Charles Schwab Reviews and Complaints

by Susie McDonald, 10/25/2022

Pros: Eventually they found it.

Cons: They didn't try very hard and wanted it to be someone else's fault.

In August I took a cashier's check in the amount of $150,000 to the branch office of Schwab in San Antonio Texas to open a high yield investment account. They took the check, wrote me a cash receipt and said I would be receiving email with links to complete the information for my beneficiary. The email arrived but I couldn't use it as it required a brokerage account number to proceed past the opening dialog box, which I clearly didn't have. I spoke to many different CS persons, some indifferent, some clueless, until one, in Nebraska, was actually helpful. She explained that I should have been instructed to open a brokerage account with the savings account to facilitate the software! Oh my, really? From there it went downhill and after 3 days of being shunted from pillar to post I asked them to close the account and return my money. This is where it got scary, at least for me. They couldn't find the check. I became semi-hysterical over the next few days as person after person (the higher up the ladder, the less helpful they were) tried to assure me that I should have Wells Fargo, who issued the check, to cancel it and reimburse my money. So the finger pointing began. I did explain that I had now filed a lost check status with WF but to cancel the check would entail a 90 day wait and I would have to appear in person at the bank branch to sign for the replacement. I was preparing to travel and could not assure my presence in the US in 90 days. The only other option would be for someone (yes, me) to buy a surety bond for $2,000 which would then release the funds. However, Schwab kept saying that they had 10 business days before they had to consider the check lost. I have since learned that this is Not the case, there is no written procedure granting Schwab 10 days to search their processing unit for my check. During this fiasco I discovered that the check had been sent to El Paso TX via USPS, regular mail. No tracking number, no security for what was essentially cash. I had repeated conversations looking for help without luck. Then, on the 11th day I called again and was told they had found the check and would UPS it to me.
I wrote to the person charged with "client advocacy" for which naming game you can probably blame marketing. He was less of an advocate, more of a stop loss person, genial at first, then harsh and unhelpful. At the end I asked if they would reimburse me for the $31 lost check fee to WF and also the $10.50 as I continued to be bombarded by marketing rubbish into my virtual mailbox since I was, by then, traveling abroad. No mention of that, just giving me another lame and ridiculous explanation of who was to blame (no one) and what they would do to prevent it happening to another person (nothing). So beware and think twice about handing over your hard earned monies, in any form. They have joined the banking industries to approach to the customer who is now always wrong and always a problem best solved by ignoring them.

by Andrew Kline, 9/12/2022

Pros: Overall quality experience

Cons:

I've been investing in stocks using this site for a couple months now. The User interface can be a bit confusing at times, but their customer service is quite helpful and makes up for this.

by JK, 8/2/2022

Pros:

Cons: Customer Service has gone down hill

Schwab will not reimburse ATM fees like they advertise. While I have been overseas, but still in a country that has USD as the national currency and the only currency used, they have falsely claimed the normal ATM fees are currency conversion fees and refuse to reimburse me. They state, as if it were fact, that I made a mistake and chose an additional currency conversion fee and I need to be more careful, like I'm an idiot who doesn't know what I'm doing at the same bank ATM I've used regularly since 2019. Even though I have repeatedly told them there is no currency conversion because my account is in USD and the national currency of the country in which the ATM transactions were made is also USD, they refuse to do further research. Oddly they were willing to look further into it back in 2019, when initially encountered this problem, and have correctly been reimbursing me for such transactions up until last month. The ATM receipts say nothing about a conversion fee. It's clear as day that it is a normal ATM fee and no currency conversion took place. A quick google search will even show that the national currency of the country has been USD since 2000. Yet, they refuse to look into it further. Customer service has really gone down hill within the last couple of years. They are not even willing to try to think logically and comprehend that there would be no currency conversion ATM fees for my Schwab withdrawals in a country with USD as the national currency. Also they ignored my messages for almost a month. I used to recommend this bank to everyone, but now I will no longer do so.

by Todd Finnerty, 5/27/2022

Pros: not applicable

Cons: no 401k Roth option and no respect for a signed agreement

Charles Schwab bought TD Ameritrade, where I have my 401k. They decided they didn't want any 401k's that also had Roth contribution options in them, so now I have to go through the expense and hassle of transferring my 401k to a new company that isn't them. There was no option provided for staying, just a don't-let-the-door-hit-you-in-the-rump on your way out. It was like neither company had any interest in keeping me as a customer or recognizing the incredible annoyance and time-suck involved in changing the 401k plan to another company. If you want a Roth contribution option in your 401k, or you'd like to work with a company who isn't just going to change things in a signed agreement that you had because of their whim and say piss off to you, you should not bother to look at Schwab or TD Ameritrade.

by George, 5/26/2022

Pros: Great checking, platform is good most of the time, customer service is good

Cons: Slow desktop trading platform, app needs work and both lag

I have been with Schwab for almost a couple of years now. I think they are great. Their website is great. Their trading platform SSE has issues. It is slow. It lags sometimes. Ive seen it where i was looking at MSFT and the prices were off my 5-10 minutes. The time and sales were printing the right times and so was the charts, but the actual sale prices and bids and asks were behind by 5-10 minutes. This got resolved in a short time but this is unacceptable. I've had it were some order haven't been filled when they were and the SSE platform just doesn't display it and i need to log out and log back in. Their platform could be much faster. It is glitchy. Their mobile app is decent but lacks. If Charles Schwab had a mobile app like Fidelity then Schwab would be better but they don't. Customer service is great. I feel like the bad reviews here are mostly people who don't trade often or have bad credit scores, but credit scores should be a reason for their issues. I feel like i am going to be switching to Fidelity here soon. Schwab's mobile app does sometimes lag the quite prices by minutes but then other times it's fine. This is an issue.

