Personal Financial Advisors Salaries by State

Mean and median pay, wage percentiles, employment, and top-paying metro areas for personal financial advisorss across the U.S. Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 (data.bls.gov OEWS tool /OESServices/combo/table, all-occupation crawl by area).

National mean salary $156,670 ≈ $75/hr
National median salary $105,070
Total employment 266,800 nationwide

Job Outlook, 2024–2034

Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034.

Projected growth +9.6% Much faster than average
Annual openings 24,100 per year (avg)
Employment 2024→2034 326,000 → 357,200 (+31,200)
Typical entry education Bachelor's degree

Salary Map

Brighter tiles = higher average pay; dashed tiles have no data. Click a state for details.

💰 Top 5 Highest-Paying States

  1. New York$210,310
  2. New Jersey$191,890
  3. South Dakota$175,820
  4. Massachusetts$172,430
  5. California$170,070

📉 5 Lowest-Paying States

  1. North Dakota$90,390
  2. Oklahoma$94,010
  3. Rhode Island$105,650
  4. Arkansas$113,140
  5. Utah$117,140
#StateMeanMedian Hourlyvs. U.S.Employment
1 New York $210,310 $166,400 $101 +34.2% 21,550
2 New Jersey $191,890 $158,570 $92 +22.5% 9,300
3 South Dakota $175,820 $128,720 $85 +12.2% 620
4 Massachusetts $172,430 $125,670 $83 +10.1%
5 California $170,070 $130,330 $82 +8.6% 32,200
6 Wisconsin $166,810 $119,430 $80 +6.5% 5,200
7 Pennsylvania $165,100 $105,200 $79 +5.4% 12,200
8 Virginia $163,180 $102,640 $78 +4.2% 6,340
9 Florida $162,780 $100,970 $78 +3.9% 21,490
10 Washington $162,590 $114,050 $78 +3.8% 5,790
11 Oregon $161,810 $122,830 $78 +3.3% 3,070
12 Connecticut $160,780 $129,720 $77 +2.6%
13 Illinois $158,450 $120,130 $76 +1.1% 9,760
14 Georgia $154,620 $101,450 $74 -1.3% 6,830
15 Maryland $153,800 $99,880 $74 -1.8% 5,260

Top-Paying Metro Areas

Highest median pay among 426 metro areas.

#Metro areaMedianMeanEmployment
1 East South Dakota nonmetropolitan area $204,320 $235,890 170
2 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ $170,050 $217,170 23,980
3 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA $160,610 $214,350 7,130
4 Muskegon-Norton Shores, MI $159,990 $121,290 100
5 Springfield, IL $154,370 $185,470 100
6 Amherst Town-Northampton, MA $145,190 $159,840 40
7 Bloomington, IL $141,070 $161,600 60
8 Santa Fe, NM $138,790 $170,170 110
9 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA $136,820 $206,970 1,530
10 Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT $135,770 $186,380 2,500

Pay by Industry

Highest-paying industries employing personal financial advisorss (BLS OEWS, by median).

#IndustryMedianMeanEmployment
1 Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services $193,300 $164,630 30
2 Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities $159,990 $144,380
3 Office Administrative Services $138,130 $146,910
4 Administrative and Support Services $137,810 $136,340
5 Sector 56 - Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services $137,810 $136,340
6 Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services $122,830 $100,320 1,240
7 Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities $120,870 $169,520 192,160
8 Other Nondepository Credit Intermediation $112,050 $147,790 1,170
9 Other Investment Pools and Funds $111,220 $162,650 1,220
10 Nondepository Credit Intermediation $108,690 $143,800 1,310
11 Sector 52 - Finance and Insurance $106,810 $160,210 248,380
12 Cross-industry, Private Ownership only $105,200 $156,800 266,380

Workforce Deep-Dive

Distribution and demographics from Census ACS (2023, self-reported). Wage figures here are ACS averages and run lower than the authoritative BLS wages above; use them for shape, not exact pay.

Annual wage distribution

< $10K
91,877
$10-20k
11,858
$20-30k
12,215
$30-40k
19,439
$40-50k
29,061
$50-60k
24,089
$60-70k
34,080
$70-80k
27,793
$80-90k
26,728
$90-100k
18,212
$100-110k
26,472
$110-120k
12,209
$120-130k
16,978
$130-140k
7,891
$140-150k
8,886
$150-160k
18,724
$160-170k
7,469
$170-180k
7,016
$180-190k
6,039
$190-200k
4,369
$200k+
116,736

Pay by age band

16-24
$41,892
25-34
$104,472
35-44
$165,321
45-54
$186,458
55-64
$175,366
65+
$112,959

Education level

Bachelors Degree
$157,514
Masters Degree
$178,491
1 or more years of college credit, no degree
$86,738
Professional degree
$193,226
Associates Degree
$75,729
Regular high school diploma
$59,662
Some college, but less than 1 year
$74,577
Doctorate degree
$144,249
GED or alternative credential
$55,326
No schooling completed
$59,634
12th grade - no diploma
$69,723
Grade 10
$78,904
Grade 9
$64,055
Grade 8
$40,781
Grade 11
$47,754
Grade 5
Grade 6
$30,586
Grade 4
$196,767

Full-time vs part-time

Full-time
397,776 · $179,845
Part-time
38,709 · $123,408

Race / ethnicity

White
$155,171
Two or More Races
$137,014
Black
$83,178
Asian
$143,635
Other
$96,099
American Indian
$56,037
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
$47,800
American Indian and Alaska Native tribes specified; or American Indian or Alaska Native, not specified and no other races
$83,342
Alaska Native
$122,342

Top fields of study

Finance
$183,588
Business Management And Administration
$173,640
General Business
$168,471
Economics
$212,578
Accounting
$149,556
Psychology
$113,735
Political Science And Government
$184,426
Marketing And Marketing Research
$160,444

Top Skills

Most important skills for this role (O*NET importance, 1–5 scale).

Reading Comprehension
4.1
Active Listening
4.1
Speaking
4.0
Writing
3.9
Critical Thinking
3.8
Service Orientation
3.6
Judgment and Decision Making
3.6
Mathematics
3.6
Complex Problem Solving
3.6
Social Perceptiveness
3.6
Systems Analysis
3.4
Persuasion
3.4

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do personal financial advisors make in the U.S.?

The median personal financial advisors salary in the United States is $105,070 per year (mean $156,670), and about 80% earn between $50,190 and $357,020.

How much do personal financial advisors make per hour?

Roughly $75 per hour, based on a mean annual wage of $156,670 and 2,080 work hours per year.

Which state pays personal financial advisors the most?

New York has the highest average pay for personal financial advisors at $210,310 per year (median $166,400).

What is the job outlook for personal financial advisors?

Employment is projected to change +9.6% from 2024 to 2034 (Much faster than average), with about 24,100 openings per year.

What People Search

Common U.S. search queries related to this occupation.

how much do certified financial advisors makehow much do certified financial analysts makehow much do certified financial planners make per yearhow much do independent financial advisors makehow much do independent financial planners makehow much do personal financial advisors makehow much do personal financial advisors make a yearhow much do personal financial planners makehow much does certified financial planner makehow much does personal financial advisor makepersonal financial advisor salary californiapersonal financial advisor salary floridapersonal financial advisor salary old mutualpersonal financial advisor salary rangepersonal financial advisors salarypersonal financial planner salary