TD Ameritrade vs. E*TRADE in 2026: It's Schwab Now
TD Ameritrade no longer exists as a broker you can open an account with. Charles Schwab acquired it and completed the account migration — former TD Ameritrade customers are Schwab customers now.
Thinkorswim survived the merger and belongs to Schwab. That matters, because Thinkorswim was the main reason people picked TD Ameritrade over E*TRADE in the first place. So the comparison you are trying to make is Schwab versus E*TRADE.
If you are reading a 2022 comparison of these two brokers, everything in it about opening a TD Ameritrade account is wrong. The useful question now is a different one: Schwab inherited TD Ameritrade's platform, its education library and its customer base — did it inherit the reasons to choose it?
What happened to TD Ameritrade
Schwab announced the acquisition in 2019, and the integration ran for years afterwards, moving accounts across in batches. The migration is finished. There is no TD Ameritrade login, no separate TD Ameritrade fee schedule, and no way to open a new account there.
What carried over:
- Thinkorswim. The desktop platform, the mobile version, the paper-trading simulator, and thinkScript all still exist, now as Schwab products.
- The education library. TD Ameritrade's material was one of the strongest in the industry, and much of it survived the move.
- Positions and cost basis. Accounts transferred with holdings and tax lots intact — nothing had to be sold to make the move.
What did not: the brand, the separate pricing schedule, and some account features that were harmonised to Schwab's own line-up during the transfer.
If you searched "E*TRADE vs. TD Ameritrade"
Same answer in the other direction. Whichever way round you typed it, the live comparison is E*TRADE against Schwab, and the Thinkorswim factor now sits on the Schwab side of the table rather than being the thing that distinguished TD Ameritrade from both of them.
Schwab vs. E*TRADE, on one screen
| CHARLES SCHWAB | E*TRADE | |
|---|---|---|
| Stock and ETF commissions | $0 | $0 |
| Desktop platform | Thinkorswim — deep charting, thinkScript custom studies, paper trading | Power E*TRADE — strong options tooling, strategy builder, risk graphs |
| Options pricing | Per-contract fee, flat | Per-contract fee with a reduced tier above a monthly trade count — the reason high-volume traders prefer it |
| Futures | Available | Available, and generally cheaper per contract |
| Fractional shares | Yes, limited to S&P 500 stocks | No |
| Mutual funds and bonds | Full fund platform and a fixed-income desk | Full fund platform and a fixed-income desk |
| Banking | Schwab Bank checking, ATM fee rebates | Morgan Stanley cash management |
| Branches | Nationwide branch network | Limited, via Morgan Stanley |
| Owned by | Charles Schwab Corporation | Morgan Stanley |
Both are FINRA and SIPC members, and both are large enough that custody risk is not a differentiator. Current commission and per-contract figures live on each broker's own schedule, linked at the foot of this page — check them there rather than trusting any comparison article, including this one.
Where E*TRADE still wins
Options volume. The per-contract discount above a monthly trade threshold is real money for anyone trading frequently, and Schwab has no equivalent.
Futures pricing. Cheaper per contract, which compounds for active traders.
Power E*TRADE's options interface. Thinkorswim is the more powerful platform overall, but Power E*TRADE's strategy builder and risk graphs are faster to use for straightforward options work. Our E*TRADE vs. Ally Invest comparison covers the platform in more detail.
Where Schwab wins
Thinkorswim. The deepest charting available at a mainstream broker, with a paper-trading mode that uses the same interface as live trading — so practice transfers directly. Our Webull vs. Thinkorswim review goes through the tooling.
Fractional shares. Restricted to S&P 500 names, but E*TRADE offers none at all. If you are investing small amounts regularly, that gap matters more than any fee on this page.
Branches and breadth. A physical network, a bond desk, and integrated banking. Unglamorous until the day you need them. Our Schwab vs. Fidelity comparison is the next one to read if Schwab is the direction.
If you were a TD Ameritrade customer
Your account is at Schwab. Three things worth checking, because they changed quietly during the migration:
- Your cash sweep. Schwab's default sweep pays considerably less than its own money market funds. Uninvested cash sitting in the default option is quietly earning less than it could.
- Recurring investments and standing orders. Some did not survive the transfer intact. Confirm anything automated is still running.
- Cost basis on older lots. Transferred correctly in the vast majority of cases, but worth verifying before you sell anything with a long holding period.
If you decide Schwab is not for you, moving out is an ACAT transfer — our guide to closing a brokerage account for free covers how to avoid the fee.
What this means for you
- Trying to open a TD Ameritrade account: you cannot. Schwab is the successor, and Thinkorswim came with it.
- Choosing a platform to grow into: Schwab, for Thinkorswim and the paper trading, unless options volume is your main activity.
- Already trading options seriously: price out E*TRADE's volume tier against Schwab's flat rate using your actual monthly contract count.
- Investing small amounts regularly: Schwab, for the fractional shares.
Figures and rules in this article are checked against the official sources below. Where they disagree with us, they win.
