Is Charles Schwab better than Merrill Edge? After testing 15 of the best online brokers over five months, Charles Schwab (93.11%) is better than Merrill Edge (88.87%). Founded in 1973, Charles Schwab is a full-service brokerage with over $3 trillion in total client assets. As a low-cost leader offering $0 stock trades, Charles Schwab provides investors excellent stock research, quality trade tools, and professional planning for the future.
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Charles Schwab vs Merrill Edge 2020
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Special Offer
$0 online stock, ETF, and options commissions at Schwab. Open Account
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Special Offer
Get up to $600 when you invest in a new Merril Edge Self-Directed account. Open Account
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| Open Account | Open Account |
Overall Rating
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
| Overall | ||
| Charles Schwab Review | Merrill Edge Review |
Trading Fees
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
| Minimum Deposit | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Stock Trade Fee (per trade) | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| ETF Trade Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Options Base Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Options Per Contract Fee | $0.65 | $0.65 |
| Mutual Fund Trade Fee | $49.95 | $19.95 |
| Broker Assisted Trades Fee | $25.00 | $29.95 |
| Commissions & Fees | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Margin Rates
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
| Under $24,999.99 | 9.33% | 10.13% |
| $25,000.00 to $49,999.99 | 8.83% | 9.00% |
| $50,000.00 to $99,999.99 | 7.88% | 9.00% |
| $100,000.00 to $249,999.99 | 7.83% | 7.63% |
| $250,000.00 to $499,999.99 | 7.58% | 7.63% |
| $500,000.00 to $999,999.99 | 6.08% | 7.38% |
| Above $1,000,000.00 | 5.75% | 6.75% |
| Commissions & Fees | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Account Fees
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
| IRA Annual Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| IRA Closure Fee | $50.00 | $49.95 |
| Returned ACH Fee | $25.00 | $30.00 |
| Returned Wire Fee | $25.00 | N/A |
| Stock Certificate Processing Fee | $100.00 | $500.00 |
| Stock Certificate Delivery Fee | N/A | N/A |
| Paper Statement Fee | $0.00 | $5.00 |
| Paper Confirmation Fee | $0.00 | $3.00 |
| Domestic Wire Fee | $25.00 | $24.95 |
| International Wire Fee | $25.00 | $24.95 |
| Commissions & Fees |
Investment Options
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Stock Trading |
Yes | Yes |
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Fractional Shares |
Yes | No |
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OTCBB / Pink Sheets |
Yes | Yes |
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Options Trading |
Yes | Yes |
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Complex Options Max Legs |
4 | 2 |
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Futures Trading |
Yes | No |
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Forex Trading |
No | No |
| Commission-Free ETFs | all | all |
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Mutual Funds (No Load) |
7291 | 2471 |
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Mutual Funds (Total) |
9978 | 3709 |
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Bonds (US Treasury) |
Yes | Yes |
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Bonds (Corporate) |
Yes | Yes |
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Bonds (Municipal) |
Yes | Yes |
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Interest Sharing |
No | No |
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Advisor Services |
Yes | Yes |
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International Trading |
Yes | No |
| Offering of Investments | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Order Types
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Order Type - Market |
Yes | Yes |
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Order Type - Limit |
Yes | Yes |
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Order Type - Stop |
Yes | Yes |
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Order Type - Trailing Stop |
Yes | Yes |
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Order Type - Contingent |
Yes | No |
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Order Type - MultiContingent |
Yes | No |
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Order Type - OCO |
Yes | No |
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Order Type - OTO |
Yes | No |
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Order Type - OTOCO |
Yes | No |
| Offering of Investments | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Trading Platforms
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Desktop Platform (Windows) |
Yes | Yes |
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Desktop Platform (Mac) |
Yes | Yes |
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Web Platform |
Yes | Yes |
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Paper Trading |
No | No |
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Trade Journal |
Yes | No |
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Watch Lists - Total Fields |
125 | 285 |
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Heat Mapping |
Yes | Yes |
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AI Assistant Bot |
No | No |
| Platforms & Tools | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Charting Features
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Charting - Trade Off Chart |
Yes | Yes |
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Charting - Indicators / Studies |
41 | 100 |
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Charting - Drawing Tools |
15 | 22 |
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Charting - Historical Trades |
No | Yes |
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Charting - Corporate Events |
Yes | Yes |
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Charting - Automated Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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Charting - Save Profiles |
Yes | Yes |
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Charting - Study Customizations |
7 | 8 |
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Charting - Custom Studies |
No | No |
| Platforms & Tools | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Day Trading
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Stock Alerts - Basic Fields |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Alerts - Advanced Fields |
Yes | Yes |
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Streaming Time & Sales |
Yes | Yes |
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Streaming TV |
Yes | No |
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Direct Market Routing - Stocks |
Yes | No |
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Direct Market Routing - Options |
No | No |
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Ladder Trading |
No | No |
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Trade Hot Keys |
Yes | Yes |
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Level 2 Quotes - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
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Level 2 Quotes - Options |
Yes | Yes |
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Trade Ideas - Backtesting |
Yes | Yes |
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Short Locator |
No | No |
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Order Liquidity Rebates |
No | No |
| Winner | check_circle |
Mobile Trading Apps
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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iPhone App |
Yes | Yes |
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Android App |
Yes | Yes |
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Apple Watch App |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - After-Hours |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - Conditional Orders |
No | No |
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Trading - Mutual Funds |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - Simple Options |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - Complex Options |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - Option Rolling |
No | No |
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Touch / Face ID |
Yes | Yes |
| Winner | check_circle |
Mobile App Features
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Watch List Syncing |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Alerts |
No | Yes |
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Charting - After Hours |
No | Yes |
