# How Charles Schwab (SCHW) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: BetterThanSPY research, https://betterthanspy.com/research/schw
> Data as of October 22, 2026. Total returns include reinvested dividends. Past performance does not predict future results; nothing here is investment advice.

Built by QuantCommons' quantitative engine, this page is about relative opportunity, not data on SCHW alone. It places SCHW (The Charles Schwab Corporation) against 20+ popular alternatives, its neighboring categories and the entire market of over 10,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs, and surfaces what has done better on consistent outperformance, return for the risk taken, behavior in real market crashes and diversification. The result is a clearer view of where SCHW stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: SCHW's full trading record, from September 1987 through September 2026. All returns include reinvested dividends. Data as of October 22, 2026.

## Key findings

- **Right now:** Over the past 3 months, SCHW fell 9.0% while the S&P 500 rose 2.5%.
- **Stock or market?:** SCHW's 9.0% fall over the past 3 months is part of a broader investment banking & brokerage sell-off: the investment banking & brokerage ETF IAI (iShares U.S. Broker-Dealers & Securities Exchanges ETF) fell 5.1%, with MS (Morgan Stanley, down 15.3%) and GS (Goldman Sachs Group, down 18.4%).
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** SCHW has gone against the market, falling 1.8% over the past year while the S&P 500 rose 15.6%.
- **Long term:** SCHW turned $10,000 into $32,300 over the past decade, against $41,600 in the S&P 500.
- **In a crash:** Across seven sell-offs, SCHW has typically fallen 1.6 times as far as the S&P 500. In the 2023 regional bank crisis, SCHW fell 31.9%, against 3.4% for the S&P 500, and more than investment banking & brokerage peers such as MS (Morgan Stanley, 8.2%).
- **Diversification:** The S&P 500 explains about 15% of SCHW's monthly moves over 5 years: mostly its own path.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** CME (CME Group), ICE (Intercontinental Exchange) and BLK (BlackRock) earned more than SCHW with less volatility over the past 5 years. CME returned 11.6% a year at 20.8% volatility, against 3.2% a year at 31.9%.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** CBOE (Cboe Global Markets, capital markets) and NDAQ (Nasdaq, capital markets) earned more than SCHW with less volatility over the past 5 years. CBOE returned 22.0% a year at 25.1% volatility, against 3.2% a year at 31.9%.
  - **Whole market:** 1,102 of the 3,641 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than SCHW with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them AAPL (Apple), MSFT (Microsoft) and VTI (Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF).

## How much would $10,000 in SCHW have grown?

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in SCHW over the past 29 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of SCHW over the same span and SCHW's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in SCHW at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $171,783 by September 2026, more than the $132,907 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Five of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of SCHW, and SF finished highest, at $522,688.

## SCHW at a glance

This section summarizes the key facts about the stock, its returns over periods from one to ten years and the risk it has carried, with dividends reinvested throughout.

- SCHW's deepest decline since it began trading in 1987 was 86.8%, from April 1999 to March 2003. It took about 14 years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, SCHW's best was 1998, when it returned 102%, and its worst was 2001, when it lost 45.4%. It lost money in seven of those years.
- SCHW is 19.5% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Financials (Financial - Capital Markets)
- Trading since: September 22, 1987
- Market value: $158B
- Volatility (5 years): 31.9%; Sharpe ratio: 0.26
- Worst decline ever: −86.8%, from April 13, 1999 to March 11, 2003; back at its high by January 4, 2017

| Period | SCHW total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −8.9% |
| 3 months | −9.0% |
| 6 months | +0.4% |
| year to date | −9.1% |
| 1 year | −1.8% |
| 3 years | +93.2% |
| 5 years | +17.0% |
| 10 years | +223% |

## SCHW against the whole market

Where SCHW ranks among every stock and fund, and what across the market has done better.

### How does SCHW rank among all stocks?

This section ranks SCHW on return, volatility, risk-adjusted return and worst decline against every stock worth at least $300 million with enough history.

