Top financial advisory firms for July 2024

There are plenty of brokers and firms who will help you invest your money. But if you are looking for comprehensive financial advice, rather than just investment management, you’ll need to look for a financial advisor. Here are our favorite advisory firms at the moment.

JP Morgan Private Client Advisor: Best for small investment accounts

J.P. Morgan Private Client Advisor is an excellent choice if you have a small investment portfolio of $10,000 or more (certain programs require at least $50,000). The major disadvantage is that they charge a flat advisory fee of 1.45%, which is near the top of the range for the industry.

As a J.P. Morgan Private advisor client, you’ll be provided with ongoing one-on-one advice from a private client advisor. That will include investment account management and monitoring based on your own risk tolerance and investment goals. You can also maintain a brokerage account with assistance from the advisor on both the purchase and sale of securities. Meetings are available either face-to-face in a local branch or by phone or video chat.

WiserAdvisor: Best for choosing the right advisor

Find the right financial advisor with WiserAdvisor

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Find the right financial advisor with WiserAdvisor

Description

Matching service connects you with the best financial advisor for your needs.

Benefits

* Get matched with pre-screened advisors * No match fee * Free initial consultation * FINRA/SEC registered advisors

Cost

Free

If you prefer to shop for an advisor, you can take advantage of the online financial advisor marketplace provided by WiserAdvisor. The site offers participation by thousands of financial advisors across the country, giving you a huge range of choice and allowing you to find an advisor who is the best fit for you.

By providing some basic information on the site, you’ll have access to advisors in your area who meet your criteria. There is no cost to use this service.

One of the big advantages of WiserAdvisor is that they use a strict vetting process in accepting financial advisors. All advisors are prescreened and must meet specific criteria to be included in the network. This is very different from selecting from a random list of providers. What’s more, you can limit your search to only those advisors that meet your requirements.

Fees charged by financial advisors on WiserAdvisor depend on the advisor and the type of fee structure used. Wiser advisor provides the following averages:

• Average hourly rate: $120 to $400.
• Average wealth management fees: 0.65% to 1.00% of total assets.
• Average annual commissions for financial advisors based on investment amount: 0.65% to 1.18%.

Empower: Best for human-guided automated investing

High balances

Empower

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High balances

Empower

Fees

No fees for personal finance dashboard or investment account, between 0.49% and 0.89% for wealth management.

Account minimum

$100,000

Assets under Management

$1.3 trillion

Accounts offered

Empower Personal Cash, budgeting tool, personalized retirement portfolios, wealth advisory

Empower has something to help just about every investor. That starts with its Empower Personal Dashboard, where you can connect all your financial accounts for ongoing monitoring and take advantage of various tools to help you better manage your money. It’s free to use. Empower also offers Empower Personal Cash, currently paying up to 4.70% APY on investing cash balances.

If you have at least $100,000 to invest, you can also take advantage of its wealth management service, Empower Wealth Management. It includes three different plan levels, with minimums ranging from $100,000 to over $1 million. Empower uses a sliding fee structure, starting at 0.89% per the first $1 million managed, gradually falling to 0.49% for account balances over $10 million.

Charles Schwab: Best for low advisory fees

Charles Schwab is well known as one of the top investment platforms for self-directed investors. They offer a superior trading platform and an almost unlimited number of investment options. However, if you prefer a managed investment option, Schwab offers several choices.

Schwab Wealth Advisory is available to those seeking comprehensive, personalized wealth management on an ongoing basis. You will work with a dedicated advisor supported by a team of financial specialists. This service requires a minimum portfolio size of $500,000, with fees starting at 0.80% and decreasing on larger portfolios.

You’ll also have the option to take advantage of the Schwab advisor Network. This is a group of vetted independent advisors across the country. Each is prescreened for investment management experience, assets under management and professional education. They have an average of 12 years of experience and many also hold professional designations.

The advisor you choose can manage some or all of your investments. He or she will work with you to create a customized plan based on your big-picture financial situation and incorporate your investments within that framework. advisors will also work with other professionals, including CPAs and lawyers as needed. This service similarly requires a minimum investment of $500,000, and fee structures are determined based on the financial advisor you choose.

Fidelity Wealth Management: Best for diversified service options

Fidelity offers its Wealth Management service to clients who have at least $500,000 managed through Fidelity Wealth Services. The fee ranges between 0.50% to 1.50%, with the lower fees available for larger portfolios. With the service, clients are provided with one-on-one management by a Fidelity advisor. It includes not only investing and planning advice but also the use of specialists where necessary. This can include insurance agents, estate planners and tax experts.

Your Fidelity financial advisor will perform a comprehensive review at least annually. He or she will help you discover new investment opportunities and make any changes in your portfolio and strategies that are necessary. They will also help you to prioritize your financial goals and preferences and to fully understand your investment options. Fidelity uses a holistic approach to managing your portfolio, including investments held with other firms.

Facet: Best for comprehensive financial planning

Facet distinguishes itself from the competition in that it focuses on financial planning for your entire financial situation, rather than mostly focusing on investment management. They also use a fixed-fee structure, which can be beneficial to those with larger investment portfolios, although there is no minimum portfolio size required.

