Is Charles Schwab better than J.P. Morgan Self-Directed? After testing 11 of the best online brokers over three months, Charles Schwab (95.87%) is better than J.P. Morgan Self-Directed (68.86%). With more than $6 trillion in client assets, Charles Schwab understands how to consistently deliver value to its customers. Highlights include $0 trades, excellent stock research, a diverse selection of trading tools, and an industry-leading offering of financial planning services.
Charles Schwab vs J.P. Morgan Self-Directed 2021
Overall Rating
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Overall | ||
Commissions & Fees | ||
Offering of Investments | ||
Platforms & Tools | ||
Mobile Trading | ||
Research | ||
Education | ||
Ease of Use | ||
Charles Schwab Review | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Review | |
Winner | check_circle |
Trading Fees
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Minimum Deposit | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Stock Trades | $0.00 | $0.00 |
ETF Trade Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Mutual Fund Trade Fee | $49.95 | $0.00 |
Options (Base Fee) | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Options (Per Contract) | $0.65 | $0.65 |
Futures (Per Contract) | $1.50 | N/A |
Broker Assisted Trades Fee | $25.00 | $25.00 |
Margin Rates
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Under $24,999.99 | 8.33% | N/A |
$25,000.00 to $49,999.99 | 7.83% | N/A |
$50,000.00 to $99,999.99 | 6.88% | N/A |
$100,000.00 to $249,999.99 | 6.83% | N/A |
$250,000.00 to $499,999.99 | 6.58% | N/A |
$500,000.00 to $999,999.99 | 5.08% | N/A |
Above $1,000,000.00 | 4.70% | N/A |
Account Fees
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
IRA Annual Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 |
IRA Closure Fee | $50.00 | $75.00 |
Account Transfer Out (Partial) | $25.00 | $75.00 |
Account Transfer Out (Full) | $50.00 | $75.00 |
Returned ACH Fee | $25.00 | N/A |
Returned Wire Fee | $25.00 | N/A |
Stock Certificate Processing Fee | $100.00 | N/A |
Stock Certificate Delivery Fee | N/A | N/A |
Paper Statement Fee | $0.00 | $6.00 |
Paper Confirmation Fee | $0.00 | N/A |
Domestic Wire Fee | $25.00 | $30.00 |
International Wire Fee | $25.00 | $30.00 |
Investment Options
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Stock Trading |
Yes | Yes |
Fractional Shares |
Yes | No |
OTCBB / Pink Sheets |
Yes | Yes |
Options Trading |
Yes | Yes |
Complex Options Max Legs |
4 | 1 |
Futures Trading |
Yes | No |
Forex Trading |
No | No |
Crypto Trading | No | No |
Mutual Funds (No Load) |
7223 | 3500 |
Mutual Funds (Total) |
9860 | 3500 |
Bonds (US Treasury) |
Yes | Yes |
Bonds (Corporate) |
Yes | Yes |
Bonds (Municipal) |
Yes | Yes |
Advisor Services |
Yes | Yes |
International Trading |
Yes | No |
AI Assistant Bot |
Yes | No |
Order Types
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Order Type - Market |
Yes | Yes |
Order Type - Limit |
Yes | Yes |
Order Type - Stop |
Yes | Yes |
Order Type - Trailing Stop |
Yes | No |
Order Type - Contingent |
Yes | No |
Order Type - MultiContingent |
Yes | No |
Order Type - OCO |
Yes | No |
Order Type - OTO |
Yes | No |
Order Type - OTOCO |
Yes | No |
Trading Platforms
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Desktop Platform (Windows) |
Yes | No |
Desktop Platform (Mac) |
Yes | No |
Web Platform |
Yes | Yes |
Paper Trading |
No | No |
Trade Journal |
Yes | No |
Heat Mapping |
Yes | No |
Watch Lists - Total Fields |
130 | 4 |
Charting Features
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Charting - Trade Off Chart |
Yes | No |
Charting - Indicators / Studies |
41 | 21 |
Charting - Drawing Tools |
15 | 0 |
Charting - Historical Trades |
No | No |
Charting - Corporate Events |
Yes | Yes |
Charting - Automated Analysis |
Yes | No |
Charting - Save Profiles |
Yes | No |
Trade Ideas - Technical Analysis |
Yes | No |
