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MoneyWeek article- How much should you be paying your financial adviser?

Journalist: Marc Shoffman, Freelance

ended 21. November 2025

Helloo

I am writing a piece for MoneyWeek today based on new FCA data showing financial advisers typically charge clients between 1.1% to 2.9% as well as ongoing charges of 0.5% to 0.9%.

I am seeking views on whether these charges look fair/correct.

Also keen for comments on when paying for an adviser is worth it and how to know if you are paying too much.

Many thanks

Marc

4 responses from the Newspage community

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Eamonn PrendergastVerified
Chartered Financial Adviser at Palantir Financial Planning Ltd
“The cost of advice is easy to measure — the value is not.”
Typical fees between 1% and 3% for initial advice which I feel is high and 0.5% to 0.9% ongoing are broadly fair, but the real question isn’t cost, it’s worth. A good adviser does far more than pick funds: they create financial forecasts, identify your ‘magic number’ for retirement, and guide you through volatile markets. They provide what Vanguard calls ‘adviser alpha’ — behavioural coaching, tax planning, and strategic decision-making that can add far more value than the fee itself. If your adviser helps you stay invested through volatility, avoid costly mistakes, and structure your money tax-efficiently, that’s value you can’t see on a statement. Clients should always know exactly what they’re paying for with a clear breakdown of adviser, platform, and fund charges and make sure that advice is genuinely moving them closer to their goals.
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Philly PonniahVerified
Chartered Wealth Manager and Financial Coach at Philly Financial
The fees can be justified when the advice is genuinely expert and adds real value, especially in complex situations that could trigger unexpected tax charges. The issue is some firms charge at the top end while offering little more than an annual review, which isn’t enough for today’s savvier clients. If you’re paying ongoing charges, you should expect proactive guidance and more than a box ticking compliance exercise.
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Rob MansfieldVerified
Independent Financial Advisor at Rootes Wealth Management
It's a cliché but value is what's really important here. You should pay for what you value as advisory services can vary significantly. I see my main benefit as offering clients peace of mind and the comfort that an expert is proactively looking over their finances. As such i'm not looking to take on thousands of clients as i'm favouring quality over quantity. Regardless of what you're paying, if you never get a call, you're probably paying too much.
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Alex Bakovljev0
Independent Financial Planner at Newbridge Financial Planning
Hi Marc,

Days of the rule of thumb being 3% initial and 1% ongoing certainly seem to be behind us. Although a decrease in cost seems contradictory, as the cost of everything else has gone up, it's in part to several factors.

Consumer Duty has encouraged advisers to consider options such as tiering adviser charges.

Slicker providers, technology and processes have meant that it doesn't take as much time to service a client.

Thanks to COVID, more people are comfortable with virtual meetings, so in some circumstances the operational cost of providing advice has decreased, but this has been countered with more money being spent on compliance services.

The question advisers have to ask themselves is "if the cost of providing advice continues to drop with the adoption of AI etc, will they pass those savings on to clients?" But has the value of advice dropped? I would argue not, and there are multiple studies that reinforce the value of advice.