Here’s how much financial advisors make in each state in the United States
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The retirement of the baby boomers is proving beneficial to a wide range of sectors and industries in the United States, from small businesses to large corporations, from individual products to entire industries.
The occupation of personal financial advisor is one of many examples.
With the significant advancements in digital technology in recent decades, many people were concerned that the rise of powerful artificial intelligence in finance, such as the proliferation of robo-advisors, would drive financial advisors out of business.
However, as is often the case with these developments, the threat of long-term technological unemployment is exaggerated — unless we’re talking about manual labour — and, if anything, technology has complemented rather than displaced.
Instead, as the baby boomer generation ages, financial advisors have become more important than ever.
Personal financial advisors are more likely to be needed by baby boomers as they approach retirement.
Plus, as they approach retirement, longer lifespans will require them to stretch their finances further than in the past, driving up demand for financial planning services.
Financial advisors have a bright future, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment Statistics, the average annual income of financial advisors was $124,140 in 2017.
Financial advisor employment is expected to grow 15% over the next ten years, from 2016 to 2026.
Personal financial advisor employment will rise to 312,300 by 2026, up from 271,900 in 2016.
Even if people believe they can get by without a financial advisor, the truth is that the majority of Americans would greatly benefit from one.
According to a CIT Bank survey, only about a fifth of Americans believe they are saving enough to meet their long-term savings goals and plans.
The vast majority of Americans are either saving insufficiently or not saving at all.
The 10 States with the Highest Paying Financial Advisors
A financial advisor’s average salary varies by state, but there are some general trends.
The states with the highest pay for financial advisors are mostly in the Census regions Northeast, South, and, to a lesser extent, West.
Based on the BLS’s mean annual wage data, here’s a breakdown of the top-10 states where personal financial advisors earn the most.
Three New England states — (3) Connecticut, (5) Maine, and (6) Rhode Island — and two Middle Atlantic states — (1) New York and (8) New Jersey — are among the top ten states in the country.
Three states from the South were ranked: (4) District of Columbia, (9) Florida, and (10) North Carolina, all of which are in the South Atlantic division.
Given the number and concentration of businesses in the financial sector in these states, these geographic locations make a lot of sense.
New York, of course, has New York City, which includes Wall Street, the Financial District, and is still the world’s financial capital.
Nearby Connecticut, as well as Rhode Island to some extent, are part of this regional concentration of financial power.
Meanwhile, North Carolina has become a banking hub, with Bank of America’s headquarters in Charlotte.
Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, Silicon Valley, and San Diego are all dynamic economic regions in California, with their fair share of finance companies employing financial advisors and high-income residents in need of financial advisors to help manage their money.
The 10 States with the Lowest Pay for Financial Advisors
The ten states with the lowest average pay for financial advisors are on the other end of the spectrum.
These states are mostly found in the Midwest, South, and, somewhat surprisingly, New England.
| Rank | State | Average Annual Wage |
| 1 | New York | $166,100 |
| 2 | California | $141,100 |
| 3 | Connecticut | $137,120 |
| 4 | District of Columbia | $135,770 |
| 5 | Maine | $134,380 |
| 6 | Rhode Island | $132,990 |
| 7 | New Mexico | $127,350 |
| 8 | New Jersey | $127,220 |
| 9 | Florida | $126,700 |
| 10 | North Carolina | $125,240 |
In terms of financial advisor pay, Vermont is the lone outlier in New England.
Financial advisors in every other New England state make more than $100,000 per year on average.
The average annual income in Vermont is only $76,050, owing to a lack of demand for their services in the state.
Low demand, as well as broader economic conditions, affect financial advisor incomes in the other low-paying states.
For example, many of these states have lower-than-average living costs, which is advantageous in terms of low-cost goods and services.
However, lower wages tend to follow, with the majority of these ten states’ median household incomes falling below the current national median of $57,652, according to the Census Bureau.
In each of the 50 states, how much do financial advisors make?
