Additional Trading Features

Explore select trading features at Schwab, including alerts, watchlists, market data, and cost basis.

Learn about cost basis and realized gain/loss at Schwab.

Get more details

Managing alerts, watchlists, and market data at Schwab is easy.

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Alerts

Here's what you need to know:

  • TD Ameritrade web and mobile users: Real-time trade notifications are the only alerts automatically moving to Schwab. For all other notifications, you'll need to set up new alerts after the move.

Watchlists

Great news—watchlists will be moving to Schwab. Here's everything you need to know about the watchlist experience at Schwab. 

  • If you use watchlists in the TD Ameritrade Mobile app, be aware that watchlists saved locally on your mobile device will not move to Schwab; only watchlists saved in the app itself will move.
  • Once at Schwab, your watchlists will not sync between the thinkorswim® suite of platforms and Schwab's platforms. So, for example, any change made to a watchlist on thinkorswim would require a manual update to Schwab.com or the Schwab Mobile app to keep your watchlists aligned.

Two types of watchlists at Schwab and TD Ameritrade.

  • User-created watchlists
  • Position watchlists
  • User-created watchlists
    • Manually created.
    • Clients create, add, and delete symbols.
    • Maximum symbol limits apply.
  • Position watchlists
    • Automatically generated. 
    • Include the symbols for every position held in an account.
    • Cannot be modified by clients.
    • No maximum symbol limits. 

Compare Schwab's watchlists side-by-side.

  •  
  • User-created watchlists
  • Position watchlists
  •  
    Maximum number of symbols allowed
  • User-created watchlists
    • Schwab.com: 300
    • The Schwab Mobile app: 300
    • thinkorswim: Unlimited 
  • Position watchlists
    Unlimited
  •  
    Watchlists moving from TD Ameritrade to Schwab
  • User-created watchlists
    Will move to Schwab: Watchlists on tdameritrade.com and the TD Ameritrade Mobile app containing 3,000 or fewer symbols. 

    Will not move to Schwab: User-created watchlists containing more than 3,000 symbols. 

    Watchlists on Schwab.com and the Schwab Mobile app are each capped at 300 symbols in size. Any TD Ameritrade watchlist containing more than 300 symbols will be broken into multiple watchlists when moved to Schwab. When that happens, a group number will be assigned to indicate that it's a newly migrated watchlist at Schwab.

    Example: A TD Ameritrade watchlist named Technology containing 1,000 symbols would move to Schwab and break into: 
    • 3 watchlists of 300 symbols each
    • 1 watchlist of 100 symbols 

    This would result in 4 watchlists called: 
    1. Group1_Technology 
    2. Group2_Technology 
    3. Group3_Technology
    4. Group4_Technology 
  • Position watchlists
    Will be automatically recreated at Schwab. 
  •  
    Streaming quotes on watchlists on Schwab.com
  • User-created watchlists
    You will receive streaming quotes in any watchlist (custom or position) containing 300 or fewer symbols. No streaming quotes will be available in any watchlist that has more than 300 symbols.
  • Position watchlists
    You will receive streaming quotes in any watchlist (custom or position) containing 300 or fewer symbols. No streaming quotes will be available in any watchlist that has more than 300 symbols.
  •  
    Streaming quotes on watchlists on the Schwab Mobile app 
  • User-created watchlists
    You will receive streaming quotes in all watchlists. 
  • Position watchlists
    You will receive streaming quotes in all watchlists. 

Market data

Schwab provides real-time streaming quotes free of charge to nonprofessional clients. Here's what else you can expect.

  • Streaming quotes are currently available on Schwab.com and the Schwab Mobile app in the following places: the trade ticket (web and mobile), SnapTicket (web only), and watchlists (web and mobile).
  • There will be no market data changes for traders using the thinkorswim suite of platforms.
  • Nasdaq TotalView (Level 2) quotes are available on thinkorswim.
  • You'll receive quotes from the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) for Canadian equities on Schwab.com; thinkorswim users will receive OTC quotes for Canadian equities.

The market data experience for professionals.

The market data experience for professionals.

Professional traders using Schwab.com and the Schwab Mobile app can expect the following at no cost:

  • Streaming, real-time equity quotes sourced from Nasdaq and CBOE on watchlists
  • A real-time NBBO snap quote at order entry

Watch for more market data experience and subscription details as you get closer to your Schwab transition date.

How Schwab compares to TD Ameritrade's market data experience.

  •  
  • Market data at TD Ameritrade
  • Market data at Schwab
  •  
    Platforms
  • Market data at TD Ameritrade
    tdameritrade.com and the TD Ameritrade Mobile app
  • Market data at Schwab
    Schwab.com and the Schwab Mobile app
  •  
    Default no-cost professional trader experience
  • Market data at TD Ameritrade
    • Receives 15-minute delayed NBBO quotes with real-time snap quotes at order entry. 
    • Options quotes are delayed 15 minutes with real-time quotes at order entry. 
  • Market data at Schwab
    • Get streaming, real-time quotes sourced from Nasdaq and CBOE on watchlists with real-time NBBO snap quotes at order entry.
    • Options quotes are delayed 15 minutes with real-time snap quotes at order entry. 

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Investing involves risk including loss of principal.

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