned after compounding over a year.
If you know the APY and the number of compounding periods per year, you can calculate the nominal interest rate. This is useful for comparing different investment options where the compounding frequency might vary.
The Formula
The relationship between APY and the nominal interest rate (r) compounded 'n' times per year is given by:
APY = (1 + r/n)^n - 1
To find the nominal interest rate (r), we need to rearrange this formula:
(1 + APY) = (1 + r/n)^n
(1 + APY)^(1/n) = 1 + r/n
(1 + APY)^(1/n) - 1 = r/n
r = n * [(1 + APY)^(1/n) - 1]
Where:
APYis the Annual Percentage Yield (expressed as a decimal).nis the number of compounding periods per year.ris the nominal annual interest rate (expressed as a decimal).