by Stephen, 5/18/2022

Pros: none

Cons: customer service

Had a phone conversation and meeting with an " advisor " in a local office. Phone contact and face to face were horrendous . Walked in the door with six figures in bank checks ready to open account and buy T bills. Walked out the door with the checks as representative gave me a laptop ( never used one ) without a mouse ! then said , " things are going too slow " and left me saying he had " million dollar accounts " to tend to. Truly like a bad dream

by gary, 5/9/2022

Pros: good

Cons: good

Be very careful with their high yield checkin account. I accidentally tied it to a brokerage account that was inactive. I seeded the checking account with 2000 dollars and they closed the account. Problem is I had another investment account that was pretty heavily funded. No e-mail, nothing. 2000 just vanished. Now they say it is in the mail. It has been a week and nothing. All they had to do was contact me in some way. But nothing. Pretty shady dealings. No telling how much money they screw people out of this way. And they do not want to give it back in a timely manner.

by Joan, 4/23/2022

Pros: None

Cons: They don’t seem to know what they’re doing

My husband has an inherited IRA which has just been turned over to Schwab. Husband is 70, I’m almost 65 so we want to cash it in for living expenses. Twice they’ve sent the wrong forms which state AT THE TOP:
If this is an inherited IRA do not use these forms. I did fill them out as best I could making notes on the side and in a short time my husband received an e-mail saying it had all been finalized (we were having it deposited into our checking account) The SAME DAY we got an e-mail saying they didn’t get all the needed forms and to call them-which was another nightmare. The rep finally said she would e-mail us the forms and we could return by mail or fax. Yup-same set of forms I’ve had TWICE!! I got to get our money and then run from this company.

by Joe Baker, 4/21/2022

Pros: Excellent Service Eventually Arrives

Cons: Tedious Process Before Excellent Service

After a flurry of frustrating attempts to get assistance using the international toll-free numbers, my phone's audio was blocked by strange electronic sounds half way into our conversations. Kept calling back, but then would lose connection. This was all in Mexico City, so some anomalous event was occurring which was surely not the bank's fault. Finally got through, but received slightly different info from two phone reps. Seems to be some confusion regarding whether a debit card #, expiration date and security code can all be provided over the phone. Before any definite info could be given, we always lost connection! Given this info, one would be well advised to always hide enough cash on them to last 3-4 days. Despite all those circumstances, I called back and Ms. Kaylee Clark answered and provided amazingly helpful assistance. She really saved the day. She was/is amazingly responsive and helpful, offering me alternative options to consider that I somehow doubt many others would have ever taken the time for. Keep an eye on her. Thank you Kaylee Clark for excellent assistance.

by John, 4/21/2022

Pros: Good platform

Cons: Terrible customer support

I recently spent several hours trying to move funds INTO an existing Schwab account. I talked with 8 representatives, including 2 managers and visited a branch office, received 3 different sets of instructions and nonsensical questions and advice regarding the process. The branch office promised to follow up within 24 hours, three days later - nothing. Two calls were transferred to the wrong departments; two were dropped after being put on hold. Issue never resolved. Truely unreal. I am now moving my accounts out of Schwab.

by Whatswrongwiththesepeople, 4/8/2022

Pros: Still working on this one...

Cons: Poor customer service.

In my opinion, customer Service is horrendous. For every competent customer service representative, there are ten lazy do-nothings who know nothing and have a bad attitude. My advice is that when you find someone who wants to work, get their name and extension. I don't know why Charles Schwab won't fix this. Poor customer service representatives exist everywhere, of course, but I've never seen it this bad. Charles Schwab, PLEASE DO RANDOM CSR TESTING and get rid of your dead wood!

by Millie, 3/14/2022

Pros: Large inventory of t-bills

Cons: Website does not work properly with Chrome & Windows 10

I trade t-bills so Schwab's large inventory was attractive. However, their website does not work properly with Chrome. I select bonds and it reverts to stocks. Called tech support and they couldn't fix the problem. Their suggestion was to switch to Microsoft EDGE. IMO, that's a grossly inadequate response. On other screens, my account number appears randomly where other data is required. Therefore, the only thing I use Schwab for is cds and t-bills. All of my stock trading remains on TDA & thinkorswim. Hopefully, when Schwab completes it takeover of TDA they won't screw up thinkorswim.

by Ken S, 3/14/2022

Pros: None

Cons: Couldn't do anything

Careful if you run a business from your home. I started an account and moved some seed money into the account. I attempted to trade for the first time the next day, but my address would not verify, so they locked the account on everything but moving money in.
They stated that my home address came back as a business (well ya, lots of people have home-based businesses). They requested I send in a piece of mail to verify that it is my home address. I sent a photo of an envelope from the Veterans Admin. They rejected that, requesting a copy of a bill. I get online and screenshot my mortgage bill. It gets rejected, because I didn't send in the whole -uncropped image (I didn't feel they needed transaction info as this is an ADDRESS verification right). At this point, I can move in money, but I can't even move my money back to the bank. It's just locked up. They are supposed to be sending me a check. We shall see.

by Deana, 3/12/2022

Pros: Stellar customer service

Cons:

I have only used Charles Scwab for banking, not trading, so my perspective is limited. However, I have always been very impressed by their customer service representatives. I've been a customer for over five years now and had to call in various times over the years for issues related to managing my account. Everytime I am thrilled with the service. They are always extremely polite and helpful. They have best customer service agents of any company I've interacted with.

by Prairie Mark, 3/6/2022

Pros: Web-site is workable/ good graphs and charts on metrics of my account/transfer of money from and to my outside bank has been easy and flawless.

Cons: A little thin on customer support. Need more online help without a wait and they should invest in better training. I think they ask too much of them. They are helpful....but overwhelmed with workload. Make their job workable and they will stay!

I have been with Schwab for over a year now. So far I am happy with their service and investment products. I add to my account from time to time and at times I will actively trade for a couple of weeks. I was with DAD Davidson, Royal Bank of Canada and Ameritrade over the last 48 years and I would say that Schwab and Ameritrade tie for the best services for me. There seemed to be a lot of confusion and delay in opening the account and getting the kind of account I wanted. But I walked through the steps and redid it till we got it right. The trading platform is OK. I liked Ameritrade a little better but I am adjusting. I give Schwab a B plus.

by Donald, 3/3/2022

Pros: Can't think of any

Cons: Mobile app is worthless, i didn't like the previous web site, but now trying to use the new app is nearly impossible!!!

