Guides › Financial Advisor Fees
Updated October 3, 2026. Quick answer: Creative Planning has the lower published fee at $500,000: $6,000 a year, versus $10,000 a year (its standard, negotiable 2.00% Advisory Fee, before separate Manager Fees and a 0.050% Platform Fee) for Wells Fargo Advisors, computed from each firm’s own SEC-filed fee disclosure. Where a firm publishes only a maximum rate, the figure shown is that maximum, and what you pay may be lower. See the full side-by-side table below for $250,000, $1 million and $2 million.
What each firm charges, side by side
| Account balance | Creative Planning (annual fee) | Wells Fargo Advisors (annual fee) |
|---|---|---|
| $250,000 | $3,000 | Up to $5,000 |
| $500,000 | $6,000 | Up to $10,000 |
| $1,000,000 | $11,000 | Up to $20,000 |
| $2,000,000 | $21,000 | Up to $40,000 |
Creative Planning discloses a tiered schedule starting at 1.20% (Creative Planning, LLC Form ADV Part 2A, March 31, 2026); Wells Fargo Advisors discloses a standard, negotiable Advisory Fee of 2.00%, before separate Manager Fees and a 0.050% Platform Fee (Wells Fargo Advisors Wrap Fee Brochure (Personalized Unified Managed Account Program), Form ADV Part 2A Appendix 1, September 2025 (Rev 76-09/25)).
What the fee includes, in each firm’s own words
Creative Planning (Creative Planning, LLC Form ADV Part 2A, March 31, 2026): The brochure’s Annual Fee Calculation, in its standard fee schedule, is 1.20% on the first $500,000, then 1.00% on assets of $500,001-$2,000,000, then .85% on assets of $2,000,001-$5,000,000, then .80% on assets of $5,000,001-$10,000,000, then .70% on assets of $10,000,001-$25,000,000, then .40% on assets of $25,000,001-$50,000,000, then .30% on assets of $50,000,001-$100,000,000, then .25% on assets over $100,000,000.
Creative Planning generally requires a client to have a minimum of $200,000 in assets under management, which it may waive at its discretion. The schedule shown is its standard fee schedule. Clients with assets under management below $500,000 may be charged a minimum management fee, which the brochure says is communicated in the client agreement documents, so the $250,000 figure in the table may be higher in practice.
Wells Fargo Advisors (Wells Fargo Advisors Wrap Fee Brochure (Personalized Unified Managed Account Program), Form ADV Part 2A Appendix 1, September 2025 (Rev 76-09/25)): “The Advisory Fee for the Personalized UMA Program, which is negotiable, is shown below. Some Accounts opened prior to September 15, 2018 are subject to different fees. Please consult the Program Features and Fee Schedule of your Client Agreement.” The brochure’s table lists the Advisory Fee, annualized and calculated on your Account Value, at 2.00%.
Wells Fargo Advisors does not publish a dollar-tiered breakpoint table for the Personalized UMA Program (or for its three sibling programs in the same brochure, FundSource, Private Advisor Network, and Customized Portfolios, which each disclose the identical flat 2.00% standard rate); it publishes a single standard, negotiable rate. The figures above apply that 2.00% as a flat rate; your negotiated rate may be lower. A separate Manager Fee (generally 0.0% to 0.50%, different for each Manager) is charged for each Manager selected, and a non-negotiable Platform Fee of 0.050% applies on top of the Program Fee to most Program Accounts, on the first $50 million of Account Value.
How this compares
Our benchmark of published adviser fee schedules puts the weighted median annual cost near $2,000 to $2,500 on $250,000 (the benchmark). At $500,000, Creative Planning runs $6,000 a year and Wells Fargo Advisors runs $10,000 a year at its standard, negotiable 2.00% Advisory Fee, before Manager and Platform Fees: a difference of $4,000 a year between those figures at that balance.
Want the full breakdown for either firm on its own? Read the Creative Planning fee page or the Wells Fargo Advisors fee page for the complete tier table and source citations.
Thinking about leaving one of these firms instead of pricing what you would pay to stay? See what it costs to leave Wells Fargo Advisors, or read the general mechanics of switching financial advisors.
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- Creative Planning, LLC Form ADV Part 2A (March 31, 2026): https://creativeplanning.com/wp-content/uploads/Creative-Planning-Form-ADV-Part-2A.pdf
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Creative Planning, LLC (CRD #105348): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/105348
- Wells Fargo Advisors Wrap Fee Brochure (Personalized Unified Managed Account Program), Form ADV Part 2A Appendix 1 (September 2025 (Rev 76-09/25)): https://www.wellsfargoadvisors.com/disclosures/legal-disclosures.htm
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC (CRD #19616): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/19616
Methodology. This page was built October 3, 2026, re-pairing figures already archived and independently verified for Creative Planning and Wells Fargo Advisors from each firm’s own SEC-filed disclosure; sources linked above. Nothing here is personalized financial, tax, legal, or investment advice. See our Editorial Policy, Corrections, Affiliate Disclosure, and Disclaimer.