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Vanguard vs Public in 2026
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Points to Know
• Schwab, Vanguard, and Public.com offer brokerage accounts.
• Vanguard and Schwab, but not Public, also offer investment-advisory services.
• The strongest trading tools will be found at Schwab.
Public.com vs. Vanguard and Schwab Introduction
Schwab, Vanguard, and Public are very different brokerage firms with different approaches to investment
management. Review the following comparison:
Public and Vanguard Cost
| Broker Fees |
Stock/ETF
Commission |
Mutual Fund
Commission |
Options
Commission |
Maintenance
Fee |
Annual IRA
Fee |
|
Charles Schwab
|
$0
|
$49.95 ($0 to sell)
|
$0.65 per contract
|
$0
|
$0
|
|
Public
|
$0
|
na
|
$0.50 per contract
|
$0
|
$0
|
|
Vanguard
|
$0
|
$20
|
$1.00 per contract
|
$20*
|
$20*
|
Public and Vanguard Services
Promotions
Charles Schwab: $0 commissions + ACAT rebate + satisfaction guarantee at Charles Schwab.
Public:
Get $20 of stock when you deposit $1,000 at Public.
Vanguard: none.
Available Assets
Vanguard customers can trade:
- Equities
- Options
- Funds (closed-end, exchange-traded, and mutual)
- Fixed income
Schwab expands this list with OTC and foreign stocks, futures, and forex. Public.com doesn’t offer foreign stocks, forex, or futures contracts. It only has a small number of over-the-counter equities, and it leaves bonds and mutual funds off the list. But it adds cryptocurrencies and alternative assets.
Managed accounts are available at Schwab and Vanguard. These accounts are invested in a mix of securities selected by each firm’s advisors, which may be digital or human. Fees and minimums depend on the program you choose.
Winner: Schwab
Margin
Self-directed accounts at all three firms can be set up with margin. But Public.com does not allow borrowing with
margin (margin is only used to trade with unsettled cash).
Schwab charges margin interest on a tiered schedule that starts at 10.125%
for smaller debit balances and goes as low as 11.825%. Vanguard’s
tiered schedule ranges from 12% to 8.25%. Only Schwab’s platform shows the maintenance requirement for entered ticker symbols.
Winner: Schwab
Websites
To place trades with or without margin, all three firms provide websites with
charts and order tickets. Public’s trade form offers 3 order types (market, limit, and stop).
Vanguard adds stop limit to the list. Vanguard’s ticket also includes separate choices for sell short and buy to cover, which are missing on the Public ticket.
At Schwab, we found many more order types. These include OCO (one cancels the other) and contingent orders. Schwab also offers something the other two don’t: a browser platform. Launched from the Trade tab in the top menu, it provides simulated and live trading with two order tickets and full-screen charting.
Winner: Schwab
Mobile Apps
Schwab offers two mobile apps. Together, they include many helpful features. Highlights include mobile check deposit, separate trade tickets for options and mutual funds, and plenty of news and education tools.
Public has one app. It lacks some of Schwab’s tools, such as mobile check deposit. But it adds one feature Schwab doesn’t have: a digital bulletin board. This tool lets Public users comment on investments and connect with other traders as a form of social networking.
Vanguard’s app has no community forum and is overall very simple. Charts, for example, have just one style (line), and there is no horizontal mode. Options and non-Vanguard mutual funds cannot be traded on the app.
Winner: Schwab
Desktop Programs
Since Public.com and Vanguard don’t focus on short-term trading, they don’t offer desktop programs. Schwab serves both short-term and long-term investors. For active traders, it offers a strong desktop platform called thinkorswim. It includes many advanced tools, such as Level II quotes and pairs trading. CNBC also streams on the platform at no charge.
Winner: Schwab
Extra Services
IRA Lineups: Vanguard and Schwab offer Individual Retirement Accounts. Vanguard, but not Schwab, charges some fees on business IRAs.
Fully-Paid Stock Lending: Traders at all three firms can earn extra income by lending out their stock shares.
Fractional Shares: Vanguard offers whole-dollar trading in Vanguard exchange-traded funds. At Public, most ETFs and stocks are eligible (plus cryptos). At Schwab, the list includes the 500 stocks in the Standard & Poor's Index.
Dividend Reinvestment Plans: All three broker-dealers offer DRIPs.
Extended Hours: Vanguard offers after-hours trading. Public and Schwab also offer pre-market trading. Cryptocurrencies trade 24/7 at Public, and Schwab provides overnight trading in select ETFs.
Systematic Mutual Fund Purchases: Schwab customers can set up autopilot mutual fund investing. Vanguard allows recurring purchases only for Vanguard mutual funds.
IPO Access: Only at Schwab.
Winner: Schwab
Promotions
Charles Schwab: $0 commissions + ACAT rebate + satisfaction guarantee at Charles Schwab.
Public:
Get $20 of stock when you deposit $1,000 at Public.
Vanguard: none.
Recommendations
Mutual Fund Trading: Vanguard has more funds, but Schwab has better fund tools. Take your pick.
Long-Term Investors & Retirement Savers: Schwab.
Small Accounts: Vanguard for advisory accounts. Any broker of the three for self-directed trading (except Vanguard for self-directed business IRAs).
Stock and ETF Trading: Schwab.
Beginners: A managed account at Vanguard or Schwab, ideally with a human advisor.
Verdict
To compete with Charles Schwab, Vanguard and Public need to do much more.
Open Charles Schwab Account
Visit Schwab Website
Open Public Account
Visit Public Website
Updated on 1/5/2026.
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.
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