BMO Alto Online Certificate of Deposit

Alto is a trade name used by BMO Bank N.A. for its direct to consumer online deposits, reached at alto.bmo.com after the old bmoalto.com address began redirecting. The CD has no minimum opening deposit and no monthly fee, and terms run from 6 months to 60 months. As of October 14, 2026 the ladder reads 6 months at 2.50% APY, 12 months at 3.00%, 24 months at 3.10%, 36 months at 3.15%, 48 months at 3.25% and 60 months at 3.35%. Alto's own savings account pays 3.00% APY with no lock, so the 12 month CD pays the same as savings and the 60 month CD pays 0.35 points more for a five year commitment. There is one structural detail that matters more than the rate for larger balances. BMO states plainly that deposits made through Alto and in other US accounts under the BMO brand are not separately insured by the FDIC and count toward your FDIC deposit insurance limit at BMO Bank N.A. If you already hold money at BMO Bank N.A. or any other BMO branded account, an Alto CD does not buy you a fresh $250,000 of coverage, it shares the existing one. Anyone using multiple banks specifically to stay under the insurance cap needs to account for that. The strengths are the zero minimum, which lets you open a CD with any amount, and the fact that deposits sit at BMO Bank N.A. You have 10 days from account opening to fund the CD, and if rates change between opening and funding you get the higher APY. Funds cannot be withdrawn for 15 days after initial funding. If you want to lock a modest sum for five years and you have no BMO balances elsewhere, the 60 month CD does what it says. Weigh it against Alto's own savings account: the 12 month CD pays the same 3.00% APY as savings, and the longer terms pay more, from 3.10% at 24 months to 3.35% at 60 months. Early withdrawal penalties may apply, and BMO does not publish the penalty amounts on the CD page, so read the account terms before you fund. Anyone with existing BMO deposits near the insurance limit should account for the shared coverage.