1. The Feature Lead
For much of its history, Charles Schwab has been associated with a simple idea: investing should be easier, cheaper and more accessible to ordinary people.
That idea helped create the modern discount brokerage industry. But by 2025, accessibility alone was no longer enough. Commission-free trading had become commonplace, sophisticated mobile applications had become standard, and investors could choose from an increasingly crowded field of fintech startups, traditional financial institutions and specialist trading platforms.
Schwab's challenge was therefore no longer simply to disrupt the brokerage industry.
It was to remain relevant after the industry had adopted many of the things that made Schwab disruptive in the first place.
In 2025, the company delivered a compelling answer.
The Charles Schwab Corporation reported $23.9 billion in net revenue, a 22% increase from 2024, while clients opened 4.7 million new brokerage accounts, up 13%. Core net new assets reached $519.4 billion, up 42%, while daily average trades rose 31% to 7.7 million.
By year-end, Schwab held $11.90 trillion in total client assets and had 38.5 million active brokerage accounts.
Those numbers tell only part of the story.
The more interesting development was the breadth of the business behind them. Schwab was simultaneously competing for the beginner opening a first brokerage account, the long-term investor building a retirement portfolio, the active trader using thinkorswim, the high-net-worth client seeking wealth management and the independent financial adviser relying on Schwab's custody infrastructure.
That breadth is ultimately what made Charles Schwab stand out in 2025.
StockBrokers.com named Schwab its 2025 Overall winner, with the firm's score reflecting performance across ease of use, mobile trading, investment range, platforms and tools, research and education. The publication also named Schwab the winner in several individual categories, including beginners, casual investors, ease of use, education, mobile trading apps, passive investors, platforms and tools, research and the overall client experience.
Schwab's 2025 story, then, was not about being the cheapest broker or the most sophisticated broker.
It was about trying to be good enough at almost everything that an investor would have little reason to leave.
2. The Company From discount broker to financial ecosystem
The company traces its roots to 1971, when Charles R. Schwab's brokerage business was incorporated as First Commander Corporation. Following the deregulation of brokerage commissions in 1975, Schwab emerged as one of the defining companies of the discount-brokerage revolution.
The company's original proposition was radical for its time: provide investors with access to brokerage services without the traditional level of cost and complexity.
That philosophy became central to the Schwab brand.
Over subsequent decades, the company expanded beyond basic securities brokerage into mutual funds, retirement services, banking, investment management, advisory services and custody services for independent financial advisers.
The strategy eventually produced something considerably larger than the discount broker of the 1970s.
Today, The Charles Schwab Corporation operates across wealth management, securities brokerage, banking, asset management, custody and financial advisory services. At the end of 2025, the company reported $11.90 trillion in client assets, 38.5 million active brokerage accounts, 5.7 million workplace-plan participant accounts and 2.2 million banking accounts.
The TD Ameritrade transformation
One of the most important chapters in Schwab's modern history came in 2020, when it completed its acquisition of TD Ameritrade.
The transaction brought together two of America's best-known discount brokerage brands. At closing, TD Ameritrade had approximately 14.5 million accounts and $1.6 trillion in client assets.
The significance went beyond adding customers.
TD Ameritrade brought technology, trading tools and a strong active-trader franchise. Most importantly, it brought thinkorswim—a platform that would become an important part of Schwab's modern trading ecosystem.
That acquisition helped solve one of Schwab's longstanding strategic challenges: how to combine the simplicity expected by everyday investors with the sophistication demanded by experienced traders.
By 2025, that combination had become one of Schwab's defining characteristics.
3. 2025 in Numbers
2025 was not merely a good year for Schwab. By several measures, it was a record year.
2025 Metric Result Change Net revenue $23.9 billion +22% New brokerage accounts 4.7 million +13% Core net new assets $519.4 billion +42% Total client assets $11.90 trillion +18% Active brokerage accounts 38.5 million +6% Daily average trades 7.7 million +31% Bank loan balances $58.0 billion +28% Margin loan balances $112.3 billion +34%
The figures come from Schwab's 2025 annual report and full-year results.