Ive been trying to cancel a trade for over an hour, will not load that page. Can't find any kind of screener, charts are more basic than I made in junior high in 1979. Billion dollar co forcing us to use a 20cent app. PITIFUL

by JM, 2/21/2022

Pros: None

Cons: Poor Customer Service

I was interested in opening a substantial account upon the sale of my house so I contacted Charles Schwab regarding a question on their privacy policy. Unfortunately, their customer service agent could not answer my questions and promised to contact me with an answer. Never did. A second call resulted in pretty much the same, however, she did have a record of my first call, but failed to give me a contact number for the first agent stating that I would have to wait for her email with a phone number on it. Thus far, no response. How can one trust an organization that hires individuals who, in my opinion, provide such poor customer service? Would you trust your money to such an organization?

by Daytrade64, 1/30/2022

Pros: Always get help online, chat or on the phone.

Cons: Moble street smart app is horrible.

First and foremost, I'm not a "paid" Schwab reviewer. I truly sympathize with the people here who have had issues. I'm wondering if this is a regional issue?

I have had nothing but great service with Schwab and I've been with them for almost 3 decades. I have 5 accounts with them and my day trades, for the most part, have been fine and fast. There has been a few times when a sell trade hasn't been executed in a speedy fashion at the "mid" price on the desktop Street Smart Edge, but the market and buy trades are usually right on. I think it's important to note that I use the Street Smart desktop for 99% of all of my trades and I have a rocket-fast cable internet service. I keep my trading computer clinically clean and never play games on it, go to questionable websites, etc. The cookies are dumped every single time I close my Firefox Browser. I reboot my computer once every 3 days.That is VERY important! I also have 32 GB of RAM and a fast processor.

I have used the regular platform before and it is nothing compared to the Street Smart. The online help, AKA chat, both in Street Smart and in the regular platform have always been great with few exceptions (when the market has been crazy or the circuit breaker has tripped at the NASDAQ or NYSE). My accounts update in split seconds whether I win or lose. I can switch between accounts in less than a second.

I'm only reviewing this because I believe it is really important to keep your trading machines clean, fast and crisp! Regarding those who have had issues with customer service, etc. sorry, I can't help you there.

One final thought, The Street Smart phone app is so bad, even the people at Schwab won't recommend you use it!! If they know it's always been bad, you'd think they would build a better one for crying out loud? Regarding prices, you may not know this but the Street Smart desktop will allow you to buy or sell at the "mid" instead of the buy or ask. That saves me a LOT of money. The phone apps won't let you do that!

Good luck and I wish everyone the best.

by David L, 1/26/2022

Pros: None

Cons: Terrible customer service

Used their website to open a new online account. Even stopped by their local office to deposit a check to fund the online account. Then, they blocked access to my online account.

That was 5 days ago. I have call every day to resolve the issue. Same run-around every day I call in.

My recommendation, choose another online broker. The customer service at Schwab is sub-par.

by Suzanne, 12/31/2021

Pros: low commissions, allegedly (brokerage firms notorious for hiding fees)

Cons: Too hard to get help

Schwab doesn't help you they just torture people with Passive Agressive Customer Service - 1st, you call the phone # & the obnoxious robo voice starts mapping your voice - a major (& creepy) violation of privacy we never agreed to (and an adhesion agreement with vague boiler plate language doesn't count). Then Chat tells you they won't help you, they're only for new customers (not even labeled that way, you have to waste your time getting on it to find this out) & refers you back to the customer "service" line you just complained about. And, I only needed help because I put in a sell order for their mutual fund that didn't execute (ultimately it went the following day). When I used their "Message Center", it emailed me the next day saying there was a response, but there was nothing, not even a way to re-send a message - only an Upload Document function. A real F-U to the customer.

by Ed Wisniewski, 12/29/2021

Pros:

Cons:

Mobile site lacks timely bid-ask details on OTC pinx sheet stocks.

SEC should consider LARGE FINES or mandate reimbursements when a timely market price is SUDDENLY UNAVAILABLE.

Recommend to AVOID SCHWAB until they address recent online login problems as well as inaccurate pricing on trading. Login difficult surged. New passwords not recognized. I/T dept either asleep, fired, on vacation or no longer exists.

by Jack Schmelter, 11/6/2021

Pros: Great security features, easy trade interfaces, simple and fast!

Cons: Mobile Trading works, but could definitely be better

There's not a lot to say, especially if they end up bringing TD's trading platforms to their platform. Multiple interface options, multiple options, and great security. Reading the bad ratings here is a bit of a joke, I guess enhanced security and MFA is difficult for some folks.

by JCMH WORKPLACE, 10/23/2021

Pros:

Cons:

No more report updates on your account. All of a sudden, you won't be able to access your account., unless YOU, contact them. 200, 000.00 down the tubes.

by LCR, 10/14/2021

Pros: cheap

Cons: unreliable, confusing interface, slow

Trades for the most part are cheap, outside of options, but every interface they have is unreasonably obtuse. Attempted to transfer out shares to a transfer agent via DRS and the time table for completion keeps getting pushed back further every day. The shares in question should have settled weeks ago, so I have no idea why it is taking them so long to transfer. This situation gives the appearance that the "shares" in my account are nothing more than "IOUs." Definitely not happy. Investor beware.

by Karl, 10/14/2021

Pros: Decent mobile app

Cons: Terrible service, PFOF

As a broker, their reliance on payment for order flow makes it clear that those of us who hold brokerage accounts are users, not customers, and their commitment is to those who pay them for our orders, not us. That’s further exemplified by the atrocious service I’ve received every time I’ve had to interact with anyone at Schwab. They treat me like I’m the “dumb money” they clearly believe I am. I have decided to leave the brokerage completely for greener pastures with fidelity where I’ve received nothing but excellent service.

