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 | 8.33% | 8.63% |
| $25,000.00 to $49,999.99 | 7.83% | 7.50% |
| $50,000.00 to $99,999.99 | 6.88% | 7.50% |
| $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 | N/A | N/A |
| Above $1,000,000.00 | N/A | N/A |
| 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 |
Comparing brokers side by side is no easy task. For our 2020 annual broker review, we spent hundreds of hours assessing 15 brokerages to find the best online broker. Let's compare Charles Schwab vs Merrill Edge.
Is Charles Schwab or Merrill Edge better for beginners?
Merrill Edge is better for beginner investors than Charles Schwab. Merrill Edge 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 Merrill Edge pricing?
Charles Schwab and Merrill Edge charge the same amount for regular stock trades, $0. Looking at options, the base fees charged are the same for both brokers, $0. Option contracts cost $0.65 each at both brokerages. For a complete commissions summary, see our best discount brokers guide.
Does Charles Schwab or Merrill Edge offer a wider range of investment options?
Charles Schwab offers a more diverse selection of investment options than Merrill Edge. 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, Charles Schwab boasts an offering of 9978 mutual funds compared to Merrill Edge's 3709 available funds.
Which trading platform is better: Charles Schwab or Merrill Edge?
To compare the trading platforms of both Charles Schwab and Merrill Edge, 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 available to customers of Charles Schwab and Merrill Edge.
Overall, between Charles Schwab and Merrill Edge, Charles Schwab is the better online broker.
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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.
