How much is my EE bond worth? Calculating the value of your savings bond (2024)

Key points

• Series EE savings bonds stop earning interest after 30 years.
• You can cash in a Series EE bond after one year.
• The method for checking your bond’s value depends on if it is electronic or paper.

When it comes to safe places to hold your money, few options are safer than Series EE bonds. They are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, which promises to double your money in 20 years if you hold your bonds to maturity.

Series EE bonds have historically offered investors attractive interest rates. But that attractiveness has waned as the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates, said Russell Hackmann, a certified financial planner and president of Hackmann Wealth Partners. Better rates are available on certificates of deposit and Treasury bonds purchased on the open market, Hackmann said.

Before you decide to cash in a Series EE savings bond, it’s important to determine how much it’s worth.

How to check the current value of your savings bond

The method for checking your savings bond’s value depends on if it is electronic or paper. The government stopped issuing paper EE bonds in 2012. But since they don’t expire, you can cash in paper bonds if you are the listed owner.

Tip: Don’t buy paper savings bonds from someone else. You won’t be able to cash them in.

Electronic savings bonds

“The most accurate way to check the current value of your savings bonds is by using the TreasuryDirect website,” said Nicholas Yeomans, a certified financial planner and president of Yeomans Consulting Group. “At one time, banks and financial institutions offered savings bond services, including calculations. Many of them today simply send you to the TreasuryDirect website.”

To check your electronic savings bond’s value online, follow these steps:

1. Go to TreasuryDirect.gov.
2. Create a free TreasuryDirect account if you don’t already have one.
3. Add your Series EE bonds to your account to see their value.

You can also call the Department of the Treasury Bureau of the Fiscal Service at 1-844-284-2676 for information, including your bond’s value.

Paper savings bonds

The process of checking a paper savings bond’s value is different. Since paper bonds are not linked to your TreasuryDirect account, you must use a savings bond calculator.

“For best results, when ready to check the value of your savings bonds, make sure you have the bond’s serial number and issue date on hand,” Yeomans said. “This information will be required to get the most accurate calculations.”

To check your paper savings bond’s value, follow these steps:

1. Have your paper savings bonds on hand.
2. Go to the TreasuryDirect savings bond calculator.
3. Input the required information and click “Calculate.”

You can also store the information you enter so you can quickly view or update it later.

How to cash in your savings bonds

The method for cashing in your savings bond also depends on if it is electronic or paper.

Electronic savings bonds

You can cash in your electronic savings bonds online for any amount of $25 or more by following these steps:

1. Go to TreasuryDirect.gov.
2. Create a free TreasuryDirect account if you don’t already have one.
3. Add your Series EE bonds to your account.
4. Go to ManageDirect.
5. Use the link for cashing in securities.

You’ll get a 1099-INT in your TreasuryDirect account in January of the year after you cash in your bonds.

Paper savings bonds

Paper savings bonds can be cashed in for their full value only. You can cash in your bond at a bank or through the Treasury. Not all banks provide this service, however, and those that do vary in how much they let you cash in at once.

Before attempting to cash in your paper savings bond at a bank, contact the bank to confirm it will accept your bond and how much you can cash at once. If it will cash in your bond, ask what identification and other documents you should provide.

To cash in paper savings bonds with the Treasury:

1. Download and complete FS Form 1522.
2. Get your signature certified if you are cashing in bonds worth more than $1,000.
3. Mail the forms and bonds to the Treasury Retail Securities Services P.O. Box listed on FS Form 1522.

The process differs slightly if you own a paper savings bond in a child’s name. To cash in a savings bond for a child who is too young to understand a request for payment, you must be the child’s parent and either live with the child or have been granted legal custody over the child.

Before you cash in a child’s bond, you must write the following statement on the back of the bond:

I certify that I am the parent of [child’s name].

[Child’s name] resides with me.

Or

I have been granted legal custody of [child’s name].

[She / he] is ___ years old and is not of sufficient understanding to make this request.

Sign your name, followed by “on behalf of [child’s name], a minor.”

You can then take the bond to a bank that offers bond cashing or cash in the bond with the Treasury using FS Form 1522.

You can also cash in savings bonds outside the U.S.

If you’re a U.S. citizen, take the bonds and other required documents to a bank that is authorized to cash U.S. savings bonds.

If you are not a U.S. citizen or can’t access a bank that will accept your bonds, you must cash them in with the Treasury and have your request for payment signed by an official from a list the department provides.

U.S. citizens must include a statement over their signature declaring their citizenship and provide their Social Security number. They must then mail the bond to Treasury Retail Securities Services, P.O. Box 9150, Minneapolis, MN, 55480-9150.

Non-U.S. citizens must mail IRS Form W-8BEN along with their certified bonds to the Treasury Retail Securities Services P.O. Box.

When to cash in your savings bonds

Before you cash in your savings bond, evaluate its rate and your financial needs to determine whether “there are more advantageous places to access capital,” Yeomans said.

If the cash in your checking or savings account earns less interest than your savings bond, you may want to take money from that account and let your savings bond continue accruing interest. But if your savings bond earns less interest than your checking or savings account and you need cash, now may be the right time to redeem the bond.

Tip: Remember that although you can cash in a Series EE bond after one year, you’ll forfeit three months of interest if you cash it in before five years.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)