Study: CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® Professionals Earn Higher Pay and Enjoy Their Jobs

WASHINGTON, D.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CFP Board today announced new data from a compensation study that reveals that CFP^® professionals have high levels of career satisfaction and enjoy higher earnings than financial planners without CFP^® certification.

The CFP Board 2025 Compensation Study found that CFP^® professionals earn 13% more than other financial planners after controlling for other factors like job experience, company size and the type of services they offer.

The study shows high career satisfaction among CFP^® professionals, with 84% of CFP^® professionals highly fulfilled with their career. CFP^® professionals indicate they are satisfied or very satisfied with career attributes including stability (86%), work-life balance (83%), career advancement (79%), professional development (76%) and compensation (73%). Additionally, 9 in 10 CFP^® professionals plan to stay with their current company for the next two years and, of those considering leaving their current company, 74% intend to remain in the financial planning profession.

“This study shows that CFP^® certification delivers rewards beyond higher pay, including strong career satisfaction,” said CFP Board CEO Kevin R. Keller, CAE. “Those outcomes reflect what CFP^® certification represents at its core: a commitment to competent, ethical advice that delivers real value to the public and helps build stronger client relationships.”

The median 2024 total compensation for all financial planners was $185,000. Experience plays a crucial role for financial planners, with those who have more than 20 years of financial planning work experience enjoying a median 2024 total compensation of $359,000. For financial planners supervising staff, compensation scales up significantly. Those who supervise five or more staff reported a median total compensation of $400,500 in 2024.

Financial planners not only benefit from cash salaries and bonuses but also from valuable employee benefits, including defined contribution retirement plans (96%), professional certification/designation dues (93%), health insurance (90%), dental insurance (85%), disability insurance (83%), vision insurance (79%) and even hybrid work options (57%).

Work-life balance is another key highlight of the study, with financial planners achieving a balance that allows them to thrive both professionally and personally. Financial planners have a median of 20 days of paid time off (PTO) per year, with 26% having unlimited PTO, as well as access to maternity (83%), paternity (81%), adoption (81%) and family medical leave (77%).

Download and read the full CFP Board 2025 Compensation Study.

About the Survey

CFP Board commissioned independent research firm Industry Insights to collect compensation data from financial advisors across the United States. From mid-April to mid-June 2025, Industry Insights collected compensation data from 1,489 financial planners. The data, which serve as the basis of this report, are subject to a margin of error of +/- 2.6% at a 95% confidence level.

ABOUT CFP BOARD

CFP Board is the professional body for personal financial planners in the U.S. CFP Board consists of two affiliated organizations focused on advancing the financial planning profession for the public’s benefit. CFP Board of Standards sets and upholds standards for financial planning and administers the prestigious CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^® certification — widely recognized by the public, advisors and firms as the standard for financial planners — so that the public has access to the benefits of competent and ethical financial planning. CFP^® certification is held by more than 104,000 people in the U.S. CFP Board Center for Financial Planning addresses diversity and workforce development challenges and conducts and publishes research that adds to the financial planning profession’s body of knowledge.