The value of financial advice

This report from the TIAA Institute examines the relationship between working with a financial advisor and a range of financial outcomes, including wealth accumulation, financial confidence, and saving behavior. Based on a nationally representative survey of 1,900 adults and accompanying economic modeling, the research also explores common reasons people give for not seeking advice and what those reasons suggest about opportunities for the advisory profession.

Summary

Americans face complex financial decisions at every stage of life, yet millions go without professional guidance, often not because advice isn't available, but because they believe they don't need it. They assume their finances are too simple, their assets too modest, or that the window of opportunity has already closed. New research from the TIAA Institute examines these assumptions. Drawing on a nationally representative survey of nearly 1,900 adults and accompanying economic modeling, the findings show a consistent pattern: individuals who work with an advisor report higher wealth and greater financial confidence than those who do not, and the reasons people cite for not seeking advice appear to be inconsistent with the outcomes reported by survey respondents.

Key Insights

• Advised households report significantly higher wealth. Survey respondents working with an advisor reported average net worth of $800,000, compared to $388,000 for non-advised peers, even after adjusting for income and demographics. Separately, economic modeling of hypothetical personas estimates a difference equivalent to 140 to 240 basis points, through better asset allocation and tax-efficient strategies, without assuming higher total contributions.
• Advised individuals report higher financial confidence. Those with advisors report a 14 to 19 percentage point difference in financial confidence compared to non-advised respondents, across dimensions including handling emergencies, covering healthcare costs, and managing debt.
• Advised individuals report stronger financial discipline. Ninety-two percent of advised survey respondents report saving regularly, compared to 75% of non-advised respondents, and advised individuals are nearly twice as likely to report regular retirement account contributions.
• Advice may still hold value later in life. Economic modeling of hypothetical personas suggests that guidance sought just before retirement could be associated with a 10% or greater increase in sustainable spending, relevant for older adults who may believe they have missed their opportunity to seek advice.

Methodology

This report is based on a nationwide survey of 1,864 adults between the ages of 18 and 79, conducted in October 2025 by Edge Research on behalf of the TIAA Institute. The sample was distributed equally across four age groups (under 35, 35-49, 50-64, and 65-79), balanced by gender and income bands (under $50,000; $50,000-$100,000; $100,000 and above), and controlled for race, ethnicity, and geography to be census representative. Propensity and cardinal score matching were used to control for age, gender, income, ethnicity, and marital status when comparing advised and non-advised respondents. Because advisor assignment was not randomized and individuals self-selected into advice, this approach does not control for the possibility that individuals who chose to seek advice already had stronger financial habits beforehand. Therefore, the results establish correlation but not causation between advice and superior outcomes. Survey findings were supplemented with economic modeling across three hypothetical personas to illustrate potential value of advice in basis points of additional annual return. Accumulation modeling used Morningstar risk-based portfolio return assumptions and assumed advice is cost-neutral; advised individuals do not contribute more in total, only differently. Decumulation modeling used the Retirement Income Review (RIR) tool to evaluate Social Security claiming, partial annuitization, and withdrawal sequencing, assuming a 90% probability of success. Results reflect modeling assumptions applied to hypothetical individuals, are not based on empirical outcomes, and are not indicative of future results.