TD Ameritrade is now part of Charles Schwab, so you buy fractional shares through Schwab, which sells pieces of most U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs from $1 with no commission online. Schwab bought TD Ameritrade in 2020 and moved the last of its accounts over in May 2024. The TD Ameritrade website now forwards to Schwab, and it no longer opens accounts.
That is a better answer than this question used to get. TD Ameritrade’s own route to fractions was dividend reinvestment, and until 2026 Schwab only sold slices of companies in the S&P 500, under the name Schwab Stock Slices. Below is what you can and cannot do with fractional shares at Schwab today, how dividend reinvestment fits in, and three alternatives if you want something Schwab does not offer.
Does TD Ameritrade offer fractional shares?
Not under its own name. TD Ameritrade no longer takes orders at all, and Schwab’s page for former TD Ameritrade customers says every TD Ameritrade client is now a Schwab client. So the real question is what Schwab offers, and the answer fits on one card.
TD Ameritrade is now Schwab
The short answer Your old TD Ameritrade account is a Schwab account now. Schwab sells fractional shares of most U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs from $1, with no commission online.
- Most U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs
- Works on thinkorswim too
- Market orders only under 1 share
- Fractions are sold if you transfer out
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., Member SIPC. No commission applies to fractional trades placed online. Minimums and maximums vary by order type and are shown when you trade.
A fractional share carries the same risk as a whole one. The price can fall, and you can lose money. We checked every detail on this page against Schwab’s own site, its press releases and its annual report for this update.
What happened to TD Ameritrade
Schwab did not shut TD Ameritrade down overnight. It bought the company, ran the two brokers side by side for a few years, then moved the accounts over in stages. The dates below come from Schwab’s announcements and its annual report filed with the SEC.
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| October 2020 | Schwab completes its purchase of TD Ameritrade. The two keep operating as separate brokers while the systems are combined. |
| 2023 and 2024 | TD Ameritrade accounts move to Schwab in five groups: more than 17 million accounts holding about $1.9 trillion. |
| May 2024 | The last group of accounts moves over, and Schwab calls the integration complete. |
| End of 2024 | TD Ameritrade, Inc. is no longer registered as a broker-dealer with the SEC or FINRA. |
| June 2026 | Schwab announces fractional shares for most U.S. stocks and ETFs, with a new $1 minimum. |
| Today | tdameritrade.com forwards to a Schwab welcome page. |
What happened to thinkorswim? It survived the move. Schwab kept the desktop, web and mobile versions, and former TD Ameritrade clients can use them alongside Schwab.com and the Schwab Mobile app. TD Ameritrade Mobile is not on Schwab’s list of platforms. Schwab points its former users to thinkorswim mobile or Schwab Mobile.
What happened to your login and records? You sign in with a Schwab Login ID, which you create at schwab.com/login if you never had one. Schwab says up to 10 years of your TD Ameritrade statements, trade confirmations and tax documents are available on Schwab.com.
How fractional shares work at Schwab
You pick a stock or ETF and say how much you want to spend. Schwab turns the dollars into a decimal number of shares at the current market price. Its own example: put $25 into a stock trading at $100 and you own 0.25 of a share. You can also type the decimal yourself, such as 0.2 shares, and one order can cover several stocks or ETFs at once.
Schwab launched this in June 2020 as Schwab Stock Slices, limited to S&P 500 companies from $5 each. In an update it announced in June 2026, Schwab widened the list to most U.S. stocks and ETFs, set a new $1 minimum and moved the feature into the regular trade ticket. It now calls the feature simply fractional shares. If $1 at a time is your budget, our guide to investing with little money covers what to do before you buy anything.
| The rule | What Schwab says |
|---|---|
| Minimum | $1. Schwab says minimums and maximums vary by order type and show up on the trade screen. |
| What you can buy | Most U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs. |
| Commission | $0 when you place the trade online. |
| Where you can trade | Schwab.com, Schwab Mobile and thinkorswim. |
| Accounts | An eligible Schwab brokerage account, such as an individual, joint or custodial account. |
| Order types | Less than one share: market order, good for the day only. More than one share, including a fraction: market or limit, day or good till canceled. |
| Trading hours | Regular market hours, 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern. |
| Selling | You can sell fractions from the trade ticket. To close a whole position, the order has to be in shares, not dollars. |
| Dividends | Paid in proportion to the fraction you own. |
MoreHow to invest with just $5
What Schwab fractional shares cannot do
The four limits below come straight from Schwab. None of them is unusual, but each one is a difference from owning whole shares.
An order for under one share has to be a market order that is good for the day. Limit orders and good till canceled orders only open up once the order is for more than one share.
Fractional orders fill between 9:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. Eastern. Place one at night and it waits for the open, so the price can move before it fills.
Only whole shares transfer. Schwab sells the fractions at the market price and credits the cash to your account, and a sale can be taxable.
If you own less than one whole share, you cannot vote it or take part in voluntary corporate actions such as tender offers. Mandatory ones, like stock splits and mergers, still apply.
One more thing to check if you invest a little every payday. Schwab’s Automatic Investing tool only takes mutual funds, and its fractional shares page says nothing about scheduling a recurring buy of a stock or ETF. All three of the alternatives below let you set one up in dollars.
Does dividend reinvestment create fractional shares?
Yes. Turn on Schwab’s dividend reinvestment plan and Schwab uses each cash dividend to buy more of the same stock or ETF, in whole or fractional shares, at no charge. It works for mutual funds too. Schwab notes that you may already own fractions this way without ever having placed a fractional order.