Here’s a look at the average financial advisor salary by state, in addition to the highest and lowest.
The annual mean wage for personal financial advisors in 2015, 2016 and 2017, as well as the change in average income from 2015 to 2017, are included in the analysis.
| State | Average Annual Wage – 2017 | Average Annual Wage – 2016 | Average Annual Wage – 2015 |
| Alabama | $124,240 | $125,640 | $122,580 |
| Alaska | $99,910 | $104,460 | $106,400 |
| Arizona | $103,130 | $104,210 | $81,760 |
| Arkansas | $103,880 | $104,410 | $95,040 |
| California | $141,100 | $143,570 | $130,510 |
| Colorado | $118,470 | $115,580 | $113,070 |
| Connecticut | $137,120 | $133,210 | $130,780 |
| Delaware | $124,480 | $123,680 | $112,600 |
| District of Columbia | $135,770 | $135,130 | $120,850 |
| Florida | $126,700 | $123,690 | $119,350 |
| Georgia | $115,880 | $121,560 | $116,700 |
| Hawaii | $84,390 | $79,610 | $97,280 |
| Idaho | $104,890 | $100,620 | $97,080 |
| Illinois | $121,750 | $116,110 | $108,380 |
| Indiana | $107,000 | $104,710 | $100,510 |
| Iowa | $91,880 | $95,480 | $78,270 |
| Kansas | $100,730 | $115,870 | $127,280 |
| Kentucky | $91,760 | $89,830 | $84,840 |
| Louisiana | $93,600 | $95,150 | $96,120 |
| Maine | $134,380 | $142,200 | $131,260 |
| Maryland | $105,150 | $108,940 | $102,140 |
| Massachusetts | $109,370 | $102,580 | $130,200 |
| Michigan | $114,210 | $108,920 | $99,730 |
| Minnesota | $109,250 | $108,820 | $110,630 |
| Mississippi | $100,280 | $95,590 | $84,930 |
| Missouri | $89,710 | $103,280 | $108,660 |
| Montana | $103,890 | $113,450 | $127,210 |
| Nebraska | $92,340 | $109,110 | $121,700 |
| Nevada | $116,300 | $121,290 | $106,340 |
| New Hampshire | $114,190 | $138,320 | $123,200 |
| New Jersey | $127,220 | $131,460 | $122,290 |
| New Mexico | $127,350 | n/a | $134,270 |
| New York | $166,100 | $154,900 | $148,450 |
| North Carolina | $125,240 | $113,470 | $115,030 |
| North Dakota | $93,890 | $95,400 | $83,480 |
| Ohio | $109,640 | $112,320 | $104,830 |
| Oklahoma | $82,750 | $83,360 | $85,200 |
| Oregon | $114,150 | $113,830 | $93,880 |
| Pennsylvania | $117,510 | $119,140 | $126,970 |
| Rhode Island | $132,990 | $127,380 | $118,420 |
| South Carolina | $94,090 | $109,370 | $94,490 |
| South Dakota | $83,530 | $82,540 | $80,330 |
| Tennessee | $97,650 | $101,630 | $108,480 |
| Texas | $111,640 | $115,350 | $107,260 |
| Utah | $95,980 | $87,650 | $96,960 |
| Vermont | $76,050 | $71,530 | $71,760 |
| Virginia | $123,730 | $124,360 | $120,330 |
| Washington | $106,370 | $112,860 | $121,320 |
| West Virginia | $88,120 | $93,730 | $72,690 |
| Wisconsin | $106,250 | $108,680 | $91,060 |
| Wyoming | $118,620 | $115,610 | $108,620 |
The states with the highest income growth are a mix of states from the West, South, and Midwest.
For example, between 2015 and 2017, the average annual wage in Arizona increased by 26.1 percent, from $81,760 to $103,130.
In Oregon, incomes have risen from under $100,000 to $114,510.
In a state where the median household income is only $42,009, Mississippi saw the fourth largest increase in income, from $84,930 in 2015 to an impressive $100,280 in 2017.
