Computershare vs Charles Schwab & Co: Compare Fees
| Broker Fees |
Stock/ETF
Commission |
Mutual Fund
Commission |
Margin
Rate |
Maintenance
Fee |
Annual IRA
Fee |
|
Charles Schwab
|
$0
|
$49.95 ($0 to sell)
|
12.575%
|
$0
|
$0
|
|
Fidelity
|
$0
|
$49.95
|
12.575%
|
$0
|
$0
|
|
Etrade
|
$0
|
$19.95
|
13.2%
|
$0
|
$0
|
|
Merrill Edge
|
$0
|
$19.99
|
12.93%
|
$0
|
$0
|
|
Vanguard
|
$0
|
$20
|
12.75%
|
$20*
|
$20*
|
Computershare vs Vanguard & Co: Compare Services
Computershare vs Fidelity and Other Competitors
Computershare is a stock transfer agent, which means it keeps track of shareholder records. Public companies usually pick one transfer agent to handle their stock. Unlike a regular or online broker, there aren’t trading fees. However, shareholders pay fees when taking out money. Computershare isn’t a brokerage and doesn’t have a single set charge for buying or selling shares. Each company decides its own purchase and sales fees. Because most online brokers now charge $0 for stock and ETF trades, they’re much cheaper than a transfer agent. See Broker vs transfer agent
article for more details.
Although customers can only buy stocks through Computershare, most brokerage firms also let them buy and sell mutual funds, ETFs, options, bonds, and other assets.
All Computershare rivals here — Charles Schwab, Etrade, Merrill Edge, and Vanguard — are top discount brokers in the U.S. They’re well-known among investors at all levels.
Customer Service
Merrill Edge, E*Trade, and Charles Schwab all have customer service by phone any time of the day or night. Merrill Edge and E*Trade also have live chat on their websites.
Merrill Edge has associates who speak Chinese, while Charles Schwab has staff who speak Chinese and Spanish. E*Trade has 30 branches for customers who want to meet in person. Charles Schwab has over 380 physical locations.
Vanguard is the only firm that doesn’t provide customer service 24/7. The Vanguard website has no online chat. It also doesn’t offer service on
weekends or have any branch offices.
Mutual and Exchange-traded Funds
Merrill Edge gives its customers 800 funds with no transaction fee. Altogether, it has almost 5,000 mutual funds. Funds with a transaction fee
cost $19.95 for each trade. If an NTF fund is sold within 90 days of buying it, there’s a $39.95 charge.
The E*Trade site lists 7,500 mutual funds in total, but fewer with no load and no transaction fee (about 4,200). Trading a fund outside the NTF group costs $19.99.
Vanguard clients can trade over 16,000 mutual funds. Approximately 2,400 have no load and no transaction fee. The broker charges $35 for funds with a transaction fee, though bigger accounts pay lower costs. The fee applies to every transaction.
Charles Schwab’s mutual fund screener shows 13,000+ funds. Around 4,200 have no load and no transaction fee. The broker charges $49.99 for transaction-fee funds.
ETFs are commission-free at all firms here except Computershare.
Cash Management Features
Charles Schwab customers can order checks and a debit card at no cost. Any ATM fees you incur are covered by Schwab. FDIC protection applies to money in these accounts. In fact, Schwab uses two FDIC-insured banks for its cash sweep, so customers get twice the usual $250,000 coverage.
FDIC protection also comes with a Merrill Edge checking or savings account. However, it’s only the standard coverage.
Vanguard also offers checks and a debit card on brokerage accounts, but you need at least $500,000 in investments to request these benefits. Worse yet, checking and debit card use bring extra charges for balances below $1 million.
E*Trade offers two different checking accounts. One has no minimum balance, while the other requires $5,000. The second one gives free ATM refunds.
Trading Tools
Merrill Edge users can trade on a well-designed website. There’s also a handy trade ticket at the bottom called TradeBar. Merrill Edge has an advanced system named MarketPro®, but it requires 15 trades every 3 months
or at least $50,000 in total assets across Merrill Edge and Bank of America.
Charles Schwab’s website has a better trade bar that can display a small chart, and you can submit orders on it. Schwab also has two desktop platforms with no minimum trading requirement. One of them offers very advanced chart functions. Schwab provides an Apple Watch app plus three separate mobile apps, two of which stream CNBC for free.
E*Trade’s website is also straightforward. However, it doesn’t include a trade bar. Frequent traders can use E*Trade’s desktop software, which has free CNBC streaming. There’s also an Apple Watch app. Live CNBC can be viewed on E*Trade’s mobile app by active traders.
Among the four brokerage firms, Vanguard has the site that is hardest to use. There’s no trade bar, and the company doesn’t have an app for smartphones. Vanguard also lacks a desktop platform. It does have a mobile app, but it isn’t as advanced as the others.
Find a Financial Advisor
If you are looking for a professional money management service in your area, you can
find a Financial Advisor on the Wiser Advisor
(or read
Wiser Advisor review).
Visit Wiser Advisor
Beginner Investors: Charles Schwab and Etrade.
IRA accounts: all brokers, except Computershare.
Long Term, Inactive Investors: all brokers, except Computershare.
Mutual Funds Investors: Charles Schwab and Vanguard.
Charles Schwab: $0 commissions + satisfaction guarantee at Charles Schwab.
Visit Schwab Website
Etrade:
Get zero commission on stock and ETF trades.
Visit Etrade Website
Updated on 3/23/2025.
Chad Morris is a financial writer with more than 20 years experience
as both an English teacher and an avid trader. When he isn’t writing
expert content for Brokerage-Review.com, Chad can usually be found
managing his portfolio or building a new home computer.
|