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Can you short on Charles Schwab as of August 2023?

Your expert
Adam N.
Fact checked by
Updated
1mo ago
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Summary

Short selling is a trading strategy in which you speculate on the decline in the price of a stock or other security. If you'd like to learn about the intricacies of short selling real stocks, be sure to check out this article explaining the short selling of stocks.

Some stockbrokers only allow long position in stocks and ETFs. Others allow short positions only via CFDs on a handful of popular individual stocks. Advanced traders prefer brokers that allow the short selling of real stocks (and not just CFDs) on most stock markets their clients have access to.

Fortunately, clients of Charles Schwab can short real stocks.

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Short selling of real stocks at Charles Schwab

The number of stock markets a broker provides access to is a good indication for the number of real stocks available for short selling. Note that brokers may not allow short selling on all stock exchanges, therefore the total number of available stock markets may be lower. Financial regulators sometimes restrict short selling. For example when the Covid-19 pandemic engulfed Europe, six European countries implemented temporary bans on short-selling.

Charles Schwab available stock markets vs competitors
Stock markets (#)
4 5 25

Data updated on February 28, 2024

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You need to have a margin account to be able to open short positions. This type of account usually comes with different requirements than regular trading accounts. For example, in the US, you need a minimum deposit of $2,000 for margin trading. To compare the fees associated with the short selling real stocks, let's take a look at a $2,000 short sale trade.

Fees for a $2,000 short sale at Charles Schwab vs competitors
US stock
$0.0
$0.0
$0.0
UK stock
-
-
$11.3
German stock
-
-
$20.5

Data updated on February 28, 2024

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If none of the brokers above are a good match for you, we recommend our article listing the best brokers for short selling.

Short selling futures

You can short some of the most traded markets at Charles Schwab using futures. The table below shows the fees for selling 10 contracts.

Charles Schwab futures fees vs competitors
US micro e-mini stock index futures
$22.5
$15.0
-
UK stock index futures
-
-
-
German e-mini stock index futures
-
-
-

Data updated on February 28, 2024

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Author of this article

Adam Nasli

Financial Wizard | Trading • Safety • Market Analysis

I bring extensive financial expertise as one of BrokerChooser's earliest team members. Personally, I tested nearly all 100+ brokers on our site, opening real-money accounts, executing trades, assessing customer services, and providing firsthand assessment. My professional background includes roles in the banking sector and a degree from Central European University, where I teach finance. My passions lies in in-depth research of the financial industry, building trading algorithms, and managing long-term investments.

Everything you find on BrokerChooser is based on reliable data and unbiased information. We combine our 10+ years finance experience with readers feedback. Read more about our methodology.

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