APY

APY stands for Annual Percentage Yield — what your savings actually earn in a year once compounding is included. It's the number that matters when comparing bank accounts, because two accounts with the same interest rate can have different APYs if one compounds more often. Higher APY always means more money in your pocket.

Example: $10,000 at 4% interest compounded monthly grows to $10,407 in a year — that's a 4.07% APY.