Charles Schwab & Co. Reviews

101 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA

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Edited by: Tammy Burns

About Charles Schwab & Co.

This profile has not been claimed by the company. See reviews below to learn more or submit your own review.

Charles Schwab is an online brokerage firm that offers a wide range of services for new and advanced investors alike. It offers stocks, bonds, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), options and precious metals, with a $0 account minimum and $0 commission for stocks, options and ETFs. Customer service is available 24/7 online or through the mobile app, with additional in-person assistance at over 300 branches across the U.S.

Pros
  • $0 account minimum
  • Fractional shares as low as $5
Cons
  • Minimum $50,000 balance for tax-loss harvesting
  • No spot trading for cryptocurrency

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Charles Schwab & Co. Reviews

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    Page 2 Reviews 6 - 36
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    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed May 3, 2025

    Terrible communication and account documentation. Phone "representatives" are clueless and arrogant. I have been an account holder for over 20 years. Schwab customer service has become non-existent. All they want is their fees. Recently, they removed about $24,000 from my account with NO explanation or documentation. They refuse to address my questions. Will have to file an SEC complaint.

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    Customer Service

    Reviewed May 1, 2025

    My brokerage account was transferred from TD Ameritrade. I have attempted to link a checking account to my brokerage account in an attempt to consolidate my assets but what appeared to be a straight forward process has proven to be an exercise in futility. I have lost count of the number of times I have called "customer service" and visited my local branch office. Each phone conversation is essentially starting from the beginning and I am immediately sent new forms to fill out or transferred to a different department. Three weeks of jumping through hoops and I still haven't been able to set up a joint checking account linked to my brokerage account. I'm definitely going to check out other brokerages that have local offices with representatives that service customers start to finish.

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    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed April 9, 2025

    Stay away at all costs! They stole $400k when one of their overnight brokers screwed up an order and they are refusing to let me listen to the call. Do not trust them with your money! Lawsuit here we come!

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    Reviewed April 8, 2025

    You can't link *many* external banks with your Schwab Brokerage account. I tried 5 different banks and only one worked! The problem is with Schwab, not these other banks which have no issues with each others. Pretty lame if you can't transfer money in/out of your brokerage account.

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    Price

    Reviewed April 1, 2025

    Charles Schwab charges above average margin rates and provides a disservice to clients by having telephone interaction with non registered and unlicensed reps who are untrained without experience and will cost you money.

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    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed March 26, 2025

    I was hacked and my details stolen. Even with 2-FA, I had my balance drained and after sending countless emails to support, they did nothing about it. They did not even try to help me which is wrong. I had to hire cypher-forensics to help me track down how this happened because your support team are inadequate lazy people uninterested in their jobs. If you're like me, then head over to 'cypherforensics' website or find them on X.

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    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed March 12, 2025

    Just opened account, was excited to work with Schwab. Took the time to link my two bank accounts so that I could easily transfer money into my Schwab account. Also was excited to try out their stock slices. In less than two weeks my account gets locked out, no explanation. Says there is a issue and they need to verify my identity. After two phone calls and verifying my information there was still no response. Also there is no way to directly contact their fraud department, THAT IS A RED FLAG RIGHT THERE. All of this and when I call again they tell me that they are closing the account for business reasons!! What business reasons, I AM A NEW CUSTOMER!! No explanation at all. This has to be the worst company I have ever had dealings with. The poor people that work for them and answer the phones were nice but the way the company is being run is straight TRASH!!

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    Customer ServiceStaffReliability

    Reviewed March 6, 2025

    My employer uses this company for our 401K contributions. Every time I try to log in to view my account, I am unable to and have to verify but never receive the security via email or text. They have my information because I get emails to view my account every month. When I call I get the run arounds and have to call multiple because some agents cannot find my information while others can. I have called before and was able to get into my account after several attempts but now a month later I cannot get in and when I called the agent says I have never registered. It is very frustrating to not be able to access an account I pay towards every paycheck and does not make me feel secure about being able to access my 401K when the time comes. Other co-workers have the same issue. I plan to cancel and open an IRA with my bank instead. Ridiculous!

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    Reviewed March 4, 2025

    I was told to go to the bank for verification which I did and only for them to tell me that my account has to go for fraud investigation after I asked for my money because they denied me access to my mobile up. It's been a month now and they are telling me the same.

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    Customer Service

    Reviewed March 3, 2025

    I have been trying to close my account for four years. I talked to a representative on 9/16/2024, he said my account was closed at the end of the conversation. I am still receiving emails to view my latest statement. Would you trust your money to a company that says you transaction is completed when it is Not?