Charting - Study Customizations |
7 | 1 |
Charting - Custom Studies |
No | No |
Day Trading
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Stock Alerts - Basic Fields |
Yes | No |
Stock Alerts - Advanced Fields |
Yes | No |
Streaming Time & Sales |
Yes | No |
Streaming TV |
Yes | No |
Direct Market Routing - Stocks |
Yes | No |
Direct Market Routing - Options |
No | No |
Ladder Trading |
No | No |
Trade Hot Keys |
Yes | No |
Level 2 Quotes - Stocks |
Yes | No |
Level 2 Quotes - Options |
Yes | No |
Trade Ideas - Backtesting |
Yes | No |
Short Locator |
No | No |
Order Liquidity Rebates |
No | No |
Mobile Trading Apps
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
iPhone App |
Yes | Yes |
Android App |
Yes | Yes |
Apple Watch App |
Yes | No |
Trading - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
Trading - After-Hours |
Yes | No |
Trading - Conditional Orders |
No | No |
Trading - Mutual Funds |
Yes | Yes |
Trading - Simple Options |
Yes | Yes |
Trading - Complex Options |
Yes | No |
Trading - Option Rolling |
No | No |
Touch / Face ID |
Yes | Yes |
Mobile Trading |
Mobile App Features
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Watch List Syncing |
Yes | Yes |
Stock Alerts |
No | No |
Charting - After Hours |
No | No |
Charting - Drawing |
No | No |
Charting - Study Customizations |
Yes | No |
Heatmapping |
Yes | No |
Stream Live TV |
Yes | No |
Barcode Lookup |
No | No |
Mobile Trading |
Research Overview
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Research - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
Research - ETFs |
Yes | Yes |
Research - Mutual Funds |
Yes | Yes |
Research - Pink Sheets / OTCBB |
Yes | No |
Research - Fixed Income |
Yes | No |
Screener - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
Screener - ETFs |
Yes | Yes |
Screener - Mutual Funds |
Yes | Yes |
Screener - Options |
Yes | No |
Screener - Bonds |
Yes | Yes |
Misc - Portfolio Builder |
Yes | No |
Misc - Portfolio Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
Stock Research
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Stock Research - Reports |
8 | 1 |
Stock Research - Earnings |
Yes | No |
Stock Research - Insiders |
Yes | No |
Stock Research - Metric Comp |
Yes | No |
Stock Research - SEC Filings |
Yes | No |
Stock Research - Social |
Yes | No |
Stock Research - Balance Sheet |
Yes | No |
Stock Research - Cash Flows |
Yes | No |
Stock Research - News |
Yes | Yes |
Stock Research - ESG |
No | No |
ETF Research
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
ETFs - Strategy Overview |
Yes | No |
ETFs - Top 10 Holdings |
Yes | Yes |
ETFs - Sector Exposure |
Yes | Yes |
ETFs - Risk Analysis |
Yes | No |
ETFs - Performance Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
ETFs - Ratings |
Yes | Yes |
ETFs - Morningstar StyleMap |
Yes | Yes |
ETFs - Reports |
Yes | No |
Mutual Fund Research
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Mutual Funds - Strategy Overview |
Yes | No |
Mutual Funds - Prospectus |
Yes | No |
Mutual Funds - Reports |
Yes | No |
Mutual Funds - Fees Breakdown |
Yes | No |
Mutual Funds - Top 10 Holdings |
Yes | Yes |
Mutual Funds - Asset Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
Mutual Funds - Sector Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
Mutual Funds - Country Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
Mutual Funds - StyleMap |
Yes | Yes |
Mutual Funds - 3rd Party Ratings |
Yes | Yes |
Options Trading
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Option Chains - Streaming |
Yes | No |
Option Chains - Total Columns |
44 | 6 |
Option Chains - Greeks |
5 | 0 |
Option Chains - Quick Analysis |
Yes | No |
Option Analysis - P&L Charts |
Yes | No |
Option Probability Analysis |
Yes | No |
Option Probability Analysis Adv |
Yes | No |
Option Positions - Greeks |
Yes | No |
Option Positions - Adv Analysis |
Yes | No |
