SCHD’s Dividend Calendar: Ex-Dates, Record Dates and Pay Dates

SCHD goes ex-dividend four times a year, usually on a Wednesday in late March, late June, late September and mid-December. To receive a dividend, you need to own SCHD shares before the market opens on the ex-dividend date, which in practice means buying them by the close of trading on the day before.

In 2026, SCHD’s ex-dividend dates were 25 March, 24 June and 23 September, with each dividend paid the following Monday. Based on its usual pattern, the December 2026 ex-dividend date is expected around 9 December, but the exact date is only confirmed when Schwab announces it.

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This guide is part of FRC’s complete guide to SCHD, which starts with what SCHD is and how it works. It explains SCHD’s dividend calendar, what each date means, when you need to buy, what happens to the price and the mistakes investors make around ex-dividend dates.

What Is an Ex-Dividend Date?

The ex-dividend date is the cut-off for receiving a dividend. If you own shares when the market opens on the ex-dividend date, you receive the next payment. If you buy on or after the ex-dividend date, the seller receives it instead.

“Ex” means “without”. From the ex-dividend date onwards, SCHD shares trade without the right to the upcoming dividend.

The date decides who gets paid. Two investors can own SCHD on the payment date, but only the one who held it before the ex-dividend date receives that quarter’s dividend.

The Four Dates in SCHD’s Dividend Calendar

Each SCHD dividend involves four dates. The declaration date is when Schwab announces the dividend amount and the dates, usually a few days before the ex-dividend date.

The ex-dividend date is the cut-off for qualifying. The record date is the day the fund checks its records to see who owns shares, and the payment date is when the money arrives in your brokerage account.

Since May 2024, US trades settle one business day after they are made. That means SCHD’s record date now falls on the same day as its ex-dividend date. Before that change, the record date usually came one business day after the ex-dividend date.

SCHD’s Recent Dividend Dates

In 2024, SCHD went ex-dividend on 20 March, 26 June, 25 September and 11 December. The payments were made on 25 March, 1 July, 30 September and 16 December.

In 2025, the ex-dividend dates were 26 March, 25 June, 24 September and 10 December. The payments followed on 31 March, 30 June, 29 September and 15 December.

In 2026, the ex-dividend dates so far have been 25 March, 24 June and 23 September, with payments on 30 March, 29 June and 28 September. FRC’s guide to SCHD’s dividend sets out how much each of those payments was.

What Every Income Investor Needs to Know

Ex-dividend dates are one of the most misunderstood parts of dividend investing. Many new investors believe that buying just before the ex-dividend date is a way to collect free money, only to find the share price falls by roughly the amount of the dividend and they owe tax on the payment.

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The Pattern Behind SCHD’s Dates

SCHD’s calendar follows a consistent pattern. The ex-dividend date usually falls on a Wednesday in the second half of March, June and September, and earlier in December, usually in the second week of the month.

The payment date usually falls on the following Monday, five days after the ex-dividend date. Because of that pattern, investors can estimate the next dates well in advance, although the official dates are only confirmed when Schwab announces them.

The December date comes earlier in the month than the others. A mid-December payment arrives before the end of the calendar year, so it counts towards that year’s dividend income for tax.

When Do You Need to Buy SCHD to Get the Dividend?

To receive SCHD’s next dividend, you need to buy before the ex-dividend date. In practice, that means buying by the close of trading on the business day before the ex-dividend date.

For example, SCHD’s September 2026 ex-dividend date was Wednesday 23 September. An investor who bought SCHD by the close on Tuesday 22 September received the dividend of around $0.27 per share, paid on Monday 28 September. An investor who bought on 23 September did not.

You do not need to hold SCHD until the payment date. As long as you owned it before the ex-dividend date, you receive the dividend even if you sell on the ex-dividend date itself.

The time of day does not matter, as long as the purchase is made during the regular trading session on the day before the ex-dividend date. A trade placed a minute before the closing bell qualifies just as much as one placed at the open.

How Long Before the Ex-Dividend Date Should You Buy?

For the dividend itself, one business day is enough. Buying a week or a month earlier does not earn you a larger dividend, because the payment is the same for every share held before the ex-dividend date.

What does depend on how long you hold is the tax treatment. To have the dividend taxed at the lower qualified rates, you need to have held the shares for long enough around the ex-dividend date, as explained below. Buying earlier simply means you are exposed to the price movements for longer before the payment.