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    Customer ServicePriceStaff

    Reviewed Feb. 24, 2025

    Totally deceitful…. Our community came together and raised money to benefit our child who is medically fragile and in need of special lifelong medical and caregiving. One volunteer who represents Schwab helped guide us set up a special needs trust so that this money can earn interest for our child’s benefit. As we set the account up, Schwab offered us a debit card for the easy of using funds as needed. After many months of caring for our child we noticed Schwab was “borrowing us” the money and charging us interest. A lot of interest!!!! When we realized this we called and they told us we set the account that way. Why wouldn’t they explain this to us. Why would we “borrow” money that is out there for the child’s benefit. When we brought it to their attention they said, nothing they can do. We spoke to many people who never called back. Then wrote a letter, no resolution.

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    Price

    Reviewed Feb. 22, 2025

    Was Charles Schwab brokerage customer in Year 2024. Closed all my account with Charles Swab on Aug 28, 2024. To date (02/22) am still waiting for 1099 form. Spoke twice to their associates today. Explained the situation, request to give timeline when can expect my statements. No clear was given. Some told me end Feb and another told possible mid march.. While, my 1099 from Citibank, Goldman Sachs have been delivered by end Jan for all my closed accounts, as well my current JP Morgan chase Brokerage accounts on Feb'17th. This will delay filing my Federal & State taxes incurring additional interest payment on money owe wanting to register my displeasure through this Channel how mediocre services are for such a major brokerage managing customer money, no wonder closed doing business.

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    Punctuality & Speed

    Reviewed Feb. 17, 2025

    Charles Schwab in Cheyenne discriminates against women over 50. DON'T DO BUSINESS with them. You can't trust Sam ** at that office. Go to a different company or just go to a bank. They pay more than Charles Schwab CD's and their mutual funds. Ever if you have been investing at a different company for several years, they will give you this big song and dance to get your money but they won't work with you. They think you're stupid and you just want to be fast. DON'T trust Sam ** or the company. Sam ** thinks because you're a woman and you're over 50 you're stupid. He will take your money and you will never talk to him again. He will always be busy so you can't discuss your account with him.

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    Reviewed Feb. 12, 2025

    Charles Schwab generally provides a reliable experience for customers, but their tax form processing system leaves room for improvement. While Schwab issues tax forms for accounts in batches, the delay in providing the 1099 form for my largest account until late February is frustrating. I understand the need for batch processing, but exceptions should be made to accommodate individual customer needs—especially when delays could impact personal tax filings. A corporation of Schwab's stature should consider more flexible systems to avoid inconveniencing customers without significantly increasing costs. For instance, providing an option to expedite forms for specific accounts could enhance customer satisfaction. While Schwab's tax dashboard and notifications are helpful, addressing these delays would make their service more comprehensive and client-focused.

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    Customer ServicePunctuality & SpeedStaff

    Reviewed Feb. 3, 2025

    First, they promised to respond to the contact form within 2 days and it took over a week before I heard from anyone. The person who did respond referred me to someone else (Miami office) who made a cold call to me even though I'd asked to be contacted by email. Since he was on the phone I proceeded to try to get the info I needed from him. He was completely unprepared for the call and couldn't answer even basic questions. When I asked to be put in touch with someone else, my emails were ignored. If Schwab doesn't care about getting a very large account, it obviously couldn't care less about whether its existing clients are happy. I'm glad to have learned this early on.

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    Reviewed Jan. 30, 2025

    Does not have the ability to inform us prior to our account Cost/Basis being reduced due to what they say, "Yieldmax has two years to reclassify their positions, and it should show next month on your tax form". My money does not feel secure.

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    Staff

    Reviewed Jan. 29, 2025

    Terrible experience with the Campbell, California location, with Alex **. He is impossible to contact--and has ZERO sense of professionalism. We are looking to immediately pull our very large investments account out of Schwab, ASAP.

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    Customer Service

    Reviewed Jan. 29, 2025

    Have an account with them, deposited more money to make an options purchase - only $1,000 deposited. Unable to make the purchase, unable to withdrawal my money I deposited until 4 days while my current account holdings were much higher. This may be the same rules with other brokerages but it is was impossible to send an email about - I had to call - and placed on hold. Disappointing experience taking my money back as soon as I can and as soon as sell my other holdings taking that money and going somewhere else. Their commercials are misleading. Too many competitors to have to deal with this Schlep of a company.

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    PriceOnline & App

    Reviewed Jan. 22, 2025

    On several occasions I have made market purchases at Schwab on large international companies, which should be instantaneous. My purchase tend to be filled at the highest price of the day, which may be hours. It has happened several times, so it is not a coincidence. Also I have placed trades using their mobile app which I was informed is inaccurate. If I want accurate numbers I must use their web site. Not always convenient. Transfer of funds is always slow in their favor so to charge margin interest.

