Explore national salary, projected growth, education requirements, and career opportunities across the United States.
A concise view of this occupation’s national scale, compensation, and projected demand.
National median annual wage for this occupation.
Estimated jobs currently supported nationwide.
Projected employment change through 2034.
Estimated openings created each year.
The typical education, prior experience, and on-the-job training associated with entry into this career.
Bachelor's degree
None
Long-term on-the-job training
These are the highest-rated capabilities associated with success in this occupation. Scores are derived from occupational skill analysis and are measured on a 100-point scale.
Based on skills, knowledge, and work activities, these occupations are the closest match to your current career.
Explore the states and metropolitan areas offering the strongest combination of salary, employment, demand, and long-term opportunity.
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Understand the salary, outlook, education, and geographic opportunities shaping this career.
Personal financial advisors help individuals make decisions about their finances, guided by strong analytical, mathematical, and interpersonal skills. This career combines numbers-focused work with regular interaction and communication, drawing on abilities in critical thinking, problem solving, and customer service. Nationally, there are about 326,000 personal financial advisors, with projected employment growth of 9.6%, indicating continued demand and movement in the field. The national median annual salary of $102,140 places this occupation among higher-earning professional roles. Opportunity is distributed across the country, with particularly notable concentrations in states like California and New York and in large metro areas such as New York-Newark-Jersey City and several major California metros. A bachelor’s degree is the typical educational pathway, supported by skills in writing, reading, speaking, listening, computers and information technology, and attention to detail. Together, these data points describe a career that blends financial expertise with client-facing work and offers room for long-term professional development.
Personal financial advisors earn a national median annual salary of $102,140, reflecting strong earning potential across the occupation. Pay varies meaningfully by location. Among the top states, New York shows a median salary of $166,400, while California reports $130,330. Washington’s median salary is $114,050 and Virginia’s is close to the national median at $102,640, while Colorado’s median stands at $89,280. At the metro level, salaries can be even higher. The New York-Newark-Jersey City metro reports a median of $170,050, and the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont metro shows $160,610. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara has a median of $136,820, and Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim is at $124,490. These figures illustrate that larger metros and certain states offer higher typical pay, though salary levels exist across a broad range, giving advisors options to weigh compensation against other personal and professional priorities.
Personal financial advisors have a sizable national employment base of about 326,000 positions. Projected employment growth is 9.6%, indicating that the number of roles is expected to increase. In addition, the field is projected to generate about 24,000 annual openings. These openings can reflect a combination of growth and turnover, offering entry points for new graduates, career changers, and experienced professionals seeking new opportunities. The consistent 9.6% growth rate shown across the highlighted states and metro areas suggests that expansion is not limited to a single region. Together, the current employment level, projected growth, and steady annual openings present a picture of an occupation with ongoing hiring activity and room for new entrants over the coming years. Individuals considering this path can factor in both the existing employment base and the forward-looking data when assessing long-term career stability and mobility.
Location plays a significant role in opportunities for personal financial advisors. At the state level, California and New York stand out with the highest CareerGPS opportunity scores of 67.38 and 65.78, respectively. California combines a median salary of $130,330 with employment of 32,200, while New York pairs a higher median salary of $166,400 with employment of 21,550. Colorado, Washington, and Virginia also show solid opportunity scores between roughly 55 and 57, with median salaries ranging from $89,280 in Colorado to $114,050 in Washington. At the metro level, opportunity scores are even higher. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara leads with 77.42, followed closely by New York-Newark-Jersey City at 77.27. San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, and Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim also post strong scores above 60. These figures highlight that both large coastal states and major metro areas offer concentrated opportunity, with differences in typical pay, employment size, and opportunity score for advisors to weigh.
The typical education for personal financial advisors is a bachelor’s degree. This level of education supports the broad blend of skills reflected in the occupation. Strong mathematics and critical and analytical thinking skills are central, helping advisors work with quantitative information and make informed decisions. Problem solving and decision making are also key, supported by writing and reading skills that enable careful documentation and understanding of financial information. Interpersonal, speaking, and listening abilities are important for working with clients and colleagues. Project management skills help coordinate tasks and timelines, while computers and information technology skills support work with digital tools and data. Being detail oriented and providing effective customer service round out the skill profile. Together, the bachelor’s degree and these skill areas create a foundation for entering and progressing in the personal financial advisor career path.
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