Option Positions - Rolling |
Yes | No |
Option Positions - Grouping |
Yes | No |
Beginners
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Education (Stocks) |
Yes | Yes |
Education (ETFs) |
Yes | No |
Education (Options) |
Yes | No |
Education (Mutual Funds) |
Yes | No |
Education (Fixed Income) |
Yes | No |
Education (Retirement) |
Yes | Yes |
Paper Trading |
No | No |
Videos |
Yes | Yes |
Webinars (Monthly Avg) |
100 | 0 |
Webinars (Archived) |
Yes | No |
Live Seminars |
Yes | No |
Progress Tracking |
No | Yes |
Interactive Learning - Quizzes |
No | Yes |
Banking
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Retail Locations |
360 | 5000 |
Member FDIC |
Yes | Yes |
Checking Accounts |
Yes | Yes |
Savings Accounts |
Yes | Yes |
Credit Cards |
Yes | Yes |
Debit Cards |
Yes | Yes |
Mortgage Loans |
Yes | Yes |
No Fee Banking |
Yes | No |
Overall
Feature | Charles Schwab | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed |
Overall | ||
Commissions & Fees | ||
Offering of Investments | ||
Platforms & Tools | ||
Mobile Trading | ||
Research | ||
Education | ||
Ease of Use | ||
Charles Schwab Review | J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Review | |
Winner | check_circle |
Comparing brokers side by side is no easy task. For our 2021 annual broker review, we spent hundreds of hours assessing 11 brokerages to find the best online broker. Let's compare Charles Schwab vs J.P. Morgan Self-Directed.
Is Charles Schwab or J.P. Morgan Self-Directed better for beginners?
Charles Schwab is better for beginner investors than J.P. Morgan Self-Directed. Charles Schwab offers investors access to Videos, Education (Stocks), Education (ETFs), Education (Options), Education (Mutual Funds), Education (Fixed Income) and Education (Retirement).
What about Charles Schwab vs J.P. Morgan Self-Directed pricing?
Charles Schwab and J.P. Morgan Self-Directed both cost $0 per trade. Looking at options, the base fees charged are the same for both brokers, $0. Option contracts at both of the brokerages are the same at $0.65 each. For a complete commissions summary, see our best discount brokers guide.
Does Charles Schwab or J.P. Morgan Self-Directed offer a wider range of investment options?
Charles Schwab offers a more diverse selection of investment options than J.P. Morgan Self-Directed. Charles Schwab offers investors access to Stock Trading, Fractional Shares, OTCBB / Pink Sheets, Options Trading, Mutual Funds, Futures Trading, Advisor Services and International Trading. Looking at Mutual Funds, J.P. Morgan Self-Directed trails Charles Schwab by 6,360 total mutual funds, with Charles Schwab offering 9860 and J.P. Morgan Self-Directed offering 3500.
Which trading platform is better: Charles Schwab or J.P. Morgan Self-Directed?
To compare the trading platforms of both Charles Schwab and J.P. Morgan Self-Directed, we tested each broker's trading tools, research capabilities, and mobile apps. For trading tools, Charles Schwab offers a better experience. With research, Charles Schwab offers superior market research. Finally, we found Charles Schwab to provide better mobile trading apps.
Does either broker offer banking?
Online banking can be a benefit for investors, and some brokerages do provide banking services to customers. Checking Accounts, Savings Accounts, Debit Cards, Credit Cards and Mortgage Loans are found at Charles Schwab alongside J.P. Morgan Self-Directed.
Overall winner: Charles Schwab
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All pricing data was obtained from a published web site as of 01/19/2021 and is believed to be accurate, but is not guaranteed. For stock trade rates, advertised pricing is for a standard order size of 500 shares of stock priced at $30 per share. For options orders, an options regulatory fee per contract may apply.
*INVESTMENT PRODUCTS: NOT A DEPOSIT · NOT FDIC INSURED · NO BANK GUARANTEE · MAY LOSE VALUE