The growth in assets is particularly important.
Schwab finished 2025 with nearly $12 trillion in client assets, but the company was also attracting substantial new money organically. Its $519.4 billion in core net new assets represented an annualized organic growth rate of 5.1%.
Client engagement increased just as dramatically.
Daily average trades reached 7.7 million for the full year, while fourth-quarter daily average trades reached 8.3 million.
The combination is significant: Schwab wasn't simply benefiting from rising markets and larger asset values. Clients were actively using the platform more.
4. The Platform One brokerage, several experiences
Schwab's platform strategy is arguably its greatest competitive advantage.
Instead of forcing every investor into the same interface, Schwab operates a layered ecosystem:
Schwab.com for the core investing experience.
Schwab Mobile for investors who want to manage portfolios and trade from their phones.
thinkorswim for investors and traders who need deeper analytical and trading capabilities.
This is an important distinction.
A beginner can open an account and interact with a relatively approachable interface without immediately confronting the complexity of a professional trading workstation.
An experienced trader can move into thinkorswim and access considerably more advanced tools.
StockBrokers.com's 2025 assessment recognized Schwab as the winner for Platforms & Tools, Mobile Trading Apps, Desktop Trading Platform, Investor App, Stock Trading Platform and Overall Client Experience.
The company also continued adding enhancements to Schwab.com, Schwab Mobile and thinkorswim during 2025. In December, Schwab announced another round of platform improvements after trading activity had exceeded seven million daily average trades for three consecutive quarters.
thinkorswim changes the equation
The integration of thinkorswim is especially important.
Prior to the TD Ameritrade acquisition, Schwab had a strong reputation among mainstream investors but was not necessarily the first name associated with sophisticated active trading.
The addition of thinkorswim changed that.
Today, Schwab can present a relatively simple investing interface alongside a professional-grade trading environment without requiring investors to switch brokerage firms.
That is a powerful proposition.
5. The Investment Universe
Schwab's appeal is also rooted in breadth.
Investors can access:
Stocks ETFs Mutual funds Options Bonds Treasury securities Futures Forex Preferred stocks REITs Retirement accounts Managed investing solutions Banking products
StockBrokers.com awarded Schwab 5/5 for Range of Investments in its 2025 review and placed it behind only Interactive Brokers in its dedicated Range of Investments award.
The fixed-income offering is particularly notable.
StockBrokers.com named Schwab its #1 Bond Trading Platform in 2025, citing accessibility, pricing transparency, execution quality, bond inventory, search functionality and tools for comparing issuers and maturities.
For investors who think of brokerage accounts purely as places to buy stocks, that is an important distinction.
A mature portfolio often requires more than equities.
As investors move from accumulation to preservation of capital, fixed income, cash management and retirement products can become increasingly important.
Schwab's ability to accommodate those needs inside one ecosystem is a major part of its proposition.
At a Glance Charles Schwab — 2025 Category Details Founded 1971 Headquarters Westlake, Texas, USA Business Brokerage, banking, wealth management, asset management and advisory services 2025 client assets $11.90 trillion Active brokerage accounts 38.5 million New brokerage accounts in 2025 4.7 million Core net new assets $519.4 billion Daily average trades 7.7 million 2025 net revenue $23.9 billion Online listed stock/ETF commission $0 Standard options fee $0.65 per contract Key platforms Schwab.com, Schwab Mobile, thinkorswim 2025 overall distinction StockBrokers.com Overall Winner Notable 2025 strengths Research, education, mobile, platforms & tools, passive investing, beginners, bonds
Company and 2025 operating figures are based primarily on Schwab's 2025 annual report and SEC filing; pricing and award information is based on Schwab's published pricing and StockBrokers.com's 2025 review.