by Excuses Not Pay PROMO, 9/2/2021

Pros: Nice graphs

Cons: Won’t pay Schwab PROMO after deposit

Invested over 100k with Schwab PROMO code, branch and 800 cust support make nonsense excuses each week not to pay my $500 reward, no one there will fix error! Stop having PROMOs if you have no intention of paying customer. Someone needs to contacts state attorney general fraud unit… Google searched: I am not only one screwed out of Schwab PROMO.

by Aubrey Halverson, 8/30/2021

Pros:

Cons: Lack of follow through - doesn't care

I spoke to Matthew Jones out of the Charlotte, NC office regarding moving my mom's accounts over to Schwab from another financial institution. He said all of the things you want to hear. I called him a few days later to let him know we would be moving her accounts over. He never called to say thank you, and never even called or made an attempt to contact us to let us know of next steps. I called his office to follow up and was told he was busy, he would contact me, etc. He never did. The customer service was terrible, even at the managerial level, which this was escalated to. Don't trust Schwab (especially this office) with your financial future.

by Mary, 7/21/2021

Pros: None!

Cons: Untrustworthy, does not give good advice, does not look at for the clients best interest

Charles Schwab is a company who makes a lot of money off of ignorant investors. I would never let my family use this company or recommend them. I used to work for them for years and they made us push products that were “suitable and good enough” for their clients. In all the years I work for them, they never got to know the clients to act in their best interest. How can a company or financial advisor recommend a product after 20 minutes of getting to know you? It takes hours of getting to know someone before a financial planner could possibly act in their best interest. Do yourself and your future heirs a favor and stay away from Charles Schwab. Find a fiduciary financial planner who is has the knowledge and background to act in your best interest and who will take the time to get to know you and your family. It will save you a major headache in the future and your kids and grandkids will be grateful one day! If you are currently working with Charles Schwab the best advice I can give you is run…. Don’t walk away, RUN!

by Michelle, 7/21/2021

Pros:

Cons:

My husband passed away and Charles Schwab useless and created so many issues. We had over $1,000,000 with them and they put me on hold for hours and said they would send me forms to sign, which they did not. When I needed them they most they would not return calls and did not come through for my son and me. Our assets ended up going to probate and became a major tax problem years later because of their lack of communication. I would not recommend them to anyone. They do not know what they are doing and their customer service is horrible. Please do yourself a favor and stay as far away from this company as possible. They only want your money and when you need them the most they do not come through. My husband handled all the finances and looking back now we should have had a financial planner helping us because my situation with Charles Schwab and other companies has not been a complete mess. Please take my advice as widow, and find a younger financial advisor you can trust and who the most schooling and background and knows what they are doing. Find someone who will give you all the time you deserve and not just 5 minutes over the phone to send you forms to sign. Find an advisor who will be there and explain things when you need them them the most. It is better to find this person ten years too early than one day too late.

by Anonymous, 7/9/2021

Pros: none

Cons: They lie and manipulate.

Go somewhere else.

by Freddy, 4/15/2021

Pros: None

Cons: Refused to return my money.

I have been trying to get my money back since January 2021. They blocked my account after I funded account it. They said I had derogatory information on my Equifax and I would have to close my cash management and my brokerage account. I requested my money and they agreed to send it back. They never sent it! I called today to ask for it. They still didn’t release my money three months later. They are becoming as disliked as Bank of America or Wells Fargo. I have given up on Charles Schwab!

by Soon2BExClient, 3/11/2021

Pros: Zip

Cons: How much time do you have?

If you want excuses, this is the right brokerage for you! There is no shortage of excuses with these amateurs.
Really getting ridiculous with their supposed non-stop customer disservice call volumes.
Forget Streetsmart Edge. One never knows when they can get on or when it will simply go tits-up and punt you off.

by Dukey, 1/28/2021

Pros: Nice trading platform

Cons: Horrible customer service

Unable to trade stocks today, 01.28.2021. "We are experiencing technical difficulties, please try you call again later" I get. This has been going on for days. I need to make trades, but I am unable to use either of their two trading platforms.
They SUCK!

by Skchuck, 1/27/2021

Pros: None

Cons: Horrible technical knowledge

I called yesterday they had a huge problem with their charles Schwab bank balances all my accounts said zero money. I thought I had been hacked . I then went online an saw many people having the same issue so I knew it was system wide . I called amd got a rep on the phone as I could not use bill pay on my iPhone worked fine on my iPad. He told me the problem had been fixed he didn’t even listen to my issue I asked for a manager and told him about the problem and to fix it and hug up. Six hours later still same problem still getting told problem was fixed I escalted to their ridiculous useless account vip team she passed me onto a help desk rep a complete moron who had me install the app check my wireless etc using some sort of checklist . I told him this was a big bottom lone 3 hours of phone calls later it was a bug and only the Bill pay people knew about it . It had not been communicated throughout the company. Then I ally I give these fold a negative 20 a negative 50 for crap customer service and a negative 100 for overall experience . This company needs or have regulators go in and clean up this mess .

by dl, 1/22/2021

Pros: better price improvement than Robinhood

Cons: too aggressive in restricting accounts

Pattern day trading rules require an account to be restricted for 90 days unless the account maintains $25,000. Schwab restricts the account indefinitely and allows a one time exception the first time someone is coded as a pattern day trader. If the account is coded again, Schwab informed me that it may (but no guarantees) remove the flag every two years as long as not a single day trade is executed in that timeframe. It also asserted that it used to only allow one exception per lifetime.

Out of fear of being shut out for life, I did not take profits or cut losses short. This cost me over $15,000, and Schwab does not care. I am closing my accounts with this selfish company.

FINRA rules say 90 days. Stop being selfish and making it infinity. Every two years is not necessary. Avoid! They just want to keep poor traders poor!

by Mark Miles, 1/5/2021

Pros: None

Cons: No customer service, unable to remove money from account.

