TD Ameritrade (now Schwab)

TD Ameritrade was one of the most important online brokerages in American history. Before its acquisition by Charles Schwab in 2020, TD Ameritrade served over 11 million clients and pioneered online trading education with its immersive education center, paper trading tools, and the legendary thinkorswim platform.

While TD Ameritrade accounts have been migrated to Schwab, the educational infrastructure it built lives on. The TD Ameritrade Network (now Schwab Network) provides live market coverage. The thinkorswim platform (ranked separately on this list) continues as the premier trading platform under the Schwab umbrella. The education center's courses on options, technical analysis, and trading psychology remain some of the best free learning resources in investing.

TD Ameritrade's legacy is education and accessibility. They made trading education a core product, not an afterthought. The paper trading simulator, immersive curriculum, and in-person workshops at branch locations set a standard that other brokerages are still trying to match. Even though the brand is being sunset, its DNA is embedded in the Schwab experience.