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AUM Fees at $500k 2026: 1%, 0.75%, 0.50% Cost

Clear Money Guide

What this guide covers

A quick view of the questions and evidence developed below.

AUM fees at $500k table
At $500k, watch the planning scope
Methodology

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Updated July 7, 2026. Quick answer (2026): AUM fees at $500k are about $5,000/year at 1.00%, $3,750/year at 0.75%, and $2,500/year at 0.50% before fund, platform, trading, tax-prep, or implementation costs. Compare that with flat annual, hourly, project, and robo-supported alternatives.

For a broader proposal comparison at this balance, see financial advisor fees for a $500k portfolio.

AUM fees at $500k table

AUM rate Annual advisor fee Ask before accepting
1.00% $5,000/year Does this include a written plan, implementation help, and tax coordination?
0.75% $3,750/year Is there a minimum fee or lighter service tier?
0.50% $2,500/year What planning work is excluded or billed hourly?

Compare nearby balances: AUM fees at $1M, AUM fees at $2M, AUM fees at $3M, and AUM fees explained.

At $500,000, where does the measured cost sit?The measured band against this page’s own 0.50 / 0.75 / 1.00% ladder.At $500,000, where does the measured costsit?The measured band against this page’s own 0.50/ 0.75 / 1.00% ladder.0.50% of your balance0.75% of your balance1.00% of your balanceWhat firms actually disclose (measured)$2,500$3,750$5,000$3,750 to $5,000$0$3,000$6,000$9,000$12,000The band runs from exactly this page’s 0.75%line to exactly its 1.00% line.The band is an identification interval, not amargin of error. Where a filing discloses afee range rather than one schedule, its lowand high ends are carried through separately;midpoints are never invented.The three grey bars are this page’s ownarithmetic on a rate you might be quoted. Onlythe band is measured.These are disclosed prices, not paid prices.Many firms negotiate, and many disclose nocomputable price at all.Source: Clear Money Guide Research Team, 2026 Advisor FeeBenchmark v1.1, DOI 10.5281/zenodo.21762538, CC BY 4.0 —annual cost computed from the Form ADV Part 2A feedisclosures of 176 SEC-registered investment advisers andweighted to a screened frame of 9,234 advisers that serveindividual clients. Aggregate table read from the deposit onAugust 17, 2026.
Annual advisory cost at $500,000: what this page’s rate ladder computes, against what SEC-registered firms actually disclose. Axis maximum $12,000, shared with the other pages in this family so the bands are comparable between balances. The benchmark is a provisional release: its own charter asks for 200 completed firms and this deposit has 176, so treat these as indicative.

At $750,000, a tenth of a percent is $750 a year.

That is the whole argument for getting more than one quote. Take the figures above into the conversation and ask each firm what they would charge on $750,000, all in, and what that buys beyond investment management.

If your portfolio is $250,000 or more, this connects you — free, with no obligation to hire anyone — with 2 to 3 vetted advisors.

Before you start, what actually happens. The matching service is run by WiserAdvisor, an independent advisor-matching company. It opens on their site, asks for your ZIP code and a few questions, and matches you with 2 to 3 vetted advisors. It is free to you.

WiserAdvisor states the service is built for portfolios of $250,000 and above. By submitting, you consent to emails, phone calls and text messages from WiserAdvisor and up to three advisors, so expect to be contacted. Clear Money Guide is paid when you complete the form, whether or not you ever hire anyone.

Compare fees, scope, conflicts, credentials and fiduciary duty before you hire anyone. This is not the only way to find an adviser.

See which advisors fit your situation

Opens on WiserAdvisor’s site in a new tab.

At $500k, watch the planning scope

  • A lower annual dollar fee can still be a poor fit if it does not include the planning work you need.
  • A flat annual or project quote can be cleaner for one-time planning, rollovers, or second opinions.
  • Ask whether fund costs, platform costs, and tax-prep fees are included or separate.

Methodology

  • We convert common AUM rates into annual dollar amounts for a $500,000 portfolio.
  • We compare AUM with flat annual, hourly, project, retainer, and robo-supported alternatives by scope and cost.
  • This page was materially reviewed on July 7, 2026. It is educational, not personalized financial, tax, legal, or investment advice.

Editorial standards: Editorial Policy

What firms actually disclose at this balance. In our own benchmark of published adviser fee schedules, the weighted median annual cost at $500,000 is $3,750 to $5,000, taken from the Form ADV Part 2A filings of 176 SEC-registered advisers. The full benchmark, with method.

See the adviser match on this page