Been with Schwab for 25+ years, I have 3 different clients that I work accounts for, I needed to remove funds from one account, this is impossible to do in any way, you can not talk to anyone via phone, the customer service is none existent, Monday I was hanging on the phone for 2 hours and again for 1 hour after markets shut, there is not anyone picking up the phones to help you, today i got stuck in a trade as it would not cancel in a fast moving trade, I tried to call Schwab to cancel the trade in an emergency, they are not taking calls in any way no matter what the problem is, my advice is to anyone thinking of going with this broker is to keep walking they are not worth the risk and will not help you if you get stuck in a trade. They hold your money, and you have no way of getting that money, this is the worst I have ever seen this company, I will be removing my accounts and finding a better broker who will help and have a customer service.

by Sammy, 12/30/2020

Pros: Charles Schwab sounds like a big brokerage firm

Cons: Customer service is appalling/ horrible / sucks/ abysmal

My account was migrated from USAA when they chickened out of their brokerage services. Setting up my account was very painful every step of the way. Correcting address, phone numbers for two step verification, beneficiaries power of attorney etc. I am shock at how they can get away with their substandard service. No consistency in answers, sending inaccurate answers, wait times on phone call ( dropped call after 40 minutes wait. WTF!) . Unknowledgeable customer representatives. You wait for AT LEAST 25 MINUITES to get some entry level representative who has to call another department for every question you have, and that is at least another 25 MINUTES wait time if your call does not get dropped. I can go on and on on how they suck but you get the picture. Oh and, and i have a little over 1 M of portfolio that I am trying to manage thru their brokerage. I am trying hard to say something nice, but my overall experience is nothing but horrible! I got all of my asset transfer request initiated. hopping this would be my last interaction with Charles "SUCKS" Schwab! I find it hard to believe all the 5 star reviews. Must be their PR department attempting to do some damage control. And they cant even do a decent job at that either.

by john, 12/22/2020

Pros: none

Cons: all

USAA transfer/buy out was a complete failure.
Brokerage account transfered but after several months, the IRA track down procedure has been left up to me!
Charles Schwabb has no record of it, USAA says they transferred it to Charles Schwabb, Charles Schwabb says they don't have it.

Charles Schwab online website has the quality of a 1st year website designer

Great work all...wonderful...let the customer research what happened to their account.

by JAMES KELLER, 12/15/2020

Pros: NEED CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT AGAINST SCHWAB

Cons: NEED CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT AGAINST SCHWAB

NEED ATTORNEY TO START A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT AGAINST CHARLES SCHWAB. BETWEEN THE DELAYS; LACK OF CUSTOMER SERVICE RESPONSE AND THE ACCOUNT ERRORS---SOMEBODY NEEDS TO PUT THEM IN THERE PLACE.

THERE HAS TO BE THOUSANDS OF TRADERS THAT ARE/HAVE LOST MONEY DUE TO THERE IGNORANCE AND ARROGANCE.

by Garrett Mathews, 12/14/2020

Pros: NONE

Cons: So So Many

They are forever having system brake-downs. I have had enough of there customer service. They don't stand behind there company. Everyone of there customer service reps are morons. IT'S TIME TO SWITCH TO SOMEONE ELSE. Anybody is better then they are.

by Jeff M, 12/14/2020

Pros: There are none

Cons: Can never get anyone on the phone; system problems always

Looking to cancel my accounts with Schwab. They suck ! They always are having technical problems which prevents you from trading. IPO's sometimes don't get added till after the first day of trading--you miss out. The typical hold time is always over 45 min. Then, you wait another 30 min when they transfer your call to whatever department. When you trade--especially in the morning--its usually takes 15 to 20 min for Street Edge trading platform to show what you paid for the stock and for it to appear under holding (they can't handle the volume). Typically, you have to wait till late Feb to you receive your K-1. That puts you behind on getting your taxes done. Most importantly, when there system goes down, and you can't trade a stock--they WILL NOT STAND BEHIND YOU. Even if you are losing money--because of there problem. Just be aware.

Right now, I have been on the phone for 54 min. and still no one has connected to the call--just a recording. Do yourself a favor--look elsewhere.

by Linda, 11/23/2020

Pros: None

Cons: STOLE MY MONEY because on November 9th when the market rocketed I was unable to log on or call Schwab to sell my stocks for 3 hours

November 9th when the market rocketed I was unable to log on or call Schwab to sell my stocks for 3 hours and by that time I had lost a lot of money because the market had pulled back already.

I was assured by the following employees I would get my money back and that Schwab had a record of my attempted calls & log ins. They immediately credited me $250.00 and ask I call back in a few days.
I called back and they asked I call back in one week. I called back in one week and they asked me to call in two weeks..... I was pissed now so I called today 11/23/2020. Spoke to Mark Lynsey and he did lots of lying for sure.
Mark angrily told me I was getting nothing from Schwab because they had "nothing to prove I had called or attempted to log in", contrary to previous calls which indicated I would be credited.
He was an absolute asshole too which was surprising in that he was so nice weeks before. I closed my account, told him I thought Schwab was as crooked as it has been 35 years ago and still is, and he told me that Schwab was not corrupt but that bull crap, they suck.
I'm waiting for my money from my closed account now and will never use another company until I investigate them very carefully..........VERY.
I will be filing complaints with FCC and FINRA immediately which may or may not do shit. IF THERE IS A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT FILED PLEASE CONTACT ME BECAUSE I WOULD GREATLY ENJOY BEING A PART OF THIS.
chewie10@suddenlink.net

Below is an accounting of who I spoke to and when.

Andrew – Indianapolis
Broker: Jake reviewing requests because they are so many….2 weeks mark.
FCC and FINRA
97,000 people were locked out of the system so Schwab is resolving these issues. Wait until Monday for a credit and if not call them back on the 23 rd day before Thanksgiving.