This is the one kind of fractional share TD Ameritrade customers were used to. TD Ameritrade’s site described its free dividend reinvestment plan the same way: your cash dividends bought additional shares or fractional shares.
To set it up, check the Reinvest Dividends box on the order ticket at Schwab.com when you buy. For something you already own, open the Positions page and change the setting in the Reinvest column. Schwab says the same setting can now be managed from the Positions page in the Schwab Mobile app.
Alternatives to Schwab for fractional shares
Schwab covers most people who came over from TD Ameritrade. Look elsewhere if you want something it does not do: a limit order on a slice, a vote on your fractions, orders that fill in real time, or investing in the same app as your bank account. Each of these three brokers also lets you set up a recurring buy in dollars. For more choices, including Fidelity and Interactive Brokers, see our ranking of the best fractional share brokerages.
| Broker | Minimum per order | Which securities | Commissions | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charles Schwab | $1 | Most U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs | $0 online | See Schwab |
 Webull | $1 | Select U.S. stocks and ETFs | $0 | Open account |
 Robinhood | $1 | Most stocks and ETFs priced over $1 a share | $0 | Open account |
 SoFi Invest | $5 | 4,000+ stocks and ETFs | $0 | Open account |
Webull
Best for active tradersWebull takes limit orders as well as market orders on fractions and lets you set a recurring buy from $1. New accounts opened through this link get 12 free fractional shares after a first deposit of $100 or more.
Webull Financial LLC, member SIPC and FINRA. Only stocks and ETFs marked with a green diamond are eligible, and a limit order on a fraction has to be entered in shares. Webull’s help center sets the minimum buy at $1, while its fractional share agreement says orders under $5 are not accepted, so check the order screen. Fractions are sold before a full transfer out. The share offer excludes joint, IRA and some other account types. Terms apply.
Robinhood
Best for beginnersRobinhood fills fractional orders in real time while the market is open, offers recurring investments in dollar amounts and can reinvest dividends into more fractions. It also adds up and reports shareholder votes on fractional shares.
Robinhood Financial LLC, member SIPC. Eligible stocks have a market value over $25 million, and stocks traded over the counter are excluded. Fractions are sold on a full transfer out. New accounts opened through this link get a stock reward: at least $5 in stock once you link your bank, and Robinhood says 1 in 100 people get $20 and 1 in 1,000 get $200. Terms apply.
SoFi Invest
Best if you bank with SoFiSoFi Invest sits in the same app as SoFi checking, savings and loans, so it is the simple choice if your money is already there. Fractional orders start at $5, and you can set up recurring investments and dividend reinvestment.
Brokerage products are offered through SoFi Securities LLC, Member FINRA/SIPC. No commission on fractional trades, and other fees apply. Orders placed outside market hours are combined and filled at the next market open at an average price. Fractions cannot be transferred to another firm and are sold when you start a transfer.
Fractions are only one reason to pick a broker. If you would rather have a portfolio built and managed for you, compare the best robo advisors instead.
How to buy fractional shares at Schwab
- Log in. Former TD Ameritrade customers use a Schwab Login ID. New to Schwab? Opening a brokerage account has no minimum and no fee, according to Schwab.
- Open the trade ticket. Use Schwab.com, Schwab Mobile or thinkorswim, and pick a stock or ETF listed on a U.S. exchange.
- Choose dollars instead of shares. Enter $1 or more. You can also enter a decimal number of shares.
- Place the order during market hours. An order for less than one share goes in as a market order and fills at the next available price.
- Decide what happens to dividends. Check the Reinvest Dividends box if you want them to buy more fractions.
Brand new to all of this? Start with our guide on how to start investing, then come back and place your first order.
TD Ameritrade and Schwab fractional shares FAQs
If you came over from TD Ameritrade, start with Schwab. Your account is already there, and it sells fractions of most U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs from $1. Webull adds limit orders and recurring buys on fractions, Robinhood fills orders in real time from $1, and SoFi Invest fits if you already bank with SoFi.
TD Ameritrade no longer operates as a separate broker. Charles Schwab bought it in 2020 and moved the last TD Ameritrade accounts to Schwab in May 2024. Former TD Ameritrade customers can buy fractional shares of most U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs at Schwab from $1, with no commission online.
Yes. Schwab sells fractional shares of most U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs. The minimum is $1, there is no commission when you trade online, and you can enter the order in dollars or in a decimal number of shares on Schwab.com, Schwab Mobile or thinkorswim.
Yes. Schwab Stock Slices was the name Schwab used when it launched fractional shares in 2020, for S&P 500 companies from $5 each. Schwab now calls the feature simply fractional shares, and it covers most U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs from $1.
Yes. Schwab says you can buy fractional shares on Schwab.com, Schwab Mobile and the thinkorswim trading platform. An order for less than one share has to be a market order, and it fills only during regular market hours, 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern.
Yes. Schwab’s fractional shares now cover most U.S.-listed ETFs as well as stocks, starting at $1, a change it announced in June 2026. When the feature launched as Schwab Stock Slices, it covered only companies in the S&P 500.
Yes. Schwab pays dividends in proportion to the fraction you own, so a quarter of a share gets a quarter of the dividend. If you turn on dividend reinvestment, Schwab uses the cash to buy more whole or fractional shares of the same stock or ETF at no charge.
No. Only whole shares can move to another broker. Schwab sells the fractional shares at the market price and credits the cash to your account, and a sale can be taxable in a regular brokerage account.
It is a Schwab account now. Schwab says all TD Ameritrade clients are Schwab clients, and you log in with a Schwab Login ID that you create at schwab.com/login. Up to 10 years of your TD Ameritrade statements, trade confirmations and tax documents are available on Schwab.com.
