Updated 14 September 2026, CEST. DeFi and tokenized-fund APYs are from DefiLlama Yields. CeFi rates are from the issuer pages the same morning.
A higher number is not a better product.
Key Takeaways
- A wallet balance of USDC or USDT earns 0%.
- The GENIUS Act bars permitted issuers from paying you interest.
- The yield below is paid by an exchange, a lending market, or a tokenized Treasury fund.
- Large liquid products pay roughly 3% to 5% right now.
- Rates well above that band are usually emissions, a lockup, or a funding-rate trade.
- Read the 30-day average, not today's snapshot.
The short answer
A USDC or USDT balance in a wallet earns 0%. Under the GENIUS Act, permitted issuers cannot pay you interest.
The tables below are third-party rates. On the large, liquid products that is roughly 3% to 5% right now.
The legal split is in Do Stablecoins Pay Interest? This page is the rate card.
Benchmark
Read every other APY against these tokenized cash products. If a DeFi or CeFi row is only a point or two higher, you are mostly being paid for operational hassle.
| Product | APY now | 30-day avg | TVL | Engine | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Circle USYC | 2.98% | 3.17% | $2.56B | T-bill coupon | On-chain cash. Closest risk-free on-chain benchmark. Live print still soft vs the 30-day. |
| BlackRock BUIDL | 3.57% | 3.59% | $624M | T-bill coupon | Institutional share class. Eligibility gated. Ethereum print. |
| Ondo USDY | 3.57% | 3.56% | $1.19B | T-bill coupon | Not available to US persons. |
| Invesco USTB | 3.31% | 3.49% | $588M | T-bill coupon | Short-duration government paper. Live print is soft vs the 30-day. |
Source: DefiLlama, 14 September 2026.
CeFi rewards
Rates change by region and membership. Check the app before you size a deposit.
| Product | Coin | APY | Lockup | Engine | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coinbase One USDC Rewards | USDC | 3.50% | None | Platform rewards | Custodial. Needs Coinbase One. |
| Coinbase Business USDC | USDC | 3.35% | None | Platform rewards | Custodial. Auto-enrolled. |
| Coinbase USDC lending (Morpho) | USDC | up to 10.3% | Flexible; withdrawals can queue | On-chain lending via Morpho | Not the 3.50% rewards product. Smart-contract risk. |
| Kraken USDC Rewards | USDC | 1.75% / 3.75% with Kraken+ | None | Platform rewards | Custodial. Rate is regional. |
| Kraken USDG Rewards | USDG | up to 4.25% with Kraken+ | None | Platform rewards | Custodial. |
| PayPal PYUSD | PYUSD | 4% as of 14 September 2026 | None in-app | Platform rewards | Custodial. Confirm in PayPal. |
Kraken's support article (updated 12 August 2026) still lists 1.75% / 3.75% USDC and up to 4.25% USDG with Kraken+. PayPal's public PYUSD page still quotes 4%. Coinbase One / Business / Morpho lending figures are from the public product pages the same morning; confirm in-app if the marketing page is gated.
Blue-chip DeFi
Filtered from DefiLlama: single-asset stablecoin pools, TVL roughly $130M or more, no impermanent-loss farms. Underwrite the 30-day average, not the snapshot.