11/23/2020 – Ryan Indianapolis. Passed me along to supervisor. Still waiting 12 minutes.
Last week spoke to Mark spoke on the 9th. Mark will call me back shortly stated Ryan.
Mark Linsley

by George, 11/18/2020

Pros: None

Cons: Lots

And the worse brokerage award goes to Charles Schwab!

by M. Burns, 10/17/2020

Pros:

Cons: Option quote accuracy is poor

Overall customer experience continues to worsen. Every attempt at upgrading the trading experience ends up being a fiasco. On 10/17, customer accounts were inaccurate as option settlements were completely botched. Option assignments weren't processed until noontime Saturday but unfortunately, the original option contract remained outstanding resulting in inaccurate account positions. Schwab indicated that between Sunday night and Monday morning they hoped to have the account positions accurate. Schwab is becoming Citigroup...Too Big to Manage!

by Andrew, 9/24/2020

Pros: Nothing

Cons: Everything

Issues with Schwab:

- As the big fish player, having zero innovation or merit themselves, Schwab buy up smaller yet much better companies (optionsXpress and also now TD Ameritrade) and then bastardise, ruin or phase out those once good products, all the while adopting the once happy customers of those companies into the terrible nightmare scenario that is being a customer of Charles Schwab. Many people never signed up to be a Schwab customer, it was forced upon them.

This ‘ivory tower’ company is living in the stone ages when it comes to actually providing basic quality brokerage and customer service, all they do is buy up everything worthwhile and then proceed to piss on it, never improving upon what they bought.

- Order execution, risk management and stop loss functionality is severely, questionably and dangerously lacking compared to other platforms. Don’t think they have your best interests at heart when it comes to proper trade execution and risk management.

- API functionality for smarter trade execution and management completely nonexistent.

- Schwab charges wire fees to withdraw one’s OWN money from the account. Ridiculous.

- Account $ information may as well be written in some foreign language as they make it so obscure that you essentially have to go through several manual steps and use a calculator to figure our whether you lost or made money on a trade, or how much money in dollars and cents was transacted. What should be basic simple to understand and read information (P&L on trades) requires much effort to figure out, not to mention some information takes days to populate into some pdf only accessible through the website which is also not written or presented in a straightforward simple way, very obscure. They don’t email basic $ information on trade execution, they just send a notification some days later that you can login and view a PDF on the website. Basic $ P&L trade information is never easy to find with Schwab and this also includes finding their brokerage fees and how much you paid THEM. The message with Schwab is loud and clear, don’t make it simple for customers to determine how much they are losing, making and PAYING on trades, make this process unnecessarily cumbersome, manual and multilayered.

- Website and app crashes regularly especially during market volatility, the times you need reliability most. VERY costly when you have REAL money on the line.

- There is no simple chat functionality in the app or website. Access to customer service is not at all straightforward or intuitive. You must go into an obscure and non-intuitive ‘message centre’ part of the website where in order to write a message you need to click ‘upload file’ .... what? Also don’t expect a reply back for at least three days.

- I could go on writing about all the problems with Schwab for days but don’t have the time. Honestly the regulator seriously needs to step in and tell this huge market player to get their act together because a lot of good people are LOSING money simply due to poor quality brokerage.

by ReddBull1, 8/26/2020

Pros: cheap to use

Cons: It's online platform userbility sucks.

Its online platform is designed to make you more stress than money. A aplication designed to gaslamp all your cash and all investments over time. They harbor conditions in thier favor, not yours. It a old trade model with a spiff new wax job.

by jerry, 8/6/2020

Pros:

Cons: streetsmart

Being an experienced trader and using their smartstreet application has been a terrible experience. Slow, slow, slow. Yesterday, was wanting to get out of a position and their online platform kept crashing and unable to get quotes or place trades. Please be careful when choosing an investment firm. The manager told me I should call to place a trade. So, I guess the market will wait for you as your holding online for 10+ minutes to execute a transaction.

by szshen, 6/9/2020

Pros:

Cons: Increasingly slow and weighed down by pointless features

The app has grown increasingly slow over the last few updates, to the point that each action within executing a trade (looking up a ticker, choosing buy/sell, choosing a limit price, reviewing the order, submitting) takes several seconds. This defeats the whole purpose of a mobile app from the brokerage side if it often takes over a minute to execute just one trade! If I am a long-term investor, I can wait to check my portfolio on a computer. If I am a trader, the mobile app is too slow. Who is this app for, then?

Similarly, can a developer please explain the use of the “device watchlist”? It cannot be deleted or turned off, is only stored on the device, and is always shown by default when opening Watchlists. Are there serious investors or traders who have a watchlist they only look at on their phones? Schwab obviously has data I don’t, but why can’t we choose our own default watchlists? It would contain all of the current functionality but not create this UI friction.

by KKKrules6969, 6/8/2020

Pros: Lots of tools, very convenient, great cust. service

Cons:

My first investment account was with Fidelity and they banned me for life for a simple mishap of transferring $ I didn’t have from a savings account instead of the checking account it was meant to come from. I then chose Schwab and they’ve been excellent. Useful tools, they always hit my limit orders that I set for me, and great customer service. I purchased an international stock once and was charged a $50 fee and was unaware of it and they waved it for me.

by No longer a Charles Schwab customer, 5/26/2020

Pros: None

Cons: Customer service reps are clueless, they lack basic knowledge of retirement accounts

When you call your brokerage you want a consistent answer not guesses, and certainly not 2 or 3 differing opinions on any issue. We were migrated to Charles Schwab from USAA and their rules for SEP IRA's are draconian and outdated. I was told that I would have to paper mail contributions and that they would act as the agent for the IRS in determining what I could and could not contribute to my SEP as a self employed business owner.

If you want a brokerage that does not know what it is doing and gives inconsistent answers, this is the company for you. Their employees are poorly trained and under educated in basic retirement accounts. I transferred my account this evening and won't be back. Ever.

by SchnitzelMesiter, 5/20/2020

Pros: Not a Review Person but Schwab is A+

Cons:

Schwab is really amazing. I discovered them doing some research as to what card to take for international travels. They don’t charge any ATM withdrawal fees (they actually refund any third party fees too) and no currency conversion fees. On top of that they don’t have any of the hidden snags I’ve run into like charges for dropping below a certain amount of money in a checking account.

