In some ways, Charles Schwab and Robinhood are similar: Both brokers will allow you to trade stocks and exchange-traded funds with no commission, and both offer fractional shares, so investors can buy slices of public companies with small amounts of money.
But where they differ is in the level of service provided. Charles Schwab is a well-rounded broker with offerings for every type of investor: Retirement savers will find a large selection of no-transaction-fee mutual funds, active traders will get access to powerful trading platforms and advanced trading strategies like futures, and those who want to be completely hands off can turn to Schwab’s financial advisor services.
Robinhood, on the other hand, caters primarily to active investors who want to trade stocks, options, ETFs and cryptocurrency via mobile. Robinhood stands out for offering IPO access and free trades — particularly on options and crypto, where other brokers still charge fees — but outside of that, there’s little competition here for most investors.
Charles Schwab is best for:
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Beginner investors.
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Advanced traders.
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Investors seeking no-minimum index funds.
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Investors who rely on premium research.
Charles Schwab at a glance
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Account minimum |
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Stock trading costs |
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Options trades |
No base commission; $0.65 per contract. |
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Account fees (annual, transfer, closing, inactivity) |
No annual or inactivity fee; $25 for full or partial transfer out of assets, $15 if this is done online. |
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Number of no-transaction-fee mutual funds |
Over 4,200 no-transaction-fee mutual funds. |
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Tradable securities |
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Crypto availability |
No access to cryptocurrencies, but clients can trade crypto-based, products, such as Bitcoin futures. |
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Trading platform |
Three platforms offered with no trade minimums or fees: StreetSmart Edge (desktop platform), Schwab.com and StreetSmart Central. |
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Mobile app |
Two mobile apps with above-average capabilities: Schwab Mobile and StreetSmart Mobile. |
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Research and data |
Research from 14 providers including Moody’s, Morningstar, Recognia, Credit Suisse and Thompson Reuters, plus more in-house generated commentary and tools. |
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Customer support options (includes how easy it is to find key details on the website) |
Phone, email, chat 24/7, and in-person support available at branches Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Some branches have Saturday hours. |
Robinhood is best for:
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Mobile users.
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Individual taxable accounts.
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Margin accounts.
Robinhood at a glance
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Account minimum |
$0 for brokerage account and for Robinhood Gold account. |
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Stock trading costs |
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Options trades |
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Account fees (annual, transfer, closing, inactivity) |
No annual, inactivity or ACH transfer fees. $75 ACAT outgoing transfer fee. (Robinhood Gold costs $5 a month.) |
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Tradable securities |
• Stocks. • Options. • Cryptocurrency. • American Depositary Receipts for over 650 global companies. • Fractional shares. |
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Crypto availability |
7 coins in 48 states. |
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Number of no-transaction-fee mutual funds |
Not rated. |
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Trading platform |
Web platform is purposely simple but meets basic investor needs. |
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Mobile app |
Mobile trading platform includes customizable alerts, news feed, candlestick charts and ability to listen live to earnings calls. |
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Research and data |
News available from WSJ Markets, Reuters, Barron’s, CNBC Business and Cheddar. Gold members have access to research from Morningstar, Nasdaq, Nasdaq Totalview level II Market Data for an additional $5 per month. |
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Customer support options (includes how easy it is to find key details on the website) |
Email, social media, in-app request-to-call service 24/7. |
