Schwab Mobile 4+

Highly functional with a dated look

I’ve been using this app for over a decade and have experienced all the versions of it since. I can say, hands down, this is highly functional, reliable, mobile banking app with all the stock trading power you could ask for in the palm of your hand. I can tell you Schwab has Leo their app competitive with all the mobile banking functionality you would expect any bank to offer, plus the added power and flexibility of stock trading that also keeps up with the best of the industry players.

That being said, with all efforts for functional upkeep, it seems the user interface has taken a backseat as of late. Nowadays, the dark color-themed user interfaces are king on mobile Apps and most software in general, and they seemingly take advantage of high-contrast design with vibrant interactive dashboards. The Schwab app is uninspiring comprised of mostly white, light grey, or beige color schemes with a few static bar charts that look straight out of Windows 2000 - frozen in time.

Overall, the user interface has really begun to look aged and frankly, more than a bit out of date. For such an amazingly powerful mobile banking app, the user interface (UI) just feels lacking and could benefit from a major visual overhaul - One that helps to better position Schwab as a leader of online mobile banking and information technology space. A banking app for the future.

Too much of a hassle

It feels like Schwab goes out of their way to punish and hassle you for trying to withdraw funds. When I initially signed up I was bombarded with calls and emails about funding my account. It was a breeze linking my bank account and transferring money to my Schwab account. It was deducted and on my bank statement within an hour. When the time came to withdraw some funds all of a sudden the transfer was voided and my bank account was unlinked even though all cash was settled and available for withdrawal. When I went to re-link the SAME bank account I had prior I was booted and locked out of my account. I was given several different numbers to call and had to talk to multiple people, take a quiz to verify my identity and given a 1-2 week timeframe for my account to be unlocked. All for only a $300 withdrawal to a bank account that was already verified. They’ll take money with no questions but when you try to withdraw they place several purposely placed hoops with the intent to wear you down in hopes you get frustrated and give up and forget about the money. I understand the need for safety to avoid identity theft and other fraud but it’s interesting that I can transfer money in, trade but the moment I try to withdraw a small amount I’m required to jump through hoop after hoop. It’s all by design. You’re better off with Fidelity

Developer Response ,

Hi GPuddy - For security and privacy reasons we prefer to address certain questions and concerns privately. Please give us a call at 800-435-4000 so we can help.

New version is terrible

I e been a long time customer and user of this app on both iPhone and iPad. The old version worked flawlessly. The new version is terrible! First, it cannot maintain connection reliably over 1 minutes. This results in screen freezes, errors displayed - but worse is that orders are either not placed or duplicated. Schwab won’t honor these software mistakes. Furthermore, quotes are inconsistent and often wrong or severely delayed. When I say inconsistent, portfolio may say one current price, while order screen shows another and watchlist yet a third! Speaking of watchlists - they revamped them to “improve” but they ended up making almost unusable. You no longer change position of symbol in watchlist. Basically all you can do is delete and re-add from “edit”. Terrible. Old lists lock up after a couple of refreshes. New list often stop working with “oops - something went wrong”. Forcing you to end the app and re-login. Whoever does software testing for this app should be fired! It’s definitely not ready for prime time. It will fail on you during the most critical times that will often cost you real money! After more than 25 years with Schwab, this new version will probably FORCE me to go to another company.

Developer Response ,

Hi LimpopoTexas - We’re sorry to hear about your poor experience. We’d like a chance to
try and assist with resolving the issues you have had with us. Please give us a call at 800-435-4000.