- SCHW's worst decline of the past 10 years ranks in the top 23% of the 2,184 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top fell the least.

| Measure | SCHW | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | −1.8% | 2,111 of 3,282 (top 65%) |
| 3-year return | +93.2% | 1,000 of 3,016 (top 34%) |
| 5-year return | +17.0% | 1,512 of 2,897 (top 53%) |
| 10-year return | +223% | 788 of 2,201 (top 36%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 31.9% | 903 of 2,897 (top 32%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.26 | 1,699 of 2,897 (top 59%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −51.1% | 497 of 2,184 (top 23%) |

### What has beaten SCHW on both return and risk?

Each dot is an investment, placed by how much it earned a year over the past 5 years (higher is better) and how much its price swung, its volatility (further left is calmer).

- 438 stocks and 664 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than SCHW over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 30% of the 3,641 screened.
- Among those with at least half SCHW's swings, CAH has the best return for its risk: 41.7% a year at 24.7% volatility, 22% less than SCHW's 31.9%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.54 against 0.26 for SCHW.
- Among SCHW's popular alternatives, BNY, GS and MS are in the region. BNY earned 22.8% a year against 3.2% a year for SCHW, at 24.4% volatility, 24% less than SCHW's 31.9%.

### Is there a better investment than SCHW?

The table below lists investments that beat SCHW over the past 5 years on at least one of these measures: a higher annual return with lower volatility, a higher annual return at similar volatility, a similar return with lower volatility, a higher Sharpe ratio with a smaller worst decline, a higher total return in most periods from 3 months to 10 years, or smaller losses in recent market crashes.

- Among SCHW's popular alternatives, CME, ICE and BLK earned more than SCHW with less volatility over the past 5 years. CME returned 11.6% a year at 20.8% volatility, against 3.2% a year at 31.9%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, CBOE (capital markets) and NDAQ (capital markets) earned more than SCHW with less volatility over the past 5 years. CBOE returned 22.0% a year at 25.1% volatility, against 3.2% a year at 31.9%.
- Across the whole market, 1,102 of the 3,641 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than SCHW with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them AAPL, MSFT and VTI.

The 15 strongest of 1,102 investments that beat SCHW over the past 5 years, out of 3,641 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million.

| Investment | Group | Annual return (5 years) | Volatility | Sharpe | Worst decline (10 years) | 10Y return | Correlation with SCHW | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| SCHW: The Charles Schwab Corporation (this page) |  | +3.2% | 31.9% | 0.26 | −51.1% | +223% |  |  |
| [RY](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | Banks | +17.5% | 18.2% | 0.98 | −40.0% | +361% | 0.45 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MSFT](https://betterthanspy.com/research/msft): Microsoft Corporation | Software | +11.9% | 28.2% | 0.54 | −37.1% | +862% | 0.18 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [VTI](https://betterthanspy.com/research/vti): Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF | US Total Market | +11.4% | 17.5% | 0.71 | −35.0% | +298% | 0.42 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [VOO](https://betterthanspy.com/research/voo): Vanguard S&P 500 ETF | US Large-Cap Equity | +12.6% | 16.9% | 0.79 | −34.0% | +319% | 0.39 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [WMT](https://betterthanspy.com/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | Discount Retail | +21.1% | 22.6% | 0.97 | −25.7% | +521% | 0.12 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [BRK-A](https://betterthanspy.com/research/brk-a): Berkshire Hathaway Inc. | Insurance | +13.5% | 17.2% | 0.83 | −30.4% | +281% | 0.27 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [ABBV](https://betterthanspy.com/research/abbv): AbbVie Inc. | Specialty Pharmaceuticals | +25.5% | 23.4% | 1.09 | −45.1% | +600% | 0.10 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [V](https://betterthanspy.com/research/v): Visa Inc. | Payment Processing | +13.2% | 22.9% | 0.66 | −36.4% | +435% | 0.32 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | Japan Equity | +26.6% | 19.1% | 1.34 | −39.1% | +415% | 0.11 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [COST](https://betterthanspy.com/research/cost): Costco Wholesale Corporation | Discount Retail | +17.4% | 22.9% | 0.82 | −31.4% | +692% | 0.22 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [QQQ](https://betterthanspy.com/research/qqq): Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 | US Large-Cap Growth | +14.2% | 23.0% | 0.69 | −35.1% | +531% | 0.21 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [CSCO](https://betterthanspy.com/research/csco): Cisco Systems, Inc. | Communications Equipment | +16.9% | 26.1% | 0.73 | −42.0% | +361% | 0.05 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [NVS](https://betterthanspy.com/research/nvs): Novartis AG | Pharmaceuticals | +17.4% | 20.7% | 0.89 | −26.8% | +234% | 0.01 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MRK](https://betterthanspy.com/research/mrk): Merck & Co., Inc. | Pharmaceuticals | +16.1% | 24.8% | 0.73 | −43.4% | +245% | 0.06 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MCK](https://betterthanspy.com/research/mck): McKesson Corporation | Health Care Distribution | +37.8% | 25.1% | 1.41 | −38.1% | +582% | 0.17 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |

## SCHW against its popular alternatives

The investments people most often weigh against SCHW, compared period by period and year by year.

