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Personal Finance · head to head

Charles Schwab vs QuickBooks

Charles Schwab logo

Charles Schwab

Personal Finance

Investing made simple

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
QuickBooks logo

QuickBooks

Accounting

Smart, simple online accounting software for small business

From
$30/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Charles Schwab broker-assisted trades cost $25 and automated phone trades cost $5 in addition to the standard $0 online commission, per the App Store listing for Schwab Mobile; QuickBooks chart of Accounts is capped on every QuickBooks Online tier except Advanced; Simple Start, Essentials and Plus all have a limited entry count
  • They diverge on capability: Charles Schwab covers Commission-free trading, QuickBooks covers Income & expense tracking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Charles Schwab and QuickBooks actually diverge.

Attributes where Charles Schwab and QuickBooks differ
AttributeCharles SchwabQuickBooks
Starting priceOn request$30/month
Pricing modeltransactionsubscription
PlatformsWeb, IOS, AndroidWeb, Ios, Android, Api
CategoryPersonal FinanceAccounting
Founded19711983

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Charles Schwab

  • Commission-free trading
  • Retirement planning
  • Wealth management
  • Research tools
  • Bank accounts
  • Investment accounts
  • Web support
  • IOS support

Only in QuickBooks

  • Income & expense tracking
  • Invoicing
  • Payment processing
  • Financial reporting
  • Tax preparation
  • Bank reconciliation
  • Bill management
  • Mobile apps

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Charles Schwab

  • Budget Managementnot QuickBooks
  • Expense Trackingnot QuickBooks
  • Investment Trackingnot QuickBooks

QuickBooks

  • Bookkeepingnot Charles Schwab
  • Invoicingnot Charles Schwab
  • Expense trackingnot Charles Schwab
  • Financial reportingnot Charles Schwab
  • Tax preparationnot Charles Schwab

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Charles Schwab

  • Broker-assisted trades cost $25 and automated phone trades cost $5 in addition to the standard $0 online commission, per the App Store listing for Schwab Mobile
  • Options trades carry a $0.65 per-contract fee on top of the $0 online commission, per the App Store listing for Schwab Mobile

QuickBooks

  • Chart of Accounts is capped on every QuickBooks Online tier except Advanced; Simple Start, Essentials and Plus all have a limited entry count
  • Even the top Advanced tier caps bulk invoice uploads at 1,000 transaction lines per batch
  • Payroll is a separate paid add-on billed per employee per month (USD 6 to 10 depending on plan) on top of the base subscription

Pricing, plan by plan

Charles Schwab

On request
  • Individual BrokerageFree
    • Commission-free trading
    • Research tools
  • Schwab Advisor Services$undefined/month
    • All Brokerage features
    • Wealth management
    • Personal advisors

QuickBooks

$30/month
  • Simple Start$30/month
    • Income & expense tracking
    • Invoice & payments
    • Tax deductions
  • Essentials$60/month
    • Everything in Simple Start
    • Bill management
    • Time tracking
  • Plus$90/month
    • Everything in Essentials
    • Inventory tracking
    • Project profitability
  • Advanced$200/month
    • Everything in Plus
    • Dedicated account team
    • 25 users

Which should you pick?

Choose Charles Schwab if

  • You need commission-free trading.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android.
  • You also want retirement planning.
Charles Schwab review

Choose QuickBooks if

  • You need income & expense tracking.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
  • You also want invoicing.
QuickBooks review

Questions people ask

Is Charles Schwab or QuickBooks better?
Neither clearly leads. Charles Schwab starts at On request and QuickBooks at $30/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Charles Schwab or QuickBooks?
Charles Schwab starts at On request and QuickBooks at $30/month.
Does Charles Schwab or QuickBooks run on more platforms?
Charles Schwab runs on Web, IOS, Android. QuickBooks runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
What is Charles Schwab best used for?
Charles Schwab is most often used for budget management, expense tracking, investment tracking. Of those, budget management and expense tracking are not what QuickBooks is typically brought in for.
What can Charles Schwab do that QuickBooks cannot?
Charles Schwab covers Commission-free trading, Retirement planning, Wealth management, Research tools. QuickBooks covers Income & expense tracking, Invoicing, Payment processing, Financial reporting.
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