MoneySense
A ladder is a strategy where you spread your investment over several share certificates of different term lengths. (The longer the term, the higher the rate of interest.) Let’s say you have $10,000 to invest. Picture a ladder with five rungs. You could split your investment into five equal amounts of $2,000 with term lengths that increase as you move up the rungs from three months to five years. When the three-month certificate matures, you reinvest that amount ($2,000+ interest) in a longer term certificate. You move up the ladder, repeating that strategy with each maturity date – and multiplying your earnings as you go.