Personal Finance · head to head
Wealthfront vs Charles Schwab
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Wealthfront the Automated Investing Account carries a 0.25% annual advisory fee on top of the underlying fund expenses; 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
- They diverge on capability: Wealthfront covers Automated portfolio management, Charles Schwab covers Commission-free trading.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Wealthfront and Charles Schwab actually diverge.
| Attribute | Wealthfront | Charles Schwab |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2011 | 1971 |
Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (transaction), free tier (No), platforms (Web, IOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Personal Finance).
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 Wealthfront
- Automated portfolio management
- Tax-loss harvesting
- Financial planning
- Index fund investing
Only in Charles Schwab
- Commission-free trading
- Retirement planning
- Wealth management
- Research tools
Both cover
- Bank accounts
- Investment accounts
- Web support
- IOS support
- Android support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Wealthfront
- Automated index fund investing with periodic rebalancingnot Charles Schwab
- Tax loss harvesting in a taxable brokerage accountnot Charles Schwab
- Buying fractional shares of individual stocks with no commissionnot Charles Schwab
Charles Schwab
- Budget Managementnot Wealthfront
- Expense Trackingnot Wealthfront
- Investment Trackingnot Wealthfront
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Wealthfront
- The Automated Investing Account carries a 0.25% annual advisory fee on top of the underlying fund expenses
- Tax-Loss Harvesting and automated rebalancing apply to the Automated Investing Account, not the self-directed Stock Investing Account
- It is a US brokerage product and is not offered to investors outside the United States
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
Pricing, plan by plan
Wealthfront
On request- BasicFree
- Automated investing
- Tax-loss harvesting
- Rebalancing
- Premium Plus$50/month
- All Basic features
- Financial planning
- Human advisor access
Charles Schwab
On request- Individual BrokerageFree
- Commission-free trading
- Research tools
- Schwab Advisor Services$undefined/month
- All Brokerage features
- Wealth management
- Personal advisors
Which should you pick?
Choose Wealthfront if
- You need automated portfolio management.
- You work on Web, IOS, Android.
- You also want tax-loss harvesting.
Choose Charles Schwab if
- You need commission-free trading.
- You work on Web, IOS, Android.
- You also want retirement planning.
Questions people ask
- Is Wealthfront or Charles Schwab better?
- Neither clearly leads. Wealthfront starts at On request and Charles Schwab at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Wealthfront or Charles Schwab?
- Wealthfront starts at On request and Charles Schwab at On request.
- Does Wealthfront or Charles Schwab run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, IOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- What is Wealthfront best used for?
- Wealthfront is most often used for automated index fund investing with periodic rebalancing, tax loss harvesting in a taxable brokerage account, buying fractional shares of individual stocks with no commission. Of those, automated index fund investing with periodic rebalancing and tax loss harvesting in a taxable brokerage account are not what Charles Schwab is typically brought in for.
- What can Wealthfront do that Charles Schwab cannot?
- Wealthfront covers Automated portfolio management, Tax-loss harvesting, Financial planning, Index fund investing. Charles Schwab covers Commission-free trading, Retirement planning, Wealth management, Research tools. Both handle Bank accounts, Investment accounts, Web support, IOS support.