When my card got stolen and used for fraudulent purchases they provided excellent service and I was refunded in a short time. I really considered sending them a thank you letter. Maybe this is better. Keep up the great work

by Rob Longhini Jr, 5/14/2020

Pros:

Cons: Fails on the basics

As much as I might be completely happy with Schwab and my account, the app gets an F in my book. In fact so bad, I wish I had experimented with it before opening an account and trading. Let’s try something VERY basic for a portfolio account... how about we sort holdings based on gained/lost for today by % or $. Ummm nope. How about we sort my portfolio to look at gain/loss totals by % or $ (overall performance since purchased). I launch my fidelity and E*TRADE apps constantly throughout the day to check on performance today, as well as overall performance since bought, and while I also take advantage of alerts, I want to see real-time how positions are performing and sorting by performance is probably the most basic feature I would assume is offered in the mobile app.... but it’s not unfortunately.

by bdy1964, 4/30/2020

Pros: The best!

Cons:

I have learned last night that I could deposit directly to Schwab Bank or my Schwab Brokerage account using the Schwab Mobile app. Now, instead of depositing a check to a third party financial institution and using “moneylink" to transfer the funds — a 5 day delay before funds are available, I can deposit checks DIRECTLY to my Schwab Bank OR brokerage account. The more I learn about Schwab Bank, the more I realize that Schwab Bank is the best online banking app there is.

by Chrisjohnjarvisridiculous, 3/30/2020

Pros:

Cons: Figures Are Not Accurate

The day change and possibly several other figures on the app are not accurate! I called Schwab on it and they confirmed it!! It was showing I had a day change of ~$800 whereas the actual change was only roughly $400! This prompted me to make more changes than I normally would have but in another scenario could possibly put you into a position where you think you are gaining but you are actually losing money! It definitely affects how you feel about buying or selling stock and therefore, with inaccurate figures could cause a loss of money you weren’t expecting because Schwab was not up front with the user on the problem. I even called a broker from Schwab who confirmed this anomaly and was also frustrated with it admitting that Schwab has known about it for a long time!! Because of this issue, he said many brokers at Schwab use the website instead of the app. Therefore, this app is unacceptable and a 1 star rating until they get it fixed. I will say that all of the brokers I have talked to over the phone have been super kind and helpful so I think Schwab is a decent company, but don’t get yourself into trouble using this app!

by Bill, 2/26/2020

Pros: Very few if any

Cons: Clueless Customer Service representative and Brokers

I still haven't been able to determine if the proceeds from the maturation of a CD was ever credited to my brokerage account. After speaking with two (2) brokers who themselves were flummoxed by their own internal accounting practices. Unless you have several millions of dollars in assets, expect rotten, crappy service from a brokerage house who thinks of itself as the "average investor's" brokerage service. Charles Schwab should just join the ranks of the major private equity firms who cater to the uber wealthy since, in reality, those are the only clients they clearly care about. Run, don't walk away from Charles Schwab.

by Bleedz, 2/17/2020

Pros: Best for Banking and Best for Brokerage

Cons:

I can not stress enough how impressive Charles Schwab has been in every way, and I have been with many different banks. When I inherited my brokerage account, everyone at Schwab treated me like family right away. Anytime I had a question or wanted to do something over the phone, the customer service was always outstanding. I do believe they lead the trading industry, because when Chuck started it, he did it for the people, not for himself. I believe they have the perfect balance of traditional face to face or over the phone service along with the leading technology for online trading. When they informed me they did checking accounts also, I immediately switched them to my main banking institution. Best financial decision I’ve ever made. With their fewer branches than most banks, they compensate greatly with their online services. Check deposits are posted to your account sometimes within minutes! I’m not one to write reviews for companies at all, but after all the trouble I’ve been through with my other banks, Charles Schwab really deserves a 5 out of 5. I can’t say I have ever had a bad experience with them! A++++

by E Steven McC, 2/7/2020

Pros:

Cons: New to Charles, not impressed so far!

I deposited my initial funds a few days ago and today it finally shows the money I added to the acct. I’ve tried to invest in a few different products and keep getting different warning messages depending on what I’m trying to purchase.

It either shows the quantity is wrong or I have insufficient funds or a mixture of both. I’m not a novice investor and have accounts through other brokerages and have been able to invest right away.

Never in my life have I had to wait so long or have had issues like this. I’ll give it another day to see if the system catches up with my deposit showing available or go elsewhere.

by StreamFella, 1/21/2020

Pros:

Cons: Terrible for trading stocks

The big banks should learn from Robinhood.. traders want a simple clear well designed mobile app for trading. With this app i have to toggle between three or for pages just to see what my average cost per share, the current price, how many shares i currently have, then another two pages to see the stock’s past performance. Then you have to hope the price is accurate and current after going through all of that. With Robinhood everything is right in front of you. I don’t understand why a brokerage would put its clients in such a disadvantage with such a terrible app. Improve or get left behind by Robinhood and other fin tech companies.

by Jen, 12/5/2019

Pros:

Cons: Welcome bonus

I am disappointed by Schwab. It said if I open up an account and deposit $1,000 I will get a $100 bonus award. Now, they are not honoring it. They keep delaying sending it. It was from their own website. It clearly states within 45 days. I don't think Schwab keeps their word.

by Bruce A, 10/31/2019

Pros: old classic stock screener was an excellent tool

Cons: old classic screener replaced by a POS that doesn't work on my tablet

On my tablet, where I do all my investment analysis, the new screener won't accept criteria from the boxes, and covers the criteria column, limiting further selections, which probably wouldn't work anyway. For existing screens, changing a criteria, which would have immediately shown the new number of stocks, now requires selecting the new matches in order to see how many there are. I used the classic screener extensively to evaluate stocks for me, my wife, my children, and my in-laws. Who was the 'genius' who eliminated an excellent tool, replaced it with a cumbersome one, and failed to adequately test it for use on tablets. THERE IS AN OLD SAYING: IF IT AIN'T BROKE DON'T FIX IT!

by Perplexed, 10/9/2019

Pros: Friendly, trying to help

Cons: Lack of knowledge of procedures, forms, policies, current knowledge of procedure changes.

