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Updated September 28, 2026. Quick answer: Mostly yes, with one carve-out. Steward Partners Investment Advisory is registered with the SEC only as an investment adviser, so on your advisory account it owes you a fiduciary duty under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. Its own Form CRS states: “When providing advisory services, we are held to a fiduciary standard that covers our investment advisory relationship with you.” A limited number of Steward Partners Investment Advisory’s financial professionals are separately licensed to sell brokerage products in a different capacity, where the weaker Regulation Best Interest standard, not a fiduciary duty, applies instead.
How it’s registered
From Form CRS, Customer Relationship Summary, Steward Partners Investment Advisory (March 31, 2025): “Steward Partners Investment Advisory, LLC (“we”,” “our,” or “SPIA”) is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) as an investment adviser.”
The standard of conduct, in its own words
“When providing advisory services, we are held to a fiduciary standard that covers our investment advisory relationship with you.”
On commissions: “These persons will earn commission-based compensation for selling insurance products.”
Fiduciary status by capacity
| Capacity | Registration | Standard you’re owed | Can earn commissions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| As your investment adviser (most clients) | SEC-registered investment adviser | Fiduciary duty (Investment Advisers Act of 1940) | No (asset-based advisory fee: up to $12,500 a year, 2.50% on a $500,000 account, the published maximum, which the firm says is negotiable) | Form CRS, Customer Relationship Summary, Steward Partners Investment Advisory, March 31, 2025 |
| As a dually licensed representative (limited) | Also FINRA-registered broker-dealer representative, separate capacity | Regulation Best Interest (not a fiduciary duty) | Yes | Form CRS, Customer Relationship Summary, Steward Partners Investment Advisory, March 31, 2025 |
What this means for what you pay
Fiduciary status is one input, not the whole picture. Steward Partners Investment Advisory discloses a published fee that runs up to $12,500 a year on a $500,000 account (the published maximum, which the firm says is negotiable); see the full dollar breakdown from Steward Partners Investment Advisory’s own fee disclosure before deciding whether the standard of conduct here changes your answer.
If the answer above changes your mind about staying, see what it costs to leave Steward Partners Investment Advisory, or read the general mechanics of switching financial advisors.
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Source: WiserAdvisor’s service descriptionSources
- Form CRS, Customer Relationship Summary, Steward Partners Investment Advisory (March 31, 2025): https://reports.adviserinfo.sec.gov/crs/crs_283004.pdf
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Steward Partners Investment Advisory (CRD #283004): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/283004
- Steward Partners Investment Advisory, SEC Form ADV filing: https://reports.adviserinfo.sec.gov/reports/ADV/283004/PDF/283004.pdf
Methodology. This page was built September 28, 2026, quoting directly from Steward Partners Investment Advisory’s own current Form CRS, with the source linked above; any distinction we could not independently confirm this session is named as an honest gap rather than presented as verified. Nothing here is personalized financial, tax, legal, or investment advice, and it is not a substitute for reading the firm’s own Form CRS. See our Editorial Policy, Corrections, Affiliate Disclosure, and Disclaimer.
Comparing Steward Partners Investment Advisory against other options? See Steward Partners Investment Advisory alternatives, including a lower-fee full-service firm, a flat-fee route and a robo/hybrid.