Regulatory Requirements (Net Capital and Net Capital Requirements for Schwab and optionsXpress, Inc) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Schwab [Member]
Compliance with Regulatory Capital Requirements for Broker Dealers [Line Items]
Net Capital	$ 1,846,000	$ 1,746,000
Minimum Net Capital Required	250	250
2% of Aggregate Debit Balances	355,000	358,000
Net Capital in Excess of Required Net Capital	1,491,000	1,388,000
OptionsXpress, Inc. [Member]
Compliance with Regulatory Capital Requirements for Broker Dealers [Line Items]
Net Capital	269,000	244,000
Minimum Net Capital Required	1,000	1,000
2% of Aggregate Debit Balances	8,000	7,000
Net Capital in Excess of Required Net Capital	$ 261,000	$ 237,000