LiveBelowMeans
Recycles dryer sheets
I have been very happy with Schwab. What impresses me the most is the COMPETENT service reps. JMHO
There's a lot of ways people count chickens and eggs. Without a methodology behind the count, we can all claim things that are true but not at all truthful.It is interesting to see these tables...
Seems Fido has more clients... and AUM if you believe them...
https://investingintheweb.com/brokers/largest-online-brokers-by-aum/
(well, not good at copy and paste tables)
Largest Online Brokers by AUM in 2023
Brokerage firm AUM Date Reported Users AUM Reference
Fidelity $11.1T Mar-2023 40M+ Fidelity AUM
Vanguard $7.2T Dec-2022 30M+ Vanguard AUM
Charles Schwab* $7.05T Dec-2022 34M+ Charles Schwab AUM
JP Morgan $2.2T Sep-2022 Not disclosed JP Morgan AUM
E*trade (Morgan Stanley)** $1.3T Dec-2022 Not disclosed E*trade AUM
TD Ameritrade $1T Sep-2022 11M+ TD Ameritrade AUM
As I am a simple low-transaction investor, customer service does not impact me much. I have Fidelity accounts since my Megacorp 401K started there, and Vanguard when I came to my senses in the late 1990s )), stopped with all the stock trading, and started investing in broad market index funds.
I would have had Schwab since my individual stocks were in a TD Ameritrade account, but to simplify things I moved them over to Fidelity (just t the right time as Schwab waived the TD Ameritrade account transfer fee just before it would have converted it to a Schwab account).
I have been on the phone with Fidelity customer service and they have been fine, not perfect but no issues that stick in my my as a "peeve". I have never done anything at Vanguard that required calling anyone so I have no experience with the phone support. The transition from mutual funds to brokerage accounts was automatic and we had no issues.
Outside of my 401K, I have about 20% more in my Fidelity accounts than y Vanguard. I get timely statements from them, so I will likely just stick with the two. I do have one other mutual fund account institution (American Century) which does not measure up to the other two. I will eventually move that money to either Fido or Vanguard, once I am ready to bite the bullet on the capital gains hit that will occur.
I even own a large amount of two Vanguard Institutional index funds in my TIAA 403(b) account...AUM is not related to brokerage customer satisfaction. Many Fidelity and Schwab clients own Vanguard ETFs.
BTW, I am finding some problems with Schwab... I have been looking for some preferred shares and when I put in the ticker I do not get the info I would like to see... some are blank on the detail of the share... Fido has all the info..
As an example I am looking at EBBGF and Schwab show $15 something but the real price if you start an order is close to $21... Fidelity has the correct price and gives the yields...
For AGRIP schwab has a zero for the price...
Soooo, everbody has their flaws... just have to live with the ones you hate the least...
Both EBBGF and AGRIP show up fine in my Vanguard app and I could put in a limit order to buy either at zero commission.
But I have no idea what those two funds are, so I won't...
Like others I probably wouldn’t choose Vanguard today, but I wouldn’t gain anything by switching now, and I’d face tax or (minor) fee issues moving accounts. Vanguard funds are still rock solid and their website and documentation is all I need, even if Fido has mo’ better online tools.
I’ve probably called Vanguard 5 times in 20+ years, but I have noticed it’s been harder to get answers each time, and it’s MUCH harder even find a phone number or then connect with anyone live. OTOH Vanguard is going to lose customers eventually if they continue to let service deteriorate. YMMV
Just finished The Four Pillars of Investing Second Edition, and pgs 276-277 give the most concise but informative summary of the majors I've ever read - some I've heard, some I hadn't but never so clearly stated. I would love to share it word for word, but I've been correctly advised that's too close to copyright infringement. This doesn't have near the impact, but a few tidbits:
Again, the actual text is FAR better than my summary...
- Pay attention to the number of securities held by any fund or ETF. e.g. two similar sounding funds at differing firms one has 855 holdings while an other has 7881.
- Limit your purchases of open-end funds to those of your custodian (Vanguard, etc.)
- When this book went to press a couple months ago, the default sweep fund yield at Schwab was 0.40% vs 3.7% at Vanguard or Fidelity - in 2019 134% (not a typo) of Schwabs earning came from net interest. If you have money that sits in cash, allocation or between trades, for whatever reason...
- Fidelity offers low fees on index/passive funds to lure investors into active funds. And check fees closely, some Fido funds that sound almost the same have substantially different fees.
- The author acknowledged elsewhere "customer support at Vanguard has deteriorated." He also says "how long this free ride (customer service) at Fido and Schwab will last is anyone's guess, so enjoy it while it lasts."
- Competition among the three will only intensify, so stay tuned, as their relative advantages and disadvantages can easily change.
Exactly! We’ve been with Vanguard for over 30 years and Schwab since 2019. I recently moved everything to Schwab because of a local office. A local office makes it way easier for the non-financial spouse or adult kids if something happened.I’ve always been a Vanguard guy but I manage my parents finances and quickly have learned the importance of having a local office. I had a bad experience with Morgan St and then E-trade regarding my parents finances.
I had power of attorney at MS but did not at E-trade. Became a nightmare and money was frozen at E-trade. Long story. Finally, moved my parents money to Schwab and it’s been great. I will be opening an account at Schwab for my wife and I. If I get hit by a bus. She knows where to go.
Likewise I moved all my Vanguard funds to Fidelity recently. I had to sell my admiral mutual funds from my 401K before moving. All my ETFs, T-Bills and even CDs moved in kind but a few fractional shares got sold. Vanguard charged $50 for the transfers and Fidelity gave me a nice bonus for the move. The bonus is paid after 60 days and allocated into the various accounts (tIRA, rothIRA and brokerage) based on value.
Exactly! We’ve been with Vanguard for over 30 years and Schwab since 2019. I recently moved everything to Schwab because of a local office. A local office makes it way easier for the non-financial spouse or adult kids if something happened.
Good to know that Admiral shares need to be sold first. Did Vanguard charge $50 total, or per fund, or per account?
I've read (maybe on Bogleheads.org?) that some have been able to transfer Admiral shares to Fidelity.
Not sure if you know this, or if it applies, but don't sell funds in a taxable account. You could possibly be hit with a tax bill. You can have Vanguard switch your admiral shares to a lower class of fund with no tax consequences. Or you can convert to ETF's if you prefer, before moving assets to Fidelity.