TIAA vs. Fidelity vs. Schwab
Highlights:
• Fidelity, Schwab, and TIAA offer investment accounts in several formats.
• Investment advice and financial planning are available at all three firms.
• Schwab and Fidelity stand out for their pro-level trading platforms.
If you’re shopping for investing services, it makes sense to compare Charles Schwab, TIAA, and Fidelity. One of these three firms could easily be the one that fits what you need.
Prices
| 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
|
|
Fidelity
|
$0
|
$49.95
|
$0.65 per contract
|
$0
|
$0
|
|
TIAA
|
$0
|
$50
|
$0 per contract
|
$0
|
$0
|
Services
Promotions
Charles Schwab: $0 commissions + ACAT rebate + satisfaction guarantee at Charles Schwab.
Fidelity: none right now.
TIAA: none right now.
Trading and Investing
With a brokerage account at any of these three investment firms, investors can trade a solid range of
asset classes. The list includes bonds and other fixed-income
products, stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, closed-end funds, and options. Schwab goes one step beyond
by adding forex and futures. Fidelity does not offer futures or forex trading, although it does provide cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana. Access to foreign stock exchanges is available at both Fidelity and Schwab.
That product lineup applies only to brokerage accounts. All three firms also offer advisory accounts in multiple forms. Schwab and Fidelity have robo programs, including hybrid human-plus-digital options. TIAA no longer offers automated investing, although like Fidelity and Schwab, it still provides traditional managed accounts. All three companies also maintain branch locations that support these more traditional advisory services, and some of these accounts can still be opened online.
Winner: Schwab and Fidelity are very close here
Mobile Apps
TIAA clients get a basic mobile app, and basic really is the right word here. Charts don’t come with tools, and the only chart style is a line graph. The same simple order ticket that appears on the website shows up again on mobile.
If you want a more advanced trading setup, Schwab offers the thinkorswim app. Its order ticket is much more sophisticated and carries over many of the same tools found on thinkorswim web. Futures and forex can be traded here as well. Schwab also has its standard mobile app, which includes many strong features, including the virtual Schwab Assistant.
Fidelity also has a standard app, and it now offers Trader+ across devices for more active traders. There are separate order tickets for options, mutual funds, and stocks, and charts include a broad selection of technical studies, including moving average cross and pivot points.
Winner: Schwab
Websites
TIAA’s website includes alerts, multiple watchlists, and a fair amount of market news. Its order ticket supports only 4 order types (market, limit, stop, and stop limit), and there is no sell-short choice. The charting package is even more limited, with no full-screen mode. There are still a few tools available, though, including company events and a small group of technical indicators.
Fidelity’s website is a major upgrade from there. Charts can expand across the full width of the screen, and the order ticket is much more capable. Trailing and conditional orders are available, and the options toolkit is especially strong, with access to OptionsPlay and a very good strategy builder.
Fidelity also now offers a browser platform through Trader+ Web, although Schwab still counters with thinkorswim. The platform provides a very advanced order ticket with several trade types, and thinkorswim also includes practice trading, which is not available at the other two firms in this comparison. Schwab’s main website adds even more value with strong stock research and other investing resources.
Winner: Schwab
Desktop Programs
TIAA investors stop at the website. That is not the case at Schwab and Fidelity. Both companies offer desktop software that can satisfy very demanding traders. Schwab, once again, has thinkorswim, while Fidelity now offers Active Trader Pro and Trader+ Desktop. Both platforms are high-end systems with advanced tools in many categories. thinkorswim still has more features overall, and it also includes a simulated-trading mode through paperMoney.
Winner: Schwab
Margin Services
Brokerage accounts at all three securities firms can be approved for margin trading. This helpful
service makes spread trading, short selling, and purchases with borrowed money possible. For this privilege, TIAA
charges 10.875% to 9.875%.
Fidelity customers pay between 11.825% and
8.5%. Schwab’s tiered schedule begins at
11.825% and falls to 10.075% with negotiated rates available above $500,000.
Winner: Fidelity and Schwab are very close here
Further Services
Automatic Mutual Fund Purchases: TIAA, Fidelity, and Schwab all give brokerage customers ways to set up recurring mutual fund purchases. Schwab also permits automatic sales. Fidelity also supports recurring purchases of stocks and ETFs.
Extended Hours Trading: Only Fidelity and Schwab offer it. Crypto at Fidelity trades 24/7, and futures and forex at Schwab come close. Access to overseas markets also helps broaden the around-the-clock menu.
Initial Public Offerings: Fidelity and Schwab customers can buy certain IPO shares before the stocks begin trading in the secondary market.
Fractional Shares: Whole-dollar stock purchases are available at all three brokerage firms. Fidelity also extends this feature to ETFs. Schwab’s fractional trading is limited to eligible S&P 500 stocks, while TIAA now supports fractional trading in certain stocks and ETFs.
IRA Service: Investors can open a retirement account at any of the three firms in this comparison. TIAA does charge a steep $130 IRA termination fee that you won’t find at Fidelity or Schwab.
DRIP Service: Dividends can be automatically reinvested in brokerage accounts at all three firms.
Fully Paid Securities Lending: Available at Schwab and Fidelity.
Winner: Another tie between Fidelity and Schwab
Recommendations
Beginners: We suggest an advisory account at any of the three firms listed here. A setup that includes a human advisor would be even better.
Retirement Planning & Long-Term Investing: Same answer.
Mutual Funds: TIAA has a very large mutual-fund lineup, Fidelity now has more than 10,000 funds, and Schwab has north of 5,000. Schwab has the best mutual-fund screener and fund tools. Pick the one that fits your priorities.
Small Investors: For a retirement account, we would lean toward Fidelity or Schwab. For a robo account, Fidelity. For a taxable account, any of the three can work.
Frequent Stock & ETF Trading: We still defend Schwab because its software is excellent.
Promotions
Charles Schwab: $0 commissions + ACAT rebate + satisfaction guarantee at Charles Schwab.
Fidelity: none right now.
TIAA: none right now.
Fidelity vs. TIAA Judgment
TIAA does offer investing accounts, but its trading tools still do not measure up to what Fidelity and Schwab clients receive.
Updated on 4/22/2026.
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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