Payables to Brokerage Clients (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Billions	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Payables to Brokerage Clients [Abstract]
Cash balances in interest-bearing brokerage client accounts	$ 26.6	$ 27.6
Average rate paid on cash balances in interest-bearing brokerage client accounts	0.01%	0.01%

Weighted average rate paid on cash balances in interest-bearing brokerage client accounts.

No definition available.

Name:	schw_WeightedAverageInterestRateOfInterestBearingBrokerageClientAccounts
Namespace Prefix:	schw_
Data Type:	num:percentItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration