Fee-Only RIAs Leading the Way in Financial Advisor Headcounts
Whether or not publicly traded wealth management firms disclose their headcounts of financial advisors in their quarterly earnings, the number represents a closely watched industry metric. So the below rankings of fee-only registered investment advisory firms with the most advisors in Financial Planning’s annual RIA Leaders study reveal which companies are hiring and training at the largest volume. Executives that have led giant wealth management firms such as Ameriprise, Wells Fargo Advisors, Morgan Stanley, and Merrill to remove their quarterly headcount figures frequently argue that the number of advisors is no longer as important as the amount of client assets, organic growth, productivity, or, of course, revenue and profit.
On the other hand, advisor headcount affects each of those other figures. And the firm with more advisors than any other, LPL Financial, proudly shared the size of its ranks of 32,128 advisors at the end of the third quarter.
Fee-only RIAs such as Savant Wealth Management, Moneta Group Investment Advisors, and EP Wealth Advisors don’t approach that level of scale. However, they’re operating in a field with a stagnant overall headcount of advisors, a massive succession challenge amid looming retirements, and a possible hiring shortfall in the face of growing consumer demand for advice.
Technology may solve part of those problems, said David Grau, the CEO of consulting firm Succession Resource Group. He compared the potential of technology like artificial intelligence to the difference between moving a big pile of wood with or without a wheelbarrow.
While there’s “obviously a need” to hire more advisors, that dearth of incoming talent isn’t “as bad or as out of proportion as we have made it out to be in the past,” due to the AI and other tech, Grau said. “It’s really cool to see it starting to be used and adopted where we were already seeing teams coming together to create efficiencies,” he said. “I think you’re going to be able to see the household-per-advisor going up without the service model slipping in the next 10 years.”
Even with the tech resources and hefty investments by private equity firms and RIA aggregators, though, some firms could have trouble if they haven’t planned for the future. Firms that have a constrained advisor headcount could “run into some lumpiness” that hinders their ability to sustain their businesses, said Brandon Kawal, a partner with consulting firm Advisor Growth Strategies. With more people expected to seek financial advisors and wealth management in general in coming years, they could fall behind.
“I think that’s an overarching trend that’s out there is that we do need more talent in this industry,” Kawal said. “Firms that are investing in recruiting, training, and retention of talented advisors and the various specialists you need in this business — it’s a good indicator that these firms are doing something to buck the trend.”
Rankings of Fee-Only RIAs with the Most Financial Advisors
Scroll down the slideshow to see which fee-only RIAs that provide planning services to clients have the most financial advisors. For last year’s rankings, click here.
And see other RIA Leaders 2025 coverage:
Notes: FP’s data partner for the RIA Leaders feature, Comply, produced the below rankings by applying the following six criteria to firms’ required SEC Form ADV filings on May 1, 2025:
- Firms must have zero registered representatives of a broker-dealer.
- At least 50% of the firm’s clients must be individuals or high net worth individuals.
- Firms must not list commissions as a compensation arrangement.
- Firms must have more than zero financial planning clients.
- Firms must not list commission-taking businesses in “other business activities.”
- Firms cannot be affiliated under common ownership with commission-taking businesses.
In the absence of an official regulatory classification and definition for the titles “financial planner” or “financial advisor,” FP is using the closest available figure available through Form ADV requiring firms to state the number of employees “registered with one or more state securities authorities as investment adviser representatives.”
Source: Here
