Federal Funds Rate History: 1954–2026
The effective federal funds rate is the interest rate at which depository institutions lend reserve balances to each other overnight. It is the anchor for almost every other borrowing cost in the US economy — credit cards, auto loans, business credit lines and, indirectly, mortgage rates and equity valuations.
This page publishes the full annual history of the series from 1954 to 2026, plus the most recent monthly readings. Every figure is calculated directly from the Federal Reserve's own FEDFUNDS series rather than transcribed by hand, so the table below always matches the official data.
The rate averaged 16.38% in 1981 — the highest annual average on record — and bottomed at 0.08% in 2021. Through 2026 it has averaged 3.65%, with the latest monthly reading at 3.75% in September 2026.
Annual average effective federal funds rate, 1954–2026
| Year | Annual average | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (YTD) | 3.65% | −0.56 pp |
| 2025 | 4.21% | −0.93 pp |
| 2024 | 5.14% | +0.12 pp |
| 2023 | 5.02% | +3.34 pp |
| 2022 | 1.68% | +1.60 pp |
| 2021 | 0.08% | −0.30 pp |
| 2020 | 0.38% | −1.78 pp |
| 2019 | 2.16% | +0.33 pp |
| 2018 | 1.83% | +0.83 pp |
| 2017 | 1.00% | +0.61 pp |
| 2016 | 0.40% | +0.26 pp |
| 2015 | 0.13% | +0.04 pp |
| 2014 | 0.09% | −0.02 pp |
| 2013 | 0.11% | −0.03 pp |
| 2012 | 0.14% | +0.04 pp |
| 2011 | 0.10% | −0.07 pp |
| 2010 | 0.17% | +0.01 pp |
| 2009 | 0.16% | −1.77 pp |
| 2008 | 1.93% | −3.09 pp |
| 2007 | 5.02% | +0.05 pp |
| 2006 | 4.96% | +1.75 pp |
| 2005 | 3.21% | +1.86 pp |
| 2004 | 1.35% | +0.22 pp |
| 2003 | 1.13% | −0.54 pp |
| 2002 | 1.67% | −2.22 pp |
| 2001 | 3.89% | −2.35 pp |
| 2000 | 6.24% | +1.27 pp |
| 1999 | 4.97% | −0.38 pp |
| 1998 | 5.35% | −0.11 pp |
| 1997 | 5.46% | +0.16 pp |
| 1996 | 5.30% | −0.54 pp |
| 1995 | 5.84% | +1.63 pp |
| 1994 | 4.20% | +1.18 pp |
| 1993 | 3.02% | −0.50 pp |
| 1992 | 3.52% | −2.17 pp |
| 1991 | 5.69% | −2.41 pp |
| 1990 | 8.10% | −1.12 pp |
| 1989 | 9.22% | +1.65 pp |
| 1988 | 7.57% | +0.91 pp |
| 1987 | 6.66% | −0.15 pp |
| 1986 | 6.81% | −1.30 pp |
| 1985 | 8.10% | −2.12 pp |
| 1984 | 10.22% | +1.14 pp |
| 1983 | 9.09% | −3.17 pp |
| 1982 | 12.26% | −4.12 pp |
| 1981 | 16.38% | +3.02 pp |
| 1980 | 13.36% | +2.16 pp |
| 1979 | 11.19% | +3.26 pp |
| 1978 | 7.93% | +2.39 pp |
| 1977 | 5.54% | +0.49 pp |
| 1976 | 5.04% | −0.78 pp |
| 1975 | 5.82% | −4.68 pp |
| 1974 | 10.50% | +1.78 pp |
| 1973 | 8.73% | +4.29 pp |
| 1972 | 4.43% | −0.23 pp |
| 1971 | 4.66% | −2.52 pp |
| 1970 | 7.18% | −1.02 pp |
| 1969 | 8.20% | +2.54 pp |
| 1968 | 5.66% | +1.44 pp |
| 1967 | 4.22% | −0.89 pp |
| 1966 | 5.11% | +1.04 pp |
| 1965 | 4.07% | +0.58 pp |
| 1964 | 3.50% | +0.32 pp |
| 1963 | 3.18% | +0.47 pp |
| 1962 | 2.71% | +0.75 pp |
| 1961 | 1.96% | −1.26 pp |
| 1960 | 3.22% | −0.09 pp |
| 1959 | 3.31% | +1.73 pp |
| 1958 | 1.57% | −1.53 pp |
| 1957 | 3.10% | +0.38 pp |
| 1956 | 2.73% | +0.94 pp |
| 1955 | 1.78% | +0.78 pp |
| 1954 | 1.01% | — |
Recent monthly readings
| Month | Reading | Change |
|---|---|---|
| September 2026 | 3.75% | +0.12 pp |
| August 2026 | 3.63% | 0.00 pp |
| July 2026 | 3.63% | 0.00 pp |
| June 2026 | 3.63% | 0.00 pp |
| May 2026 | 3.63% | −0.01 pp |
| April 2026 | 3.64% | 0.00 pp |
| March 2026 | 3.64% | 0.00 pp |
| February 2026 | 3.64% | 0.00 pp |
| January 2026 | 3.64% | −0.08 pp |
| December 2025 | 3.72% | −0.16 pp |
| November 2025 | 3.88% | −0.21 pp |
| October 2025 | 4.09% | −0.13 pp |
| September 2025 | 4.22% | −0.11 pp |
What the record shows
Two structural regimes. The series splits cleanly around the mid-1980s. From 1954 to 1984 the rate averaged well into double digits during three separate inflation episodes, peaking in 1981. Since 1990 the Federal Reserve has conducted policy in a lower band, and the 2008–2015 period pinned the rate at the zero bound for seven years.
The 2022–2024 cycle was the fastest tightening in four decades. The annual average jumped from 1.68% in 2022 to 5.02% in 2023 as the committee responded to inflation that peaked above 8%. The 2025–2026 easing has been gradual by comparison — the annual average has come down to 3.65% while inflation has cooled, which is why the real policy rate remains restrictive.
Why the monthly detail matters. Annual averages smooth out the timing that actually drives markets. The monthly table below shows each step, which is what you need when matching a rate decision to an asset-price move.
Frequently asked questions
What is the federal funds rate today?
The effective federal funds rate stood at 3.75% in September 2026, according to the Federal Reserve's FEDFUNDS series. That compares with a 2026 annual average of 3.65%.
When was the federal funds rate at its highest?
The highest annual average was 16.38% in 1981, during the Volcker disinflation. The single highest monthly reading in the series came in that same period.
How fast did the Fed raise rates in 2022 and 2023?
The annual average rose from 1.68% in 2022 to 5.02% in 2023 — roughly 3.34 percentage points in a single year, the fastest pace since the early 1980s.
Source and method
All figures on this page are computed at build time from the Federal Funds Effective Rate series (FRED identifier FEDFUNDS) published by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and distributed by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Annual figures are averages of the underlying observations; growth and inflation rates are year-over-year changes of those annual averages. Where a year is incomplete the figure is labelled YTD.
Data retrieved 2026-10-30. Raw series: FRED — Federal Funds Effective Rate. Chart and table code licensed CC BY 4.0 — reuse freely with attribution to CapitalWire.
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