Calculate the Value of Your Paper Savings Bond(s) (2024)

FAQs

How do I find out how much my paper savings bonds are worth? ›

The bond valuation formula can be represented as: Price = ( Coupon × 1 − ( 1 + r ) − n r ) + Par Value ( 1 + r ) n . The bond value formula can be broken into two parts for better understanding.

You can determine the value for an electronic savings bond by logging into your TreasuryDirect account. For paper bonds, use the savings bond calculator.

An old stock or bond certificate may still be valuable even if it no longer trades under the name printed on the certificate. The company may have merged with another company or simply changed its name.

Otherwise, you can keep savings bonds until they fully mature, which is generally 30 years. These days, you can only purchase electronic bonds, but you can still cash in paper bonds. There are a few types of bonds you may have: Series E/EE, Series I, or Series H/HH.

Series EE bonds mature in 20 years but earn interest for up to 30 years. The U.S. Treasury guarantees Series EE bonds will double in value in 20 years.

EE bonds you buy now have a fixed interest rate that you know when you buy the bond. That rate remains the same for at least the first 20 years. It may change after that for the last 10 of its 30 years. We guarantee that the value of your new EE bond at 20 years will be double what you paid for it.

While the Treasury will not penalize you for holding a U.S. Savings Bond past its date of maturity, the Internal Revenue Service will. Interest accumulated over the life of a U.S. Savings Bond must be reported on your 1040 form for the tax year in which you redeem the bond or it reaches final maturity.

If you moved your EE bond into a TreasuryDirect account, we pay you for the bond as soon as it reaches 30 years and stops earning interest. If you still have a paper EE bond, check the issue date. If that date is more than 30 years ago, it is no longer increasing in value and you may want to cash it.

How much is a series EE bond worth after 20 years? ›

For EE bonds you buy now, we guarantee that the bond will double in value in 20 years, even if we have to add money at 20 years to make that happen.

U.S. Savings Bonds mature after 20 or 30 years, depending on the type of bond: Series EE bonds mature after 20 years. They are sold at half their face value and are worth their full value at maturity. Series I bonds are sold at face value and mature after 30 years.

You just bought a security from the U.S. Treasury. Securities are generally issued to your account within two business days of the purchase date for savings bonds or within one week of the auction date for Bills, Notes, Bonds, FRNs, and TIPS.

Interest on I bonds is exempt from state and local taxes but taxed at the federal level at ordinary income-tax rates.

Note: For bonds less than 5 years old, values shown in TreasuryDirect and the Calculator don't include the last 3 months of interest. That's because if you cash a bond before 5 years, we don't pay you the final 3 months of interest.

You can cash paper bonds at a bank or through the U.S. Department of the Treasury's TreasuryDirect website. Not all banks offer the service, and many only provide it if you are an account holder, according to a NerdWallet analysis of the 20 largest U.S. banks.

While the Treasury will not penalize you for holding a U.S. Savings Bond past its date of maturity, the Internal Revenue Service will. Interest accumulated over the life of a U.S. Savings Bond must be reported on your 1040 form for the tax year in which you redeem the bond or it reaches final maturity.

For values of your electronic bonds, log in to your TreasuryDirect account. Verify whether or not you own bonds. Guarantee the serial number you enter is valid. Guarantee a bond is eligible to be cashed.