How Much Money Can I Make as a Financial Advisor?

Average Salary

In its May 2010 survey of employment trends in the United States, the Bureau of Labor Statistics gathered wage data from over 150,000 financial advisors working throughout the nation. The BLS concluded that the mean annual salary for the occupation was $91,220, which translates into an hourly pay rate of $43.85 and a monthly income totalling $7,602. At the time of publication, Indeed.com put the average wage in the financial advice profession at $98,000 per year.

The largest number of financial advisors worked in securities and commodity contracts intermediation and brokerage, and other financial investment activities, according to the BLS analysis. It reported the mean annual pay rates in these sectors of the industry as $105,890 and $107,520, respectively. Individuals working for agencies, brokerages and other insurance related activities earned a mean of $91,140, while their counterparts in non-depository credit intermediation received $76,850. Those employed by insurance and employee benefits funds were paid a mean of $88,460, and practitioners in other investment pools and funds earned $93,040 a year.

Location may also affect a financial advisor's pay. The BLS reports New York as the state in which, across all industry sectors, a practitioner was likely to earn the highest wages, with an annual mean of $136,310. Connecticut and Massachusetts completed the top three locations with similar pay rates -- $119,770 and $118,400, respectively. Delaware and Illinois were reported to have comparable salary levels, with respective means of $82,930 and $80,470. New Mexico and North Dakota were amongst the states with the lowest salaries at just $52,260 and $46,840 respectively.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that employment opportunities for financial advisors will grow by approximately 30 percent over the decade from 2008 to 2018. This exceeds projections of growth for the country as a whole, across all occupations, put at between 7 and 13 percent for the same period. The provision of financial assistance to the large numbers of people expected to retire in the coming years will be the primary fuel for this growth, and as such wage levels should remain high. However, the BLS does caution that, given the good levels of pay, the profession is a popular career choice and candidates should expect keen competition for vacancies.