Updated July 23, 2026. Quick answer: There are 16,935 SEC-registered investment adviser firms in the United States as of the July 1, 2026 SEC roster, managing a combined $177.37 trillion in total regulatory assets. The median firm manages $460 million. New York leads by both firm count (2,558) and assets ($38.07 trillion), while Pennsylvania ranks #2 by assets despite ranking #7 by firm count.
All 53 jurisdictions: Alabama | Alaska | Arizona | Arkansas | California | Colorado | Connecticut | Delaware | Florida | Georgia | Hawaii | Idaho | Illinois | Indiana | Iowa | Kansas | Kentucky | Louisiana | Maine | Maryland | Massachusetts | Michigan | Minnesota | Mississippi | Missouri | Montana | Nebraska | Nevada | New Hampshire | New Jersey | New Mexico | New York | North Carolina | North Dakota | Ohio | Oklahoma | Oregon | Pennsylvania | Puerto Rico | Rhode Island | South Carolina | South Dakota | Tennessee | Texas | US Virgin Islands | Utah | Vermont | Virginia | Washington DC | Washington State | West Virginia | Wisconsin | Wyoming
US financial advisor statistics at a glance (2026)
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| SEC-registered investment adviser firms | 16,935 |
| Total regulatory AUM | $177.37 trillion |
| Median firm regulatory AUM | $460 million |
| Firms reporting $0 regulatory AUM | 615 |
| US jurisdictions with SEC-registered firms | 53 (50 states + DC, PR, VI) |
Advisor firms by size (regulatory AUM bands)
| Firm size band | Firms | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $100M | 1,138 | 7.0% |
| $100M-$1B | 9,791 | 60.0% |
| $1B-$10B | 4,026 | 24.7% |
| Over $10B | 1,365 | 8.4% |
Top 15 states by number of advisor firms
| Rank | State | Firms | Total regulatory AUM | Median firm AUM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York | 2,558 | $38.07 trillion | $852 million |
| 2 | California | 1,853 | $23.06 trillion | $517 million |
| 3 | Texas | 1,062 | $4.55 trillion | $495 million |
| 4 | Florida | 1,056 | $4.08 trillion | $377 million |
| 5 | Illinois | 674 | $7.94 trillion | $623 million |
| 6 | Massachusetts | 621 | $19.26 trillion | $900 million |
| 7 | Pennsylvania | 556 | $27.18 trillion | $543 million |
| 8 | Connecticut | 500 | $3.42 trillion | $859 million |
| 9 | Ohio | 391 | $1.09 trillion | $394 million |
| 10 | New Jersey | 383 | $6.07 trillion | $490 million |
| 11 | Colorado | 351 | $1.31 trillion | $369 million |
| 12 | Georgia | 326 | $1.50 trillion | $438 million |
| 13 | VA | 298 | $580.0 billion | $443 million |
| 14 | MI | 298 | $562.8 billion | $373 million |
| 15 | NC | 288 | $3.03 trillion | $401 million |
Top 10 states by advisor-managed assets
| Rank | State | Total regulatory AUM | Firms |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York | $38.07 trillion | 2,558 |
| 2 | Pennsylvania | $27.18 trillion | 556 |
| 3 | California | $23.06 trillion | 1,853 |
| 4 | Massachusetts | $19.26 trillion | 621 |
| 5 | Illinois | $7.94 trillion | 674 |
| 6 | New Jersey | $6.07 trillion | 383 |
| 7 | Texas | $4.55 trillion | 1,062 |
| 8 | Florida | $4.08 trillion | 1,056 |
| 9 | Missouri | $3.57 trillion | 193 |
| 10 | Connecticut | $3.42 trillion | 500 |
What the concentration means for consumers: more firms in a market generally means more fee competition and more fee-only options – but it also means more marketing noise. Whatever the market, compare quotes in written annual dollars using the Financial Advisor Fee Calculator and sanity-check them against average wealth management fees or, at higher asset levels, private wealth management fees.
Comparing advisors in this market?
Firm counts tell you how crowded the market is – fees tell you what it costs. Get every quote in written annual dollars before an intro call.
Cite this page: Clear Money Guide, “US Financial Advisor Statistics 2026,” computed from the SEC Investment Adviser public roster (report date July 1, 2026). Free to cite with a link to this page.
Methodology
Figures are computed from the official SEC Investment Adviser firm roster (FOIA download, report date July 1, 2026), deduplicated by CRD number (zero duplicates found). “Regulatory AUM” is Form ADV Item 5.F.(2)(c) – total regulatory assets under management; 615 firms reporting $0 RAUM are excluded from AUM statistics. State assignment uses each firm’s main-office address; SEC-registered firms only (state-registered advisers are not included). Every figure was independently recomputed by a second automated reviewer before publication. Full details: how Clear Money Guide computes its numbers. This page was materially reviewed on July 23, 2026, and is educational – not personalized financial, tax, legal, or investment advice. See our Editorial Policy, Corrections, Affiliate Disclosure, and Disclaimer.
More statute-cited tables: Probate cost by state and small-estate limits by state, built under the same verification methodology.