| Product | Coin | Chain | APY now | 30-day avg | TVL | Engine | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sky sUSDS | USDS | Ethereum | 3.60% | 3.55% | $4.65B | Governance-set savings rate | Largest yield-bearing dollar on this list. SSR flat this week. |
| Maple Syrup USDC | USDC | Ethereum | 4.97% | 4.93% | $2.64B | Institutional credit | On-chain private credit. Not Aave. |
| Maple Syrup USDT | USDT | Ethereum | 4.62% | 4.52% | $874M | Institutional credit | Same stack, USDT sleeve. Live print cooled a few bps. |
| Maple Syrup USDG | USDG | Ethereum | 4.93% | 4.99% | $364M | Institutional credit | Same stack, USDG sleeve. Live print cooled about 17 bps. |
| Morpho Steakhouse USDC | USDC | Base | 4.28% | 4.27% | $420M | Curated Morpho vault | Isolated markets. Curator risk. Snapshot basically flat. |
| Jupiter Lend | USDC | Solana | 3.85% | 4.95% | $482M | Borrow demand + rewards | About 0.4 points is emissions. Live print cooled about 66 bps vs last week. |
| Aave V3 | USDT | Ethereum | 3.21% | 3.35% | $403M | Borrow demand | Still above USYC on the live print (2.98%). 30-day also favors Aave. |
| Spark Savings | USDT | Ethereum | 3.50% | 3.20% | $407M | Sky/Spark savings | Governance-set. Live print up about 25 bps. |
| Spark Savings | USDC | Ethereum | 3.60% | 3.55% | $318M | Sky/Spark savings | Matches sUSDS. |
| Fluid Lending | USDC | Ethereum | 4.50% | 4.86% | $154M | Borrow demand | Live print cooled about 64 bps vs last week. |
| Fluid Lending | USDT | Ethereum | 4.37% | 4.82% | $132M | Borrow demand | Live print cooled again; 30-day still near 4.8%. |
Source: DefiLlama, 14 September 2026. Aave V3 USDC on Ethereum stays omitted. Sibling prints still mix rewards and thin TVL, so the USDT market is the cleaner blue-chip row.
Higher risk
Use these only if you can name the extra risk. If more than half the APY is a reward token, the rate is a promotion.
| Product | Coin | Chain | APY now | 30-day avg | TVL | Engine | Extra risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethena sUSDe | USDe | Ethereum | 5.08% | 4.58% | $1.30B | Perp funding / basis | 7-day unstake. Exchange and funding-rate tail risk. Live print jumped about 50 bps. |
| Morpho senRLUSD v2 | RLUSD | Ethereum | 5.74% | 6.27% | $394M | Lending + rewards | About 3.3 points is rewards. That slice can vanish. |
| Morpho senPYUSD | PYUSD | Ethereum | 5.49% | 5.77% | $383M | Lending + rewards | About 3.2 points is rewards. Same risk. |
| USD AI sUSDAI | USDAI | Arbitrum | 7.01% | 7.34% | $468M | Structured yield | 30-day unlock. Treat as a term deposit. |
Morpho Steakhouse-style USDG sleeves with heavy reward weight stay off the blue-chip table.
How to read the table
Start with the benchmark row. If you cannot beat USYC by enough to care, stay in cash-like products.
Prefer the 30-day average over today's APY. Name the engine: T-bill, borrow demand, funding rate, or emissions.
None of this is FDIC-insured. See Are Stablecoins FDIC Insured? and staking risks.
Yield is taxable. See stablecoin taxes.
Related
- Which platforms offer the best yields in 2026 — the explainer. Use this page for current rates.
- Best yield-bearing stablecoins
- How to invest in stablecoins
- Corporate treasury yield
FAQ
Do stablecoins pay interest?
No. The token pays 0%. These rates are paid by exchanges, protocols, or tokenized funds.
What is a realistic APY in September 2026?
About 3.0% to 3.6% on tokenized T-bills, 3.5% on Coinbase One USDC, and 3.6% on sUSDS. Large DeFi lending markets sit in a 3% to 5% band. Double-digit prints are usually rewards or lockups.
Is Aave USDT still under the T-bill token?
No. Aave USDT is 3.21% vs Circle USYC at 2.98%. The 30-day average also favors Aave (3.35% vs 3.17%).
Is Maple the same as Aave?
No. Maple Syrup is on-chain, but the borrowers are institutional credit. The failure mode is different.
Can I use this as a savings account?
No. There is no deposit insurance, rates are variable, and some products have unstake queues.
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Disclaimer:
This content is provided for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice; no material herein should be interpreted as a recommendation, endorsement, or solicitation to buy or sell any financial instrument, and readers should conduct their own independent research or consult a qualified professional.