Prime rate today: 7.00%
The US prime rate is 7.00%, in effect since 17 Sep 2026. It is the upper end of the Federal Reserve's federal funds target range (3.75% to 4.00%) plus 3 percentage points: 4.00 + 3.00 = 7.00%. Credit cards, home equity lines and many business loans are priced from it. Rule, history since 2008 and questions below.
How the prime rate is calculated
Prime rate = upper end of the Fed's target range + 3.00 percentage points. The Federal Reserve sets a 25-basis-point-wide target range for the federal funds rate. Since December 2008 the prime rate that most US banks use, published by the Wall Street Journal, has stayed exactly 3 points above the top of that range. Today the range is 3.75% to 4.00%, so the prime rate is 7.00%.
This page applies that rule to the Fed's own numbers (target range and effective rate from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York) instead of copying a figure from a publication, and the history below applies it to the Bank for International Settlements series of Fed policy-rate changes. Banks set their own prime rates, but large banks follow the same convention, so the number is the same across most of them.
Prime rate history since December 2008
Month-end values. Highest since December 2008: 8.50%; lowest: 3.25%.
Prime rate changes
| Effective date | New prime rate | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 17 Sep 2026 | 7.00% | +25 bp |
| 11 Dec 2025 | 6.75% | −25 bp |
| 30 Oct 2025 | 7.00% | −25 bp |
| 18 Sep 2025 | 7.25% | −25 bp |
| 19 Dec 2024 | 7.50% | −25 bp |
| 8 Nov 2024 | 7.75% | −25 bp |
| 19 Sep 2024 | 8.00% | −50 bp |
| 27 Jul 2023 | 8.50% | +25 bp |
| 4 May 2023 | 8.25% | +25 bp |
| 23 Mar 2023 | 8.00% | +25 bp |
| 2 Feb 2023 | 7.75% | +25 bp |
| 15 Dec 2022 | 7.50% | +50 bp |
| 3 Nov 2022 | 7.00% | +75 bp |
| 22 Sep 2022 | 6.25% | +75 bp |
| 28 Jul 2022 | 5.50% | +75 bp |
| 16 Jun 2022 | 4.75% | +75 bp |
| 5 May 2022 | 4.00% | +50 bp |
| 17 Mar 2022 | 3.50% | +25 bp |
| 1 Jan 2021 | 3.25% | start of series |
Every change in the Fed's target range since 2021, with the prime rate it implies. A rise in the prime rate raises the rate on variable-rate borrowing, so rises are shown in red and cuts in green. bp = basis points (100 bp = 1 percentage point).
Prime rate at the end of each year
| Year | Prime rate |
|---|---|
| 2026 (latest) | 7.00% |
| 2025 | 6.75% |
| 2024 | 7.50% |
| 2023 | 8.50% |
| 2022 | 7.50% |
| 2021 | 3.25% |
| 2020 | 3.25% |
| 2019 | 4.75% |
| 2018 | 5.50% |
| 2017 | 4.50% |
| 2016 | 3.75% |
| 2015 | 3.50% |
| 2014 | 3.25% |
| 2013 | 3.25% |
| 2012 | 3.25% |
| 2011 | 3.25% |
| 2010 | 3.25% |
| 2009 | 3.25% |
| 2008 | 3.25% |
Prime rate at the end of December, from the Fed's target range that month; the current year shows the latest value in our series.
What the prime rate is used for
Lenders quote many variable rates as the prime rate plus a margin. A credit card at prime plus 15 points, or a home equity line at prime plus 1, moves up or down by the same amount as prime. Fixed-rate loans, and most mortgages, are priced from longer-term yields rather than from prime: see US Treasury yields and Treasury bill rates.
Example only: a variable-rate loan priced at prime plus 2.00 points costs 9.00% today. If the Fed moved its target range by 25 basis points, that rate would move by the same 25 basis points.
Frequently asked questions
What is the prime rate today?
The prime rate is 7.00% and has been since 17 Sep 2026 (up 25 basis points from 6.75%). It is the rate most large US banks quote as their lowest rate for their best business customers, and many variable-rate loans are priced from it.
How is the prime rate set?
By convention the prime rate is 3 percentage points above the upper end of the Federal Reserve's target range for the federal funds rate. The range is now 3.75% to 4.00%, so prime is 4.00 + 3.00 = 7.00%. The Wall Street Journal publishes the prime rate that most banks follow; this page calculates it from the Fed's range with the same rule rather than copying it, and any one bank can set its own prime rate.
Is the prime rate the same as the federal funds rate?
No. The federal funds rate is the rate banks charge each other overnight and is steered by the Fed (effective rate 3.88% on 21 Oct 2026). The prime rate is a retail and business lending benchmark set 3 points above the top of the Fed's target range, so it moves by the same amount but sits well above it.
Which loans are tied to the prime rate?
Credit cards, home equity lines of credit (HELOCs), many small-business loans and some private student and auto loans have variable rates quoted as prime plus a margin set by the lender. For example, a loan priced at prime plus 2.00 points would carry a rate of 9.00% today, and that rate would move whenever prime changes. Fixed-rate loans and most mortgages are not tied to prime.
When does the prime rate change?
Only when the Fed changes its target range, which it can do at or between its scheduled policy meetings. Banks usually adjust the prime rate the day the Fed's change takes effect. Nothing on this page predicts the Fed's next move.
What was the highest and lowest prime rate since 2008?
Since December 2008 the prime rate has ranged from 3.25% (unchanged from December 2008 until 17 Mar 2022) to 8.50%, the peak, which applied from 27 Jul 2023 until 19 Sep 2024.
Where does the data come from?
The Fed's target range and the effective federal funds rate come from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; the history of target changes comes from the Bank for International Settlements policy-rate series. Prime is calculated from them by the rule above. The page is refreshed each day.
Related
Educational information, not financial advice. The prime rate is calculated by StocksXray from the Fed's published target range; a specific bank's rate can differ.