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    Price

    Reviewed Jan. 18, 2025

    Worst company ever! I ended up here thru TD Ameritrade merger. They screw up my RMD every year. I always take my RMD the first week in Jan. This time for the 2025 distribution, they back dated the effective date to 12/31/2024, and added the amount to the one I already received in Jan 2024. Now it looks like I received 2 RMD in 2024 and none in 2025. My retirement account manager has to contact them to issue a corrected 1099r so I can file my taxes and not get in trouble with the IRS for failing to take the required RMD for 2025.

    I would urge anyone to to use caution in doing business with Charles Schwab. Their accuracy and attention to detail in accurate records keeping appears to be sadly lacking. I do not know if this is due to incompetence or just lack of interest, but it can create some serious negative consequences for the customer. My account has not been with them that long, but so far there seems to be some kind of issue every year.

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    StaffProcess

    Reviewed Jan. 10, 2025

    I am in the process of transferring from another brokerage and it is going on two months now and the process is still not completed. What a complete joke. I don't understand what all the hype is about Charles Schwab. They are horrible

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    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed Jan. 4, 2025

    It’s really disappointing. Charles Schwab used to be an amazing corporation. Now they have a first line of customer service that they must hire people from Walmart yesterday. I’m a senior citizen, disabled and on a lot of medication. I went through the online voice authorization, put in my Social Security number, my ZIP Code, and then the rep asked me for my verbal password. Let’s assume my verbal password is my dogs' names so I said the password was sweet pea and blossom and they told me the password was wrong so I saw I tried several iterations. I spent two hours on the phone. They told me that I would have to go get a notary or to go to the nearest branch which is 31 miles away. Being disabled this was not possible. Can you imagine they even were online with me accessing my account so they could see all my information and they still refuse to give me the password.

    Finally after much exasperation and escalation they told me the password was sweet pea. Two hours on the phone. Can you believe this? To top it all off they have a bug on their webpage regarding Ira contributions. They still didn’t address the issue. Don’t take me back. Three months when I tried to re-order checks the woman I got on hold. I don’t think she was qualified to flip burgers at McDonald’s. I had to call back to re-order checks. Can you believe that?

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    Customer ServiceOnline & AppStaff

    Reviewed Dec. 20, 2024

    I came to Schwab by default from TD Ameritrade. I was told this would be a clean transfer--that all data and services would be the same. This was not true. While some aspects have improved (website), some areas of customer service have not been what I expect of my brokerage. I sent out Qualified Charitable Distributions from my IRA last year under TDA. I was assured by Schwab that all standing orders I had established would persist. Each donation was accompanied by 1) identification of the donor with donor's address; 2) any specific designations and 3) a memo reminding the charity of IRA rules for acknowledgments (CWA). All was done properly by TDA, since I received the requested acknowledgments in the state format.

    This year, I phoned to send donations to the same charities. I was first told that checks are sent out to the charities without any identifying information other that Schwab as the payee. I was appalled that they would send a check with no identification, leaving the charity to guess or return the check. I was then told there is a 27 character limit in the memo field of the check in which to inform the charity of whatever I wanted. This did not allow even my name and address to be sent on the check to the charity. They refused to include accompanying information. After persistent protest, they finally agreed to place only my name and address on the check.

    When I reviewed their QCD form, it has explicit fields for "Beneficiary" and "Attention." I filled out a new form for the charities on my TDA list that they had somehow misplaced. I used the two fields above to communicate bare bones info to the charity (e.g/, in honor of). I assumed they would place name and address in the memo as agreed.

    Today, I learned that Schwab had actually mailed out the checks for the missing charities (I asked them to forward to the agent helping me). The notations in the two fields mentioned above are missing from the information the agent was able to see. The rep working with me tried hard to make sense of all this but met with roadblocks.

    This is the height of incompetence: a form with fields to fill out that mean nothing; staff saying that only a 27 character memo field is available to message the charities; no place on the form to enter donor name and address; the latter apparently omitted from the checks sent out without telling me, even though this had been agreed. I wonder if the IRS is aware?

    Note: after the transition, I also identified miscalculations for some of my investment positions and spent hours verifying and re-verifying that errors had been made. I have not revisited all, but some were corrected. I simply know not to trust their calculations. Again, much of the website is well designed. Except for the system disappearing in times of heavy trading and having to scrutinize accounting to confirm accuracy, my experience has been OK. Decide for yourself how much time you are willing to spend to hold Schwab accountable.

