TOS Broker Overview
Thinkorswim, also known as TOS, is a highly rated desktop trading platform. It is owned by and accessible through Charles Schwab. We reviewed both the thinkorswim platform and Charles Schwab brokerage to provide insights into each.
Charles Schwab is a leader in the brokerage industry, processing over 100,000 trades per day for its many clients. They offer a wide range of products and services for all types of traders and investors.
Opening an Account
Opening a new brokerage account with TOS is simple. First, click on their promotion link: Get $0 trading commissions free Charles Schwab account.
Then hit the "Open new account" button to access the application screens. You'll need to provide your Social Security Number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, as well as some details about your current employer. If you already have a different Charles Schwab account, you can use your existing account information to speed up the process.
TOS Brokerage Products
Charles Schwab offers trading in stocks, options, mutual funds, ETFs, futures, and FOREX. One of the key advantages of having a brokerage account with Charles Schwab is the ability to trade all these different types of securities in one account. Many brokers offer trading in some of these securities, but few offer such a wide variety in one package.
Charles Schwab offers both cash accounts and margin accounts, as well as portfolio margin accounts for more experienced, high-balance traders. Qualifying investors can also participate in IPOs offered through Charles Schwab.
TOS Broker Services
Charles Schwab offers a range of services, from a paid securities lending program to one-on-one financial guidance with an Investment Advisor. Other services include access to a nationwide network of investment branches, a dividend reinvestment program, cash-management services, and retirement planning tools.
Charles Schwab also provides extensive free research services for every type of security, along with a wealth of educational resources covering almost any topic related to investing and trading. However, they do not offer fractional share trading or any managed accounts or wealth management programs.
TOS Brokerage Commissions
Charles Schwab has a competitive pricing structure with low commissions and fees across most products. They offer $0 commissions for U.S.-listed stocks, ETFs, and options trades placed online. Options trades have a fee of $0.65 per contract on all buys and sells. However, note that Charles Schwab’s $0 stock commissions do not apply to OTC stocks, which carry a commission of $6.95 per trade.
Mutual fund investors will be pleased to know that Charles Schwab offers over 3,000 no-transaction-fee mutual funds. Fixed income investors can take advantage of $0 commissions for U.S. treasuries purchased at auction and a $1 commission per bond for online secondary market transactions. FOREX traders won’t pay any commissions on FOREX trades, though Charles Schwab includes a markup/markdown in the bid/ask spread, and futures traders will only pay a $2.25 fee per contract on futures trades.
The only downside in Charles Schwab’s pricing is their margin rates, which start at 10.25% for balances under $10,000. The rates decrease only slightly for larger balances, with the lowest published rate being 8.25% for balances between $250,000 and $499,999.
Open TOS/Charles Schwab Account
Open Thinkorswim Account
TOS Desktop Trading Platform Overview
Charles Schwab’s acquisition of the thinkorswim platform has brought a powerful desktop trading platform to its clients. Remarkably, Charles Schwab offers free access to thinkorswim for all its clients, with no extra fees required. Thinkorswim is packed with features and tools that cater to both new and experienced traders, as well as long-term investors.
TOS Charting
Thinkorswim’s charting features and tools are what the platform is best known for. You can customize almost every aspect of the charts, including the type of chart, cursor, and colors.
You can choose from over 300 different technical indicators and patterns to include on a chart and customize each one. The platform also offers over 20 drawing tools for adding elements like trendlines, arrows, and Fibonacci indicators to a chart. You can easily zoom in and out of charts or highlight a specific area to zoom in on. Charts can be saved, printed, and even shared with a link.
TOS Interface & Customization
The thinkorswim platform has a sleek user interface and offers extensive customization options. You can personalize almost every feature of the platform to make it look and function exactly how you want.
Some of the many customization options include designing the look and feel of charts, setting hotkeys for platform navigation, controlling the sizing and placement of windows, and saving and naming platform layouts.
TOS Order Entry Tools
One of thinkorswim’s key features for day traders is the range of order entry tools that allow for quick and efficient trading. These include customizable hotkeys, such as those for selling the bid, buying the ask, and canceling all orders.
Another feature is ladder trading, where traders can view a price ladder close to the security’s current price and buy or sell at a specific price with just one click. For options trading, thinkorswim allows you to queue up an options order with a single click by clicking on the bid or ask in the options chain.
TOS Practice Trading Tools
Thinkorswim offers both live trading and paper trading using “paper money.” Paper trading is a great way for new traders to learn or for experienced traders to practice strategies without risking real money. The thinkBack tool is designed for back-testing options strategies by analyzing hypothetical trades.
The OnDemand tool is a standout feature that allows you to go back to any date and time and replay a live stream of a security’s price action. For example, you can watch the price action of Tesla on the day it split on 8/31/21 by entering the date and time in the OnDemand feature. This tool is available for stocks, futures, and FOREX.
Types of TOS Users
Thinkorswim was originally created by a former Options Market Maker at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, so it is designed for serious traders of options, stocks, and futures. However, it is also perfect for new traders who want to practice and learn, thanks to features like paper trading and other practice tools. Swing traders and long-term investors can also benefit from the platform's market data and charting features.
TOS Broker Review Recap
Even without TOS, Charles Schwab is one of the best overall brokers in the industry. With thinkorswim added on top of everything else Schwab offers, they are hard to beat. No matter what type of investor or trader you are, it’s worth your time to check out thinkorswim for free through Charles Schwab.
Open TOS/Charles Schwab Account
Open Thinkorswim Account
Updated on 7/19/2024.
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