Schwab vs. Fidelity vs. Vanguard: What Differs Once You Are Drawing Income

The fees a retiree actually meets are the ones for moving money and for leaving: wires, transfers out and account closure. None of the three charges an IRA opening fee or an online commission on stocks and ETFs. The table shows each firm's published schedule.

Fidelity's schedule lists $0 for a transfer of assets, an IRA closeout and a domestic bank wire. [37] Schwab's pricing guide, dated April 2026, lists $50 per account for a full transfer out, nothing for a partial transfer, and $25 for an outgoing wire, or $15 when it is submitted online; households with $100,000 or more get three free online wires a quarter. [2] Neither Schwab's guide nor Fidelity's page lists a fee for paper statements.

Vanguard's brokerage schedule, effective July 10, 2026, has three charges the others do not: a $25 annual account service fee, a $100 processing fee for each account closure or full transfer to another firm, and a $25 commission on trades placed by phone. Each has waivers. The service fee is waived if you elect e-delivery, hold $1 million or more in qualifying Vanguard assets, or use a Vanguard advisory service. The closure fee is waived at $5 million. The phone commission is generally waived at $1 million, and when online trading is unavailable. [79] Vanguard's schedule does not say when these fees were introduced, so this guide reports them only as they stand today. For most readers the practical point is to choose e-delivery.

It depends on the firm's default, and the defaults are very different. Dividends, bond interest, sale proceeds and money waiting to be withdrawn all land in the account's cash position first. A retiree who keeps a year or two of spending in cash can hold six figures there.

Schwab. Schwab's cash features disclosure says most accounts are eligible only for the Bank Sweep or Schwab One Interest feature, and its rates page showed 0.01% APY on uninvested brokerage cash as of November 14, 2026, the same under either feature. [3] [4] Schwab's money market funds are not a sweep option; you buy and sell them like any other fund.

Fidelity. Every account has a core position. For a brokerage account the options Fidelity lists are a government money market fund (SPAXX), a Treasury fund (FZFXX) and an interest-bearing cash option (FCASH); for an IRA they are SPAXX and the FDIC-Insured Deposit Sweep. [39] Fidelity's page does not say which is assigned by default, so check the core position on each account you hold.

Vanguard. Vanguard says Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund is its default settlement fund. [82] Vanguard Cash Deposit, a bank sweep paying 2.00% APY on November 14, 2026, can be chosen in its place. [84] A separate Cash Plus Account paid 3.50% APY on the same date, or 3.65% for clients with $1 million or more in qualifying assets or in certain advisory services. [85]

Money market funds you can buy

At each firm the higher-yielding cash is a money market fund purchased deliberately. The table lists each firm's main retail funds with the net expense ratio and seven-day yield shown on its own page. A higher expense ratio comes straight out of the yield.

Two details from the fund pages. Schwab's prime fund, long known as Schwab Value Advantage Money Fund, has been renamed Schwab Prime Advantage Money Fund and keeps the ticker SWVXX; Schwab says its Investor Shares have no minimum beyond $1 per trade. [5] [6] Vanguard's funds have a $3,000 minimum except when Federal Money Market is used as the settlement fund. [83] For money you will not need for a year or more, a ladder of Treasuries or CDs is the usual alternative; our CD ladder calculator lays one out.

FDIC and SIPC coverage, as each firm states it

Bank sweep balances are deposits and carry FDIC insurance through the program banks. Schwab says coverage is $250,000 per depositor at each program bank and that it assigns up to three banks to an account. [3] Fidelity says a customer could have up to $4 million of uninvested cash in Cash Management and IRA accounts covered, with each program bank receiving at most $245,000. [41] Vanguard says Cash Deposit and Cash Plus balances are eligible for up to $1.25 million for individual accounts and $2.5 million for joint accounts. [84] Deposits you hold directly at the same banks count toward the same limits.

Money market funds and other securities are not deposits. They are covered by SIPC, which all three describe the same way: up to $500,000 per customer, including $250,000 for cash, if the brokerage fails. [3] [39] [81] SIPC does not protect against a fall in market value. Each firm also reports additional coverage above SIPC limits: Schwab through Lloyd's of London with a $600 million total across all clients, Fidelity with a $1 billion total and a $1.9 million limit on cash, and Vanguard through an insurer it does not name on the page we opened. [3] [41] [86]

Closely. Each firm offers a total US stock fund, an international fund, a broad bond fund and a target-date fund for people already retired, at expense ratios from zero to 0.12%. On a $1 million holding, the difference between 0.015% and 0.04% is $250 a year.