### How do SCHW's risk and return compare with its alternatives?

This map plots each investment's annual return over the past 5 years against its volatility, the size of its typical price swings.

- Ten of the 22 popular alternatives, led by BNY, GS and MS, were both more rewarding and calmer than SCHW over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, SCHW returned 3.2% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.5%, with higher volatility (31.9% against 17.2%).

### Has SCHW consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

This section compares SCHW with the investments people most often weigh against it, checking each one over eight periods from one month to ten years.

- 12 of the 22 popular alternatives, led by VIRT, BLK and BNY, outperformed SCHW in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- VIRT, BLK and BNY outperformed SCHW in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- BNY, GS and CME earned more for the risk they took than SCHW (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in their worst decline of the past 10 years.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of SCHW | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| SCHW: The Charles Schwab Corporation (this page) | −1.8% | +93.2% | +17.0% | +223% |  |  | 0.26 |
| VIRT: Virtu Financial, Inc. | +71.9% | +241% | +153% | +520% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.72 |
| [BLK](https://betterthanspy.com/research/blk): BlackRock, Inc. | +2.8% | +97.8% | +40.3% | +324% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.39 |
| [BNY](https://betterthanspy.com/research/bny): Bank of New York Mellon Corp | +38.1% | +277% | +179% | +332% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.97 |
| [IBKR](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ibkr): Interactive Brokers Group, Inc. | +27.6% | +317% | +354% | +929% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 1.03 |
| OPY: Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. | +49.8% | +211% | +120% | +749% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 0.64 |
| [MS](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ms): Morgan Stanley | +19.0% | +181% | +112% | +630% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 0.67 |
| [GS](https://betterthanspy.com/research/gs): The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. | +22.1% | +218% | +143% | +524% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 0.77 |
| [AMP](https://betterthanspy.com/research/amp): Ameriprise Financial, Inc. | +6.5% | +66.1% | +79.2% | +518% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.56 |
| [CME](https://betterthanspy.com/research/cme): CME Group Inc. | +18.7% | +62.8% | +73.2% | +334% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.63 |
| [ICE](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ice): Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. | +5.8% | +57.9% | +33.0% | +249% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.37 |
| BGC: BGC Group, Inc | +29.0% | +109% | +126% | +187% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.62 |
| RJF: Raymond James Financial, Inc. | −2.8% | +76.2% | +66.9% | +370% | 4/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.51 |
| PIPR: Piper Sandler Companies | −19.2% | +108% | +88.5% | +768% | 0/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.54 |
| LPLA: LPL Financial Holdings Inc. | −5.7% | +47.3% | +86.5% | +1,009% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.53 |
| [HOOD](https://betterthanspy.com/research/hood): Robinhood Markets, Inc. | −24.1% | +953% | +144% | — | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.60 |
| SF: Stifel Financial Corp | −11.2% | +89.8% | +49.6% | +380% | 1/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.42 |
| JEF: Jefferies Financial Group Inc. | −14.6% | +54.7% | +29.9% | +254% | 1/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.33 |
| TW: Tradeweb Markets Inc. | +11.1% | +48.2% | +45.2% | — | 5/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.41 |
| FUTU: Futu Holdings Limited | −39.0% | +78.8% | +43.2% | — | 1/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.45 |
| TROW: T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. | +6.0% | +25.4% | −37.3% | +126% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.16 |
| MKTX: MarketAxess Holdings Inc. | −2.3% | −26.7% | −57.7% | +18.6% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.32 |
| TIGR: UP Fintech Holding Ltd. Sponsored ADR Class A | −57.7% | −10.6% | −53.1% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.20 |

### How did SCHW do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 1997, along with where SCHW ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- SCHW finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 16 of its 29 full calendar years.
- Among its popular alternatives, FUTU came out ahead of SCHW most often, in four of the six years both traded.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, SCHW finished in the top quarter in eight of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in nine. In 2025, it ranked 8 of 23.

| Year | SCHW | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +36.6% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +9.2% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | −16.0% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | +0.1% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +60.2% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +13.6% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +16.4% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −18.4% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +31.1% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +21.0% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How SCHW has fallen, how it held up in crashes beside the S&P 500 and its popular alternatives, and what moves independently of it.