What Happens to SCHD’s Price on the Ex-Dividend Date

When SCHD goes ex-dividend, its share price usually falls by roughly the amount of the dividend at the open. That is because the money being paid out is no longer part of what a new buyer receives. The cash set aside for the dividend leaves the fund’s net asset value, so each share is worth that much less.

With a quarterly dividend of around $0.25 to $0.28 per share and a price of around $35, the drop is usually less than 1%. It is often hidden by the normal ups and downs of the market on the day, so the price may still finish higher or lower for other reasons.

The fall does not mean investors have lost money. The value moves from the share price into the cash dividend, so an investor’s total holding is roughly the same either side of the ex-dividend date.

Why Buying Just Before the Ex-Date Is Not Free Money

Some investors try a tactic often called dividend capture: buying just before the ex-dividend date, collecting the dividend and selling soon after. It looks attractive, but it rarely works the way people hope.

Because the price falls by roughly the dividend amount on the ex-dividend date, the investor usually sells for less than they paid. The gain from the dividend is offset by the fall in the share price.

There is also tax. In a taxable account, the dividend is taxable income, and if the shares are not held long enough, it is taxed at ordinary income rates rather than the lower qualified dividend rates. The result is often a smaller return than simply holding the shares.

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The Holding Period for Qualified Dividends

Most of SCHD’s dividends are qualified dividends, taxed at 0%, 15% or 20% depending on your income. But to get those lower rates, you must hold the shares for long enough around the ex-dividend date.

The rule is that you must hold the shares for more than 60 days during the 121-day period that begins 60 days before the ex-dividend date. If you buy just before the ex-dividend date and sell soon after, you fail this test and the dividend is taxed as ordinary income.

Long-term investors who hold SCHD for months or years meet this test automatically. FRC’s guide to how ETFs are taxed in the United States explains how ETF dividends and gains are taxed.

When the Dividend Arrives

SCHD’s dividend is usually paid on the Monday after the ex-dividend date. It arrives in your brokerage account as cash, unless you have chosen to reinvest it.

Most brokers credit the payment on the payment date itself, although some show it a day later. If you hold SCHD through a broker outside the US, the timing can differ, and tax may be withheld before the money reaches you.

If you have dividend reinvestment switched on, your broker uses the payment to buy more SCHD shares, often including fractional shares, usually on or shortly after the payment date.

Reinvesting Around the Ex-Dividend Date

Reinvested dividends buy shares after the ex-dividend date, at a price that already reflects the payment. That means the new shares do not qualify for the dividend that was just paid, but they do qualify for the next one.

Over time, reinvesting each quarter steadily increases the number of shares you own and the income they produce. FRC’s guide to SCHD’s dividend growth shows how much the payout itself has risen over the years.

Reinvesting does not avoid tax in a taxable account. The dividend is taxed in the year it is paid, whether you take it as cash or reinvest it.

Your hard-earned money represents years of work. Give it the respect it deserves. Advanced ETF Investing goes deeper into planning income and tax across everything you own.

Why the Amount Changes Each Quarter

SCHD’s dividend is different every quarter, because it passes on the dividends paid by its roughly 100 companies, minus its 0.06% annual fee. Those companies pay at different times and in different amounts, so the total collected by the fund varies from one quarter to the next.

In 2026, for example, SCHD paid $0.2569 per share in March, $0.2525 in June and $0.2665 in September. The September payment was around 5.5% higher than June’s. Compared with a year earlier, the June payment was lower, while the March and September payments were higher.

The amount is only confirmed on the declaration date, shortly before the ex-dividend date. Any figure quoted before then is an estimate based on past payments.

The March Ex-Dividend Date and the Reconstitution

SCHD’s March ex-dividend date comes at the same time of year as the annual reconstitution of its index, when companies are added and removed. The reconstitution changes which companies the fund holds, which can affect the dividends it collects over the following year.

In March 2026, the reconstitution replaced around 31% of the portfolio, with energy’s weight cut and utilities removed altogether. Changes like these can make the following payments higher or lower than investors expect.

The ex-dividend date itself is not affected by the reconstitution. It simply means that the March payment is the last one based mainly on the old portfolio.

Ex-Dividend Dates and Your Tax Year

For tax purposes, what counts is when the dividend is paid. SCHD’s December dividend is paid in mid-December, so it falls in that calendar year’s taxable income, even though it is only a few weeks before the new year.

In a taxable account, your broker reports all the dividends you received during the year on Form 1099-DIV, usually sent early the following year. It shows how much of the income was qualified and how much was ordinary, which decides the rate you pay.