The funds are not perfect substitutes. Schwab describes both of its international index products as covering developed markets outside the United States, so they hold no emerging markets; Fidelity's and Vanguard's total international funds are labeled as total international. [12] [13] [49] [89] Schwab's index target-date series runs in five-year steps from 2010 and has no separate income fund, so the table shows the earliest-dated one. [16] Fidelity's ZERO funds charge no expense ratio. [48] [50] Fidelity's index funds have no minimum, Schwab's listed funds have none, and Vanguard's Admiral Shares require $3,000. [53] [10] [87]

You are not limited to the house brand. Listed stocks and ETFs trade at a $0 online commission at all three, so an ETF from one firm can generally be held at another. [1] [36] [79] Mutual funds are less portable, which matters if you move later. Our guide to index funds versus ETFs covers which wrapper to hold in a taxable account and which in an IRA.

Treasuries cost nothing in commission online at all three, at auction or on the secondary market, and new-issue brokered CDs carry no separate trading fee. Other bonds bought on the secondary market cost about $1 per bond.

A $0 commission is not the whole cost. All three schedules say the price of a bond can include a markup when the firm or another dealer sells from its own inventory, and Schwab and Fidelity both note that a selling concession or issuer-paid fee can be built into a new-issue CD. [2] [36] [79] For a retiree building a ladder, Fidelity documents an Auto Roll service that reinvests maturing Treasuries and new-issue CDs, CD ladder models of one, two and five years, and fractional CDs in $100 increments. [55] [54] We did not find an equivalent automatic service described on the Schwab or Vanguard pages we opened, which is not the same as saying none exists.

All three calculate the required minimum distribution for IRAs they hold and will pay it automatically on a schedule, with federal and state tax withheld if you ask.

• •Schwab. Schwab says it can calculate the IRA RMD, and that recurring RMDs set up through its MoneyLink service are calculated each year and transferred to the account you choose. Withdrawals can also be taken by check, IRA checkwriting, in-kind transfer to a non-retirement account, at a branch or by phone. An online RMD Center shows status and schedules distributions, though Schwab notes it is available only to some clients for now. [17] [18] On its distribution form the default federal withholding is 10% and you can choose any rate from 0% to 100%; the election stays in place until you change it. [19]
• •Fidelity. Fidelity calculates the RMD and has a Retirement Distribution Center that brings retirement account information together. Automatic withdrawals can be annual, quarterly or monthly; with no frequency chosen, the form says the distribution is paid on December 5 each year. [56] [57] The default federal withholding is 10%, adjustable from 0% to 99%, with state withholding at the applicable rate or a rate you choose. [57]
• •Vanguard. Vanguard's RMD Service is free and pays annually, semiannually, quarterly or monthly. The service agreement says the RMD can be taken only from Vanguard mutual funds, that federal withholding is optional and state withholding is available for certain states, and that Vanguard does not automatically calculate RMDs for inherited accounts. [94] [95] Its distribution kit sets a default 10% federal withholding on traditional IRA distributions unless you give a different rate. [96]

The Vanguard restriction matters if your IRA holds ETFs, individual bonds or CDs: you would sell or move enough into a Vanguard mutual fund first, or take the distribution yourself. At any firm, the calculation covers only the accounts held there. Our RMD calculator projects the amounts year by year, and the guide to the retirement withdrawal order covers where RMDs fit among your other accounts.

Each firm will send a qualified charitable distribution from an IRA directly to a charity; the mechanics differ. Fidelity takes the request online: you enter the charity, its mailing address and the amount. [58] Vanguard also takes it online, by choosing a check payable to a charity as the destination, or on its paper distribution form. [97] [96] Schwab uses a QCD request form, which can also create a standing authorization for future gifts. The check is made payable to the charity and lists you as the donor, no tax is withheld, and Schwab asks for the form by November 15 to meet a December 31 RMD deadline. [20]

Schwab and Fidelity both state the 2026 limit as $111,000 per person, and Fidelity states the minimum age as 70½. [20] [58] Schwab's form notes that a donor-advised fund is not an eligible recipient of a QCD. [20] Whichever firm you use, keep the charity's acknowledgment and tell your tax preparer, because the Form 1099-R does not by itself show that a distribution was charitable. Our guide to qualified charitable distributions walks through the rules.

For gifts of appreciated shares from a taxable account, each firm is associated with a donor-advised fund sponsor. These are separate public charities with their own fees.

The administrative fee is the same 0.60% on the first $500,000 at all three. The difference is entry: no minimum at DAFgiving360 and Fidelity Charitable, with $50 grants, against $25,000 to open at Vanguard Charitable, with $500 grants. [21] [60] [98] You do not need a brokerage account at the matching firm to use any of them. Our guide to donor-advised funds explains when one is worth opening.