### What were SCHW's worst declines?

A drawdown is the decline from a peak to the lowest point before a new high.

- In all three of SCHW's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- The slowest recovery came after SCHW fell 86.8% from April 1999 to March 2003; it did not regain that peak until January 2017, 14 years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −86.8% | April 13, 1999 | March 11, 2003 | January 4, 2017 | −37.7% | dot-com bust |
| −65.4% | September 25, 1987 | December 14, 1987 | March 6, 1990 | — |  |
| −53.9% | March 25, 1992 | September 29, 1992 | April 13, 1993 | — |  |
| −51.1% | May 22, 2018 | March 12, 2020 | January 6, 2021 | −5.9% | late-2018 sell-off |
| −49.7% | January 14, 2022 | May 4, 2023 | June 30, 2025 | −11.1% | 2022 bear market |

### How did SCHW do in stock market crashes?

This section measures how far SCHW, the S&P 500 and each alternative fell from peak to trough during every major market crash since 2000.

- SCHW fell further than the S&P 500 in all ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the dot-com bust, when SCHW fell 83.1% and the S&P 500 fell 47.5%.
- Among its popular alternatives, IBKR held up best, falling less than SCHW in eight of the nine crashes they both traded through.

| Crash | Dates | SCHW fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −83.1% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −56.0% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −5.5% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −28.9% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −37.0% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −8.2% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −26.5% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −41.5% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −36.9% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −31.9% | −3.4% |

### How closely does SCHW move with the S&P 500?

Upside capture measures how much of the S&P 500's gains an investment kept in the months the market rose, and downside capture how much of its losses it took in the months the market fell.

- LPLA took just 52% of the S&P 500's losses, against 90% for SCHW, while still keeping 110% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, SCHW captured 89% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 90% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.91. It took about the same share of the market's gains as of its losses.
- Eight of the 17 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than SCHW's 0.99, led by CME, LPLA and OPY.

Measured over the past 10 years of monthly returns against SPY.

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| SCHW: The Charles Schwab Corporation (this page) | 89.0% | 90.0% | 0.91 |
| VIRT: Virtu Financial, Inc. | 45.0% | −28.0% | 0.20 |
| [BLK](https://betterthanspy.com/research/blk): BlackRock, Inc. | 127% | 157% | 1.30 |
| [BNY](https://betterthanspy.com/research/bny): Bank of New York Mellon Corp | 115% | 120% | 1.08 |
| [IBKR](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ibkr): Interactive Brokers Group, Inc. | 128% | 92.0% | 1.03 |
| OPY: Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. | 119% | 74.0% | 1.12 |
| [MS](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ms): Morgan Stanley | 142% | 137% | 1.39 |
| [GS](https://betterthanspy.com/research/gs): The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. | 136% | 133% | 1.39 |
| [AMP](https://betterthanspy.com/research/amp): Ameriprise Financial, Inc. | 141% | 152% | 1.41 |
| [CME](https://betterthanspy.com/research/cme): CME Group Inc. | 50.0% | 11.0% | 0.33 |
| [ICE](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ice): Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. | 88.0% | 94.0% | 0.84 |
| BGC: BGC Group, Inc | 96.0% | 118% | 1.42 |
| RJF: Raymond James Financial, Inc. | 103% | 97.0% | 1.07 |
| PIPR: Piper Sandler Companies | 152% | 142% | 1.39 |
| LPLA: LPL Financial Holdings Inc. | 110% | 52.0% | 0.85 |
| SF: Stifel Financial Corp | 120% | 125% | 1.25 |
| JEF: Jefferies Financial Group Inc. | 147% | 197% | 1.52 |
| TROW: T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. | 118% | 172% | 1.35 |
| MKTX: MarketAxess Holdings Inc. | 40.0% | 74.0% | 0.62 |

### What diversifies SCHW?

Correlation measures how closely two investments move together, on a scale from 1 (in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to -1 (in opposite directions).