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Charting - Drawing |
No | Yes |
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Charting - Study Customizations |
Yes | Yes |
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Heatmapping |
Yes | Yes |
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Stream Live TV |
Yes | No |
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Barcode Lookup |
No | No |
| Mobile Trading | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Research Overview
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Research - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
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Research - ETFs |
Yes | Yes |
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Research - Mutual Funds |
Yes | Yes |
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Research - Pink Sheets / OTCBB |
Yes | Yes |
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Research - Fixed Income |
Yes | Yes |
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Screener - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
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Screener - ETFs |
Yes | Yes |
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Screener - Mutual Funds |
Yes | Yes |
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Screener - Options |
Yes | Yes |
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Screener - Bonds |
Yes | Yes |
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Misc - Portfolio Builder |
Yes | Yes |
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Misc - Portfolio Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Stock Research
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Stock Research - Reports |
8 | 3 |
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Stock Research - Earnings |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - Insiders |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - Metric Comp |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - SEC Filings |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - Social |
Yes | No |
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Stock Research - Balance Sheet |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - Cash Flows |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - News |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - ESG |
No | Yes |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
ETF Research
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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ETFs - Strategy Overview |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Top 10 Holdings |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Sector Exposure |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Risk Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Performance Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Ratings |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Morningstar StyleMap |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Reports |
Yes | Yes |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Mutual Fund Research
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Mutual Funds - Strategy Overview |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Prospectus |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Reports |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Fees Breakdown |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Top 10 Holdings |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Asset Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Sector Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Country Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - StyleMap |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - 3rd Party Ratings |
Yes | Yes |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Options Trading
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Option Chains - Streaming |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Chains - Total Columns |
44 | 69 |
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Option Chains - Greeks |
5 | 5 |
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Option Chains - Quick Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Analysis - P&L Charts |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Probability Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Probability Analysis Adv |
Yes | No |
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Option Positions - Greeks |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Positions - Adv Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Positions - Rolling |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Positions - Grouping |
Yes | Yes |
| Platforms & Tools | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Beginners
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Education (Stocks) |
Yes | Yes |
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Education (ETFs) |
Yes | Yes |
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Education (Options) |
Yes | Yes |
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Education (Mutual Funds) |
Yes | Yes |
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Education (Fixed Income) |
Yes | Yes |
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Education (Retirement) |
Yes | Yes |
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Paper Trading |
No | No |
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Videos |
Yes | Yes |
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Webinars (Monthly Avg) |
50 | 0 |
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Webinars (Archived) |
Yes | No |
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Live Seminars |
Yes | Yes |
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Progress Tracking |
No | Yes |
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Interactive Learning - Quizzes |
No | Yes |
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Investor Magazine |
Yes | Yes |
| Education | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Banking
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
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Retail Locations |
357 | 4300 |
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Member FDIC |
Yes | Yes |
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Checking Accounts |
Yes | Yes |
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Savings Accounts |
Yes | Yes |
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Credit Cards |
Yes | Yes |
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Debit Cards |
Yes | Yes |
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Mortgage Loans |
Yes | Yes |
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No Fee Banking |
Yes | No |
| Banking | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Overall
| Feature | Charles Schwab | Merrill Edge |
| Charles Schwab Review | Merrill Edge Review | |
| Overall | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
The StockBrokers.com annual broker review assesses more than a dozen different brokers over six months, surfacing the best online stock brokers. This review compares Charles Schwab vs Merrill Edge. Is Charles Schwab or Merrill Edge a better online broker?
First, we will make a comparison of the stock and option trading fees for trading with both brokers. Charles Schwab and Merrill Edge both cost $0 per trade. For options trading, both Charles Schwab and Merrill Edge charge the same base fee of $0. Option contracts cost $0.65 each at both brokerages. Note that some brokers charge a per-share fee instead of a flat-fee commission. For a full breakdown of commissions, read our online broker reviews.
For our next comparison of these two brokers, being able to trade the way you want is a must. Merrill Edge provides its clients with Stock Trading, Options Trading and Mutual Funds while Charles Schwab provides clients access to Stock Trading, Options Trading, Mutual Funds and Futures Trading. When it comes to mutual funds, Merrill Edge trails Charles Schwab by 6,269 total mutual funds, with Charles Schwab offering 9978 and Merrill Edge offering 3709.
Last but not least, by breaking down important features, tools, etc that each broker offers, we can really help to separate the two. Neither broker offers virtual trading. For mobile trading, Charles Schwab and Merrill Edge both have a iPhone App, iPad App and Android App. Furthermore, some investors like to bank online, and multiple brokerages provide these services to clients. Checking Accounts, Savings Accounts, Debit Cards, Credit Cards and Mortgage Loans are available to customers of Charles Schwab and Merrill Edge.
Overall, between Charles Schwab and Merrill Edge, Charles Schwab is the winner.
All pricing data was obtained from a published web site as of 01/20/2020 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.