All three open inherited IRAs for spouses and other beneficiaries and all three process Roth conversions between IRAs they hold. None lists a fee for either.

Inherited IRAs. Schwab lists its inherited IRA at $0 to open with no minimum, says recurring distributions including RMDs can be automated, and lists an inherited IRA RMD calculator among its IRA calculators. [1] [23] [24] Fidelity lists no fees or minimum, tells heirs to open the same type of IRA they are inheriting, and routes the process through a transition services team. [62] Vanguard says a spouse can remain a beneficiary or assume ownership, that other beneficiaries must move the assets to an inherited IRA, and that some inheritance transfers can be done online for certain account types. [99] [100] As noted above, Vanguard does not calculate inherited-account RMDs automatically; a beneficiary can enroll in its RMD service. [95] The rules themselves are in our guide to the inherited IRA 10-year rule.

Roth conversions. Fidelity lists Roth IRA conversions at $0 and starts them online from a traditional IRA; an IRA held elsewhere is transferred to a Fidelity traditional IRA first. [37] [63] Vanguard says a traditional, rollover or SEP IRA can be converted to a new or existing Vanguard Roth IRA online, and reminds clients that conversions are final. [102] [101] Schwab lists a Roth IRA conversion form with an online application and gives a phone number for conversions; its pricing guide shows no conversion fee, and we did not find a step-by-step online process described. [26] [25] [2] How much to convert is a tax question, covered in Roth conversions before RMDs and in our Roth conversion calculator. If the money is still in an employer plan, see the 401(k) rollover guide first.

At Schwab and Fidelity, yes, through a brokerage or companion cash account. Vanguard documents free checkwriting on non-retirement brokerage accounts, and no checks or cards on its Cash Plus account.

• •Schwab. Checks and a debit card can be added to a Schwab One brokerage account, and the cash disclosure refers to Schwab Bank Bill Pay. [26] [3] Schwab Bank Investor Checking, opened only as a linked account with Schwab One, advertises no monthly service or overdraft fees, no foreign transaction fees and unlimited ATM fee rebates worldwide; it paid 0.01% APY on November 14, 2026. [27] [4]
• •Fidelity. Checkwriting is available on the brokerage account, the Cash Management Account and, from age 59½, on traditional, rollover and SEP IRAs. [59] The debit card has no annual fee and Fidelity says it charges no foreign transaction fees. [37] [66] The Cash Management Account reimburses ATM fees globally, has no monthly fee or minimum, and includes free bill pay; on a regular brokerage account, ATM reimbursement is limited to certain client tiers. [64] [67] [36]
• •Vanguard. Checkwriting on a brokerage account is free, draws on the settlement fund, and is not available for retirement accounts. [103] The Cash Plus Account has no checks or bank cards; Vanguard provides routing and account numbers so payees can draw on it and so direct deposits can be set up, and its own notes say Cash Plus lacks the ATM access and bill pay of a bank savings account. [85]

Most retirees simply link the brokerage account to a bank checking account and schedule a monthly transfer, which all three support. The features above matter mainly if you want the brokerage to replace the bank.

Schwab says it has more than 400 US branches and customer support available 24/7. [28] [29] Fidelity says it has 216 Investor Centers, open Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and by appointment, and a phone line staffed 24/7. [68] [69] [70] Vanguard's contact page gives client service hours of Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern; we found no branch locations on the Vanguard pages we opened. [104]

Each firm offers free planning tools and paid advice in tiers. The table gives only the published fee and minimum for each tier, not a description of the service.

Two notes on reading these. A $0 advisory fee is not a free service: Schwab says it charges no advisory fee on Intelligent Portfolios in part because of the revenue Schwab Bank earns on the cash allocation in each portfolio. [30] And a percentage fee scales with the account. At 0.35%, $1 million costs $3,500 a year; at 0.80%, $8,000. Every registered adviser publishes a Form CRS setting out its fees and conflicts in a few pages; read it before enrolling. For a full plan built yourself, our comparison of Boldin and ProjectionLab covers the two best-known planning tools, and the guides to the 4% rule and sequence-of-returns risk cover the questions a plan has to answer.

All three publish a promise to reimburse losses from unauthorized activity, each with conditions, and all three let you name a trusted contact and an agent. These matter more with age than any fee.

