I Bonds vs TIPS: What Changed in 2026 and Which One Wins
Two Inflation Shields, One Big Decision If you’ve been parking money in I Bonds since the pandemic-era rate spike, you probably noticed the landscape feels different heading into mid-2026. Rates reset, real yields shifted, and TIPS — the institutional cousin that most retail investors overlook — quietly became a lot more interesting. I’ve held both instruments across multiple rate cycles. The 2022 rush into I Bonds at 9.62% was a once-in-a-generation moment, and the hangover has been watching those composite rates drift back toward more modest territory. Meanwhile, TIPS real yields have been sitting at levels not seen since before the 2008 financial crisis, fundamentally changing the calculus for anyone building an inflation-protected retirement allocation. ...