In every step of the way there has been problems creating accounts and sending money. Forms to set up accounts are confusing, when you call, they do not know about the forms, eventually someone finds the right one, you send it in, only to find out it was the wrong form. Money is sent, they send it back, cannot explain why. The money is sent back from another Financial institution, they suggest that institution is affiliated with my bank...later find out they are affiliated. How can you trust sending your money to them???? I know it's a good company but it feels like its being run by drunken frat boys.

by Tom, 10/2/2019

Pros: None

Cons: Blocking account of disabled person due to living in an RV, failing to honor verbal commitments

I made the mistake of opening a joint Schwab account two weeks ago. I had been a Schwab customer years ago and never had a problem with them. Well, the new Schwab ain't the old Schwab! Right out of the box the website opened an individual account instead of the joint account. Then it blocked the account because my wife and I live in an RV. i am disabled and cannot afford the rent of a fancy apartment. Apparently, Schwab wants to see people in my situation stay that way--despite their move to commission-free brokerage on Oct. 7th. (Ever hear of new financial and bank bail-in rules? You could wind up with a bunch of your bank's stock instead of your money if it fails in a general financial emergency. I can't help but wonder if Schwab's intention is to attract the maximum amount of account funding possible...because I can't see any acceptable ways a discount brokerage can make money without commissions) I wrote to my Congressman and Senators pointing out I had Federal and State ID using this address where I reside. I then heard from a customer relations manager named Chance who told me my proof had been accepted and my account would be reopened on Friday Sept. 27th and that my wife would be added to the account by the close of business on Oct. 1st. I'm writing this on Oct. 2nd and the account is still blocked. My phone, E-mail and FAX messages to Chance have gone unanswered. Even if this is eventually resolved, I'd be terrified of giving these people any of my meager savings. Can you imagine what would happen if they botched a trade or "lost" stocks in your account???

by George Rich, 9/14/2019

Pros: Friendly Customer Service

Cons: Incompetent Customer Service

Have been a customer for 25 years. Would have given Schwab a solid 4-5 stars for discount brokerage services for the first 24 years. But the past year puts them at a three, and falling. As automated transactions should be getting simpler with better technology, they are becoming harder and harder at CS. Calling customer service will give you five minutes with the friendliest (and most clueless) millennial who will profusely thank you for your business and promise that they have fixed all your problems and everything is great. Until you log on tomorrow and see they didn't do anything they promised. Not sure if it's a competence problem or a complete lack of integrity, but something is amiss at this company.

by Tim V, 9/11/2019

Pros: none

Cons: service

Awful service and the trading platform and model is flawed at best. Very inconsistent when placing limit orders etc. Ran into number of issues where trades never triggered etc.

by STB, 4/4/2019

Pros: Everything goes smoothly, if you know what you are doing

Cons: None

Schwab has low fees, a very good cash flow service platform (to move capital around when needed, or have checks written etc), and a decent (Streetsmart Edge) trading platform. I have found the research to be decent, if only a little lagging, which for long term investors is not a bad thing. For the life of me, I can't even remotely see what all the complaining is about. There is only one real complaint. I would like more flexibility in the way ratios can be manipulated on the charting system. (For example, historic PE/NAV for OEF's etc) and not be stuck with the canned ones they use.

As for execution, these other people must be using Dinosaur networks or something, I've always got best price at time of execution, sometimes even better, if the trade goes directly thru a market maker.

by Gavin, 2/25/2019

Pros: Love the App, Phone/Chat Support super friendly, Bank side people nice too

Cons: Can't get help rolling over IRA's

Listed the pros and cons above already. Subtracted 1 star as I've tried to get help doing a roll-over repeatedly. Their management has obviously spread that particular group too thin. They're working long hours but can't seem to get the process started for me. Don't think I'll move forward on that one as there would be little hope of support should anything go awry. Again, not due to the employee's lack of trying. I get the very distinct impression when talking to them that they are massively over-subscribed in that particular area.

Individual Brokerage and Banking - Thumbs up.
Roll-over - Pass.

by sandman, 2/1/2019

Pros: None

Cons: too many to list. my account is a brick.

transferred $25K to my brokerage account with understanding I'd be able to trade listed stocks, no margin next day. Tried placing online trades each of the next 3 days to have the orders rejected for insufficient funds. I try chatting with them and the horsecrap I get back from them is I can't trade until the funds clear because i opened a futures account at the same time. absolute dirt bags. my account is a brick with $25K in the ether and a trade running away from me I really wanted to make.

by M Bruewer, 12/20/2018

Pros: NONE

Cons: BONDS ARE NOT ACCURATLY PRICE IN YOUR ACCOUNT

BONDS IN MY ACCOUNT ARE ALWAYS PRICED FOR MORE THEN I CAN SELL THEM FOR. EVEN AFTER THEY ARE QUOTED THEY REFUSE TO DISPLAY THE CORRECT PRICES. THIS FORCES ME TO WITHDRAW MORE THAN REQUIRED EACH YEAR FROM MY IRA AND PAY EXTRA TAXES. HOW HAS THIS COMPANY NOT BE SUED.

by Brandon, 10/16/2018

Pros: banking

Cons: everything else

I've been in the industry as an employee of a brokerage firm for nearly 5 years. This is not the place to open a brokerage account, plain and simple. There are far better options out there like Ally Invest or Fidelity. My experience at Schwab has been by far the worst experience I've ever had with a financial firm, banking, investing, etc. It takes days to even get an account approved, when I uploaded my documents (license, etc.) it took 48 business hours for someone from service to even review it.. a few days later, and I HAD TO CALL THEM back to ask what was going on. Turns out, because I'm affiliated with another broker, my account required more paperwork... why didn't they call and just tell me that? Transferring funds from an external account also takes 4 business days... 4 days just to have money approved and deposited for trading. Know what? Ally can essentially do this real-time. Furthermore, there was a promotional offer (cash or trades pending deposit amount) - welp, I didn't qualify for those either because they do it by account, not an aggregate of overall assets. THE ONLY REASON I will stay there is because it is a requirement from my employer, something related to compliance and monitoring of employee accounts. Just take my advice, save your time and open an account somewhere else. Chuck is the last person you want to give your money to.

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