What each guarantee says

• •Schwab Security Guarantee. Schwab says it will cover losses in any of your Schwab accounts due to unauthorized activity. You are expected to safeguard your access information and report unauthorized transactions quickly. If you share your credentials, Schwab treats the other person's activity as authorized, and the guarantee does not apply to access you grant through most third-party apps or to remote access you give someone. [33]
• •Fidelity Customer Protection Guarantee. Fidelity says it will reimburse losses from unauthorized activity in covered accounts occurring through no fault of your own. Its conditions include reviewing statements promptly, reporting suspected activity immediately, never sharing account access information and not granting remote access. It excludes activity by anyone you authorize, and debit card and checkwriting transactions, which have their own terms. [75]
• •Vanguard's promise. Vanguard says that if money is taken from a covered account through unauthorized activity, it will reimburse every dollar taken, as outlined in its terms. Those terms ask you to protect your devices and credentials, review activity and report suspected fraud promptly. Vanguard states that if someone tricks or persuades you to transfer money, the transaction may be considered authorized because you completed it yourself. [110]

The common thread is that these guarantees cover someone else getting into your account. They may not cover a transfer you make yourself under false pretenses, or activity by a person or an app you gave your login to. That includes account-aggregation services that ask for your brokerage password, so read the firm's terms before linking one.

Trusted contacts and agents

A trusted contact is someone the firm may call if it cannot reach you or suspects exploitation. At all three the contact cannot trade or move money. Schwab's form lets you add up to two; Fidelity and Vanguard each let you name a trusted contact online. [34] [76] [110]

Authority to act is a separate step. Schwab publishes its own durable power of attorney forms, with separate versions for New York and Pennsylvania, and an affidavit for agents holding a power of attorney drafted elsewhere. [26] Fidelity lets you add a power of attorney online or with its own durable form, signed and notarized by both parties with two witnesses, and also has an affidavit for an outside document. [77] Vanguard uses its own agent authorizations at three levels: information only, limited agent and full agent, the last requiring a notarized form and two witnesses. Vanguard says it recognizes an outside durable power of attorney only once you are incapacitated, with proof of incapacity. [111] At any of the three, setting this up while you are well is far easier than after.

The points above in one table. Rates are those published for November 13 or 14, 2026.

You open the same type of account at the new firm and ask it to pull the old one across. Most transfers between brokerages run through ACATS, an electronic system operated by the National Securities Clearing Corporation: you give the receiving firm a transfer instruction, it enters the request, and the old firm has three business days to validate it or raise an exception (FINRA). You do not need to contact the firm you are leaving.

Ask for the transfer in kind, so positions move as they are and nothing is sold. Schwab says investments move as they are with no tax implications, and that it does not charge to transfer in. [29] [35] Fidelity describes a transfer of assets as moving all or part of an account without selling holdings, says most take three to five business days, and charges nothing to receive one. [78] Vanguard says stocks, bonds, ETFs, most mutual funds and brokerage CDs can be transferred in kind, and that digital transfers may take as little as five to seven days. [112]

Three things can go wrong, none of them expensive if you check first. Money market funds generally do not move in kind; Vanguard lists them as the exception among mutual funds it can receive. [112] A firm's own mutual funds may not be holdable elsewhere: Fidelity says some mutual funds may need to be sold and moved as cash, and Schwab lists proprietary investments among assets that may not transfer. [78] [35] In a taxable account a forced sale is a taxable event, so ask the receiving firm which positions it can hold before you sign. And download cost-basis records and statements before the old login closes. For an IRA, a direct transfer between custodians is not a distribution and is not reported as income.

These are trade-offs drawn from the published differences above, not a ranking. All three hold the same securities at the same commission, and a household that manages its cash position will pay very little at any of them.

Schwab publishes the largest branch network, 24/7 phone service, and a checking account with worldwide ATM rebates that works as a full bank replacement. The trade-off is in cash: the sweep paid 0.01%, so a reader who holds meaningful cash there has to buy a money market fund and sell it again when the money is needed. Schwab's house index funds carry no minimums; its international index funds cover developed markets only.

Fidelity publishes $0 for the incidental fees a retiree meets: transfers out, IRA closeout and wires. A government money market fund is available as the core position, with checkwriting and a debit card on the same account, and Fidelity documents the most automation for Treasury and CD ladders. It has fewer branches than Schwab. The trade-offs are a core position that needs checking, since some options paid about half the money fund's yield, and money market funds with higher expense ratios than Vanguard's.

Vanguard defaults cash into a money market fund with the lowest expense ratio of the three firms' government funds, and quotes the lowest advisory fees for adviser-assisted service. The trade-offs are service and incidental fees: weekday phone hours and no branch network that we could find, no checks or cards on its cash account, a $25 annual fee unless you take e-delivery, $100 to leave below $5 million, an RMD service limited to Vanguard mutual funds, and a higher minimum at its associated donor-advised fund.

Many households hold accounts at more than one. Before choosing on any single line in the tables, consider who will run the accounts if you cannot. A surviving spouse or an adult child with a power of attorney will care more about one login, a phone that is answered and paperwork already in place than about three hundredths of a percent.