- Moving a fifth of the money in SCHW into DXJ would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 19% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+7.5% for SCHW alone, +12.2% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and EMLP have moved largely independently of SCHW over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.44 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- MCK made money in four of the seven calendar years in which SCHW lost money.

| Investment | Correlation with SCHW | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in SCHW's 7 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.30 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 1 of 7 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.11 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 1 of 7 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.44 | +103% | 14.5% | 1.06 | 1 of 7 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | 0.37 | +86.8% | 13.0% | 1.03 | 1 of 7 |
| EWP: iShares MSCI Spain ETF | 0.33 | +141% | 20.3% | 0.97 | 1 of 7 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.31 | +83.6% | 13.8% | 0.95 | 1 of 7 |
| [SMH](https://betterthanspy.com/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.13 | +304% | 37.0% | 0.94 | 3 of 7 |
| [XLE](https://betterthanspy.com/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.35 | +178% | 25.5% | 0.94 | 2 of 7 |

## Common questions

### What was SCHW's worst drawdown?

SCHW's deepest decline since it began trading in 1987 was 86.8%, from April 1999 to March 2003. It took about 14 years from the low to climb back to its old high.

### What were SCHW's best and worst years?

Over 29 full calendar years, SCHW's best year was 1998, when it returned 102%. Its worst was 2001, with a return of -45.4%.

### Is there a better investment than SCHW?

Among SCHW's popular alternatives, CME, ICE and BLK earned more than SCHW with less volatility over the past 5 years. CME returned 11.6% a year at 20.8% volatility, against 3.2% a year at 31.9%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, CBOE (capital markets) and NDAQ (capital markets) earned more than SCHW with less volatility over the past 5 years. CBOE returned 22.0% a year at 25.1% volatility, against 3.2% a year at 31.9%.

### Is SCHW more volatile than the S&P 500?

Yes. SCHW's volatility over the past 5 years was 31.9%, 1.9 times the S&P 500's 17.2%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, SCHW's return lands within 31.9% of its average, either way. The higher it is, the rougher the ride and the harder it is to hold through a slump.

### What is SCHW's Sharpe ratio?

SCHW's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.26, against 0.78 for the S&P 500, so SCHW earned less for each unit of risk than an index fund did. The Sharpe ratio is the return earned above cash for each unit of volatility: two investments with the same return are not equal if one got there with far bigger swings.

### How correlated is SCHW with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, SCHW's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.39 with the S&P 500. Correlation runs from 1 (moving in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to −1 (moving in opposite directions). They are only loosely linked, which makes it a real diversifier next to an index fund. In the table, the correlation column measures each option against SCHW instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a SCHW holding.

### What are the best alternatives to SCHW?

Of the 22 popular alternatives we compared, 12 outperformed SCHW in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: VIRT, BLK and BNY.

### Did SCHW outperform the S&P 500?

SCHW finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 16 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +36.6%, against +17.7% for the index.

### How did SCHW do in stock market crashes?

SCHW fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in none of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in ten. The clearest case was the dot-com bust, when SCHW fell 83.1% and the S&P 500 fell 47.5%.

### What diversifies SCHW?

These had a low correlation with SCHW over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.30), DXJ (correlation 0.11) and EMLP (correlation 0.44); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.21), CLS (correlation 0.31) and MCK (correlation 0.17). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

## More research

- [BlackRock (BLK) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/blk)
- [Bank of New York Mellon (BNY) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/bny)
- [Interactive Brokers Group (IBKR) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ibkr)
- [Morgan Stanley (MS) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ms)
- [Goldman Sachs Group (GS) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/gs)
- [Ameriprise Financial (AMP) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/amp)
- [CME Group (CME) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/cme)
- [Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ice)
- [Robinhood Markets (HOOD) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/hood)
- [Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/schd)
- [NVIDIA (NVDA) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/nvda)
- [Apple (AAPL) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://betterthanspy.com/research/aapl)

## Explore further

- Full page with charts: https://betterthanspy.com/research/schw
- All research pages: https://betterthanspy.com/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against SCHW live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=SCHW