Inside an IRA or 401(k), none of this applies each year. The dividends are not taxed when they are paid, so the ex-dividend and payment dates make no difference to your tax bill.

How to Find SCHD’s Next Ex-Dividend Date

The official source for SCHD’s dividend dates is Schwab Asset Management, which publishes each distribution on SCHD’s fund page and in its announcements. Many brokers also show upcoming ex-dividend and payment dates on the fund’s quote page once they are announced.

Financial websites often list projected dates before the official announcement. These are usually based on the fund’s past pattern and are generally close, but they are estimates until Schwab confirms them.

If you are timing a purchase or sale around the ex-dividend date for tax or income reasons, always check the confirmed date rather than relying on a projection.

Does the Ex-Dividend Date Matter for Long-Term Investors?

For most long-term investors, the ex-dividend date makes very little difference. Someone who buys SCHD to hold for years will receive every dividend from the first ex-dividend date after they buy, and missing one payment by a few days changes little.

Trying to buy just before the ex-dividend date rarely improves returns, because the share price adjusts for the dividend. A purchase a day after the ex-dividend date is usually made at a slightly lower price, which roughly offsets the missed payment.

Where the date does matter is for planning. Investors who rely on SCHD’s income can use its calendar to know roughly when cash will arrive each quarter and plan their spending around it. FRC’s guide to how much SCHD you need to make $1,000 a month shows how that quarterly income adds up.

Common Mistakes Around SCHD’s Ex-Dividend Date

Buying on the ex-dividend date and expecting the dividend. You must own the shares before the ex-dividend date, not on it.

Selling before the ex-dividend date and expecting to be paid. If you sell the day before the ex-dividend date, the buyer receives the dividend, not you.

Treating the price drop as a loss. The fall on the ex-dividend date reflects the cash being paid out, not a loss in value.

Chasing dividends for a quick profit. Short-term buying around ex-dividend dates usually gains little and can turn qualified dividends into ordinary income for tax.

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Common Questions

When is SCHD’s next ex-dividend date? Based on its usual pattern, SCHD’s December 2026 ex-dividend date is expected around Wednesday 9 December, with payment around Monday 14 December. The exact dates are confirmed when Schwab announces the distribution.

What were SCHD’s ex-dividend dates in 2026? 25 March, 24 June and 23 September, with the December date still to be announced.

What were SCHD’s ex-dividend dates in 2025? 26 March, 25 June, 24 September and 10 December.

When do I need to buy SCHD to get the dividend? By the close of trading on the business day before the ex-dividend date.

Do you get the dividend if you buy the day before the ex-dividend date? Yes. Buying at any time during the regular trading session on the day before the ex-dividend date qualifies you for the dividend.

How long before the ex-dividend date should I buy? One business day is enough to receive the dividend. Holding for longer only matters for whether the dividend is taxed at the lower qualified rates.

How much was SCHD’s last dividend? The September 2026 dividend was $0.2665 per share, with an ex-dividend date of 23 September and payment on 28 September.

Can I sell SCHD on the ex-dividend date and still get the dividend? Yes. If you owned the shares before the ex-dividend date, you receive the dividend even if you sell on the ex-dividend date.

When does SCHD pay its dividend? Usually on the Monday after the ex-dividend date, in late March, late June, late September and mid-December.

How often does SCHD go ex-dividend? Four times a year, once each quarter.

Does SCHD’s price drop on the ex-dividend date? Usually by roughly the amount of the dividend, which is typically less than 1% of the share price. Other market movements on the day can hide the drop.

What is the difference between the ex-dividend date and the record date? The ex-dividend date is the cut-off for buying to qualify. The record date is when the fund checks who owns shares, and since May 2024 it falls on the same day as the ex-dividend date.

How long do I need to hold SCHD for the dividend to be qualified? More than 60 days during the 121-day period that begins 60 days before the ex-dividend date.

Your Portfolio Deserves an Educated Investor

SCHD goes ex-dividend four times a year, usually on a Wednesday, and pays its dividend the following Monday. To receive a payment, you need to own the shares before the ex-dividend date, and you can sell on the ex-dividend date itself and still be paid.

Don’t let a lack of investment knowledge become the most expensive mistake you ever make. FRC’s three progressive ETF programmes take you from how dividends work, through building a reliable income plan, to managing tax and risk across everything you own. FRC’s programmes and memberships are open to everyone, whether you are investing $500 or $500,000.

Invest in understanding the market before investing in the market itself. Know how the calendar works, and let the income build over time rather than chasing it.