Clients are matched with a certified financial planner (CFP) who is a fiduciary and works on a flat-fee basis. Four meetings are conducted each year, either in person, by phone or by video chat. Your financial needs will be determined upfront, and the fee will be set.

Facet is currently offering a $550 kick-start offer. If you invest and maintain at least $5,000 within the first 90 days, you'll get $300, plus a waiver of the $250 enrollment fee.

Methodology

To determine this list of the six top financial advisory firms, we evaluated the following criteria:

• The vetting process employed by the financial advisor network.
• The likelihood that financial advisors are also fiduciaries.
• Minimum asset requirement.
• Fee structure.
• Services provided, especially beyond investment management.
• Other services offered by the advisory, such as outside specialists, banking, insurance and various investment options.
• The ability of consumers to choose from multiple advisors.
• The reputation of the advisory service.

How to select the best firm for you

Use the following tips to choose the best financial advisor for you:

• Assess your financial situation, and whether hiring a financial advisor will be beneficial.
• Get referrals from others who are using a financial advisor.
• You should interview several advisors before settling on your final choice. Due to the intimate nature of the relationship, personal rapport will be important.
• Check the advisor’s credentials — a CFP designation is highly desirable.
• Make sure the advisor is a fiduciary, requiring him or her to put your interests before their own.
• Get a written statement on the benefits that will be provided.
• Get a written statement on the fees that will be charged, including an estimated annual summary.

If you sign up with a financial advisor and are not satisfied, be ready to move on to another.

Alternative options

If you’re uncomfortable working directly with a financial advisor, you can choose a roboadvisor that also provides financial advice beyond investing.

Betterment is an excellent example. It provides investment management for a low advisory fee of 0.25%. You’ll complete a brief questionnaire that will indicate your risk tolerance, investment goals and time horizon. Your answers to those questions will enable Betterment to create a customized portfolio. Betterment offers multiple portfolio types, and also a cash option, currently paying 5.00% APY. But if you want in-depth financial advice, you can enroll in Betterment Premium which will give you unlimited access. The fee for the service is just 0.65%, but it requires a minimum of $100,000.

Another example is Vanguard Digital Advisor. It’s a roboadvisor, so investment management is automated. However, it can also help you with setting goals, designing tax strategies and dealing with life changes. The account requires a minimum of $50,000 in Vanguard brokerage accounts and charges an advisory fee of approximately 0.30%.

The AP Buyline roundup

Not everyone is comfortable managing their own investments or making major financial decisions without support. If this describes you, it might be time to consider a financial advisor.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Do I really need a financial advisor?

Only if you feel your own efforts at managing your finances are inadequate, or if you would prefer professional assistance. While financial advisors are now more accessible to small investors than ever, they tend to be more cost-effective for larger investors. That’s because the potential for the cost to outweigh the benefit is much higher for smaller investors.

How much does a financial advisor cost?

It varies with the financial advisor you select. As you can see from our analysis above, the cost can be either a flat fee (charged annually, or by the hour), or a percentage of assets under management. In the case of the latter, the annual percentage fee ranges between 0% and 1.50%. Generally, the larger your portfolio, the lower the percentage fee will be.

What questions should I ask a financial advisor?

As noted above, you should ask the financial advisor about his or her credentials, and require verification. You should also ask if the advisor is a fiduciary. Most of all, drill down on the specifics. You should ask questions that will force the advisor to spell out exactly what they plan to provide, and what fees they will charge.

What is the difference between a financial planner and a financial advisor?

Unfortunately, the differences between the two are so subtle that it may be impossible to distinguish them for the average person. Both perform similar services, but a financial planner usually has professional designations, particularly the certified financial planner (CFP) designation.

Be careful, because just about anyone can call themselves a financial advisor, including a real estate agent, insurance broker or debt counselor. Technically speaking, all are correct because each deals with some area of personal finance. At the same time, each focuses on a single financial area, and will generally be unable to provide comprehensive financial advice. A financial planner can.

What is a fiduciary financial advisor?

A fiduciary financial advisor manages your finances and is required by law to represent your best interests, not his or her own. That means the advisor cannot manage your money in a way that will generate additional fees for the advisor. In addition, all financial strategies must provide a clearly defined benefit to you as a client.

Fee-only vs. fee-based financial advisors

Each compensation method relies on fees, rather than a percentage of assets managed. A fee-only advisor accepts only the stated fee as his or her compensation, while a fee-based financial advisor may also earn commissions on the sale of various products and services. For that reason, you should favor a fee-only financial advisor over one who is fee-based.

Should I choose a roboadvisor, online financial planning service or in-person financial planner?

Your choice should depend on a combination of your financial needs, the expected benefits, the cost of those benefits and the amount of assets that need to be managed.

If you have a small portfolio, say, only a few hundred dollars, and don’t need higher-level financial advice, a roboadvisor is an excellent choice for the management of your money. If you have more money that needs to be managed and you prefer a personal touch, an in-person financial planner will likely work better. If you’re interested more in the advice provided than in a personal relationship, an online financial planning service may provide similar services to an in-person financial planner, but at a lower cost.