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22 Oct 2025

Inflation-busting savings accounts: where can you earn up to 5%?

The number of savings deals that beat September's CPI inflation figure of 3.8% has fallen

Matthew JenkinSenior writer

Matthew is an award-winning journalist, specialising in savings, tax and insurance.

Less than half of savings deals can beat September's inflation rate, which held steady at 3.8% for the third month in a row. It means money sitting in one of these products is losing value over time.

Which? analysis shows only 47% of savings accounts pay interest higher than the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) figure. That's a slight drop from 48% last month, but a huge fall since the start of the year when 88% of products beat inflation.

Read on to find out which accounts offer the best interest and how to make your savings work harder against inflation.

Which savings accounts beat inflation?

Our analysis of Moneyfacts data shows that there are currently 1,111 savings accounts (47% of all products) offering rates higher than September's inflation rate of 3.8%. This includes variable-rate deals, fixed-rate bonds and cash Isas. That's down from last month's inflation announcement when 48% of accounts beat the CPI figure.

Variable-rate products – such as instant-access accounts – have the worst rates overall, with just 28% of deals beating inflation.

The lion's share of inflation-busting deals are fixed-rate bonds, with 65% boasting returns higher than the current CPI figure. While there are 42% of cash Isas with rates better than that.

The table shows the top rates currently available for instant-access, fixed-rate, and cash Isa savings accounts, ordered by term.


Instant access	Cahoot	5% (a)	61%	£1	Internet	Monthly, yearly
Instant access cash Isa	Plum	4.45%	n/a	£1	Mobile app	Monthly
One-year fixed rate	LHV Bank	4.46%	n/a	£1,000	Mobile app	On maturity
One-year fixed rate cash Isa	Vida Savings	4.28%	n/a	£100	Internet	Monthly, anniversary
Two-year fixed rate	JN Bank	4.42%	n/a	£100	Internet	Yearly
Two-year fixed rate cash Isa	UBL UK	4.16%	n/a	£2,000	Branch, internet, mobile app, postal	Monthly, anniversary, on maturity
Three-year fixed rate	DF Capital	4.47%	n/a	£1,000	Internet	Yearly, on maturity

Table notes: rates sourced from Moneyfacts on 22 October 2025. Provider customer score is based on savers' overall satisfaction with the brand and how likely they are to recommend it to others. n/a means sample size was too small for us to generate a provider score (a) Offers 5% AER up to £3,000.

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How savings rates track against inflation

It's important to pick a savings account with an interest rate above the current CPI figure. If your rate is lower than inflation, your savings will lose value in real terms.

The graph shows how average savings rates compare with inflation since August 2020, using data from Moneyfacts:

As the graph shows, the average rate for a one-year and longer-term fixed bond in September stood at 3.96% AER and 3.89%, respectively. Last month's average instant-access rate was 2.59%.

Find out more: best savings accounts 2025

What's happening to savings rates?

Savings rates rocketed after the Bank of England (BoE) increased the base rate 14 times between December 2021 and August 2023. But when the base rate was reduced in the summer of 2024, average savings rates began to drop, too.

The BoE has cut the base rate four times since then, reducing it to 4% on 7 August. However, the BoE held the base rate at its current level on 18 September.

Instant access

Instant-access accounts, which pay variable rates and can be changed at short notice, have had the biggest cuts. The average rate fell from 3.03% AER to 2.49% in the 12 months to 1 October 2025. That's the lowest it's been in more than two years.

There is now only one instant-access deal offering a rate as high as 5% AER, the Cahoot Sunny Day Saver. Even better, the account allows unlimited withdrawals and anyone can open it. The downside is that interest is given only on deposits up to £3,000, after which you earn no interest.

Savers with larger nest eggs will have to settle for the next best rate of 4.75% AER. The Easy Access account from Zopa comes with a number of catches, however.

Not only will you have to open the provider's Biscuit current account and deposit at least £500 a month there, the rate of 4.75% includes a bonus of 1.5%, fixed for 12 months. It means after a year, interest will drop to a standard variable-rate, which is currently just 3.25% AER.

The top rate for an instant-access account without restrictions is a lower 4.4% AER.

Find out more: the different types of savings accounts explained

Fixed-term

Locking your money away for a year or more could help to protect it if savings rates continue to fall, as fixed-term accounts guarantee your rate won’t drop during the term.

Rates have seen a slight uptick between September and October 2025. The average one-year rate rose from 3.95% AER to 3.98% and from 3.89% to 3.91% for an account lasting more than 12 months.

Nevertheless, rates have slipped considerably since the beginning of the year. In January you could secure a one-year deal of 4.77% AER, but the top rate has since dropped to 4.46%.

Five-year bonds currently offer the best rates, with the top deal from DF Capital paying 4.54% AER. This marks a return to the usual rule of thumb that the longer you fix, the higher the rate – a trend that was reversed in recent years when shorter-term bonds often paid more.

Cash Isas

Cash Isas, which allow you to save up to £20,000 tax-free annually, have also taken a hit.

The average rate of instant-access products got a boost at the start of 2025, reaching 3.03% on 1 January. It's common for providers to hike rates at the beginning of the calendar year as savers rush to use their full tax-free allowance before April. Interest has since plunged, however, hitting 2.72% on 1 October.

Average rates of fixed-rate cash Isas fell dramatically between April and June, when President Trump announced his tariffs. This caused the market to price in additional base rate cuts to counter the potential of falling economic growth.

However, fixed rates have increased slightly since then, as the market now doesn't believe the Bank of England will make as many base rate cuts. Instead, experts predict only one further base rate cut this year, most likely in December.