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    Customer Service

    Reviewed Dec. 18, 2024

    I have had an account here for over 30 years and never can use it. I asked that it be deleted about 20 years ago and they said it was. After Schwab acquired TD Ameritrade, where I had full trading and margin authorization, I had to reapply at Schwab and found my accounts were still active and available. I again applied for Level 3 to be able to trade uncovered calls and have been denied again. I currently have level 3 (full access) at 2 other brokers and have had a 3rd broker where I was approved (OptionsXpress, best options trading ever) before TD Ameritrade acquired them. TD Ameritrade is terrible, too, but only Schwab is worse. Who in the heck do they think they are protecting me from, myself? Policies are moronic and idiotic!

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    Customer Service

    Reviewed Dec. 17, 2024

    The worst bank. The only benefit is reimbursed ATM fees. My account has been hacked several times. I've had to dispute transactions multiple times because of this; despite being alerted for fraud and declining transactions, they still processed them, and I had to call and dispute. I am out $5,000 because Schwab declined my dispute without looking into it or calling me back. They totally ignored me and never returned my money. Stay away unless you Leona care about your money. The worst experience and bank.

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    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed Dec. 12, 2024

    DO NOT TRUST CHARLES SCHWAB. They are the WORST company in the world. They control your money and deliberately create so many problems in a vengeful attempt to sabotage you. Not only will they illegally and secretly go into your account and do whatever they want with your money, they hold your money hostage and steal your money and block you from accessing your account.

    They made me drive and waste hours to go to a local branch to verify my identity stating my mom was pretending to be me! They said once they verified it was me, my account would be unlocked. When I got to the branch they verified me but said they still couldn’t do anything and my account was locked and escalated for investigation. Previously my parents had POA and full trading authority on my accounts since they opened these accounts for me when I was born and it was all gifted to me. Somehow Schwab illegally removed both my dad and mom from POA and full trading authority on my accounts without my consent then sent me a letter saying I requested this but I never did and there is no verbal or written consent from me. They secretly did this on my and my brother’s accounts too. They locked my accounts and even the customer service reps have no access.

    They are the most horrific and vengeful company this planet has ever seen. And this is after they closed all of my parent’s accounts there. My parents had multi-million dollars invested at Schwab then Schwab made a “business decision” to close all of their accounts so my parents had to transfer all their assets out. Now they are trying to do the same thing to me but they are first stealing my money and preventing any online payments or checks from being paid. I have no access to my accounts and they refuse to release my money holding my money hostage. Schwab’s illegal actions must be exposed. From what I’ve read this is typical of what Schwab does to their loyal clients. DO NOT TRUST SCHWAB WITH YOUR MONEY. GET OUT OF SCHWAB BEFORE THIS HAPPENS TO YOU.

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    Staff

    Reviewed Dec. 11, 2024

    Screen functions (Research, Chart, Show more) have stopped working. Selecting show more and dividends has stopped working. I reported this to my adviser who informed me they are aware. This is not a new function and hasn't been working for several days. I'm thinking of opening a test account at another broker as this is just bad service. Seems they've put their efforts into the Sink or Swim platform and ignore the Schwab platform.

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    Staff

    Reviewed Dec. 6, 2024

    In summary. Worst experience. They are the least who will care about you as a client. They blocked my account when it was transferred from TD Ameritrade to Schwab. They made it a terrible experience for me.

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    Reviewed Dec. 2, 2024

    I have been trying to resolve an issue with Schwab. I initiated a fund transfer from an external IRA account to a Schwab account. The external account company contacted me and said they couldn't complete the transfer because Schwab had identified my external account as a rollover IRA although in the Schwab form I filled out I had clearly identified the account as a Traditional IRA. I contacted Schwab about this but they swear up and down the delay is with the external company. I just uploaded to Schwab a screenshot the external company sent showing them incorrectly identifying the account. 10 days after I initiated this transfer, still waiting. Horrible experience!!!

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    Customer Service

    Reviewed Nov. 20, 2024

    Charles Schwab has been an extremely disappointing experience for me as a financial institution. Despite having two-factor authentication enabled on my account—which requires a verification code via text message for login—someone accessed my account without authorization on November 11 and sold my stock. Alarmingly, I did not receive the required verification code during this incident. When I reached out to customer support, their response was deeply unsatisfactory. The representatives insisted that I had initiated the stock sale myself. However, when I questioned them about the missing verification code, they failed to provide a clear or adequate explanation. This is a significant issue, as it involves a substantial amount of money. I request that Charles Schwab restore the position of my stock within my account immediately.

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    Charles Schwab & Co. Company Information

    Company Name:
    Charles Schwab
    Year Founded:
    1971
    Address:
    211 Main Street
    City:
    San Francisco
    State/Province:
    CA
    Postal Code:
    94105
    Website:
    www.schwab.com