Edelman Financial Engines vs TIAA Wealth Management Fees: What Each Costs in Dollars at $250k, $500k, $1M

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Updated October 3, 2026. Quick answer: TIAA Wealth Management’s Private Asset Management schedule is lower at $500,000: $4,500 a year (the brochure says the program generally is deemed appropriate for clients with at least $1,000,000 in investable assets, and its fee excludes trade commissions and fixed income spread), versus $8,250 a year for Edelman Financial Engines, computed from each firm’s own SEC-filed fee disclosure. See the full side-by-side table below for $250,000, $1 million and $2 million.

What each firm charges, side by side

Edelman Financial Engines discloses a tiered schedule starting at 1.75% (Edelman Financial Engines Wrap Fee Brochure (Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C.), Form ADV Part 2A, March 31, 2026); TIAA Wealth Management discloses a tiered schedule starting at 0.90% (TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC, Advice & Planning Services, Private Asset Management Disclosure Brochure (Form ADV Part 2A), March 31, 2026).

What the fee includes, in each firm’s own words

Edelman Financial Engines (Edelman Financial Engines Wrap Fee Brochure (Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C.), Form ADV Part 2A, March 31, 2026): The brochure says wealth planning clients generally pay fees under its Client Fee Schedule. That schedule charges 1.75% on the first $400,000, 1.25% on the next $350,000 ($400,001 to $750,000), 1.00% on the next $250,000 ($750,001 to $1,000,000), 0.75% on the next $2,000,000 ($1,000,001 to $3,000,000), 0.60% on the next $7,000,000 ($3,000,001 to $10,000,000) and 0.50% on the next $15,000,000 ($10,000,001 to $25,000,000). The brochure adds: “Unless a separate agreement to the contrary is negotiated and outlined in a written agreement, no clients who receive discretionary investment management through the Firm will pay a fee more than the 1.75% annual fee outlined below.”

Fees above $25,000,000 are individually negotiable and not part of the published schedule.

TIAA Wealth Management (TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC, Advice & Planning Services, Private Asset Management Disclosure Brochure (Form ADV Part 2A), March 31, 2026): “The PAM Fee schedules for the discretionary accounts are provided below. They are subject to change with prior notice to materially impacted clients enrolled in PAM.” The PAM Fee Blended Schedule is 0.90% on the first $1,000,000 of market value, 0.70% on the next $2,000,000, 0.50% on the next $2,000,000 and 0.40% over $5,000,000.

This is the PAM Fee Blended Schedule of the Private Asset Management program (“PAM”), sponsored by the Advice & Planning Services division of TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC (“TC Services”) and sub-advised by TIAA Wealth Investment Management LLC. The first $1,000,000 is billed at 0.90%, so $250,000 costs $2,250, $500,000 costs $4,500 and $1,000,000 costs $9,000. At $2,000,000 the first $1,000,000 costs $9,000 and the next $1,000,000 is billed at 0.70%, or $7,000, for a total of $16,000. The PAM Fee does not include equity trade commissions or fixed income spread, or the fees and expenses inherent in the underlying securities, and the brochure says the program generally is deemed appropriate for clients with at least $1,000,000 in investable assets, so the $250,000 and $500,000 rows are below that level.TIAA Wealth Investment Management LLC is paid asset-based fees of 3.75 basis points by TC Services for its sub-advisory work on PAM; TC Services, which sponsors PAM, is the entity that bills clients, so its Private Asset Management brochure is the source for the schedule on this page. That brochure also lists a separate PAM Fee Exclusively Fixed Income Schedule (0.50% on the first $1,000,000, then 0.35%, 0.25%, 0.20% and 0.15% over $10,000,000) beside the Blended Schedule; the figures above use the Blended Schedule.

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, Edelman Financial Engines runs $8,250 a year and TIAA Wealth Management’s Private Asset Management schedule comes to $4,500 a year before equity trade commissions and fixed income spread: a difference of up to $3,750 a year between those figures at that balance.

Want the full breakdown for either firm on its own? Read the Edelman Financial Engines fee page or the TIAA Wealth Management fee page for the complete tier table and source citations.

Comparing these two against a full move? Read the general mechanics of switching financial advisors, or use a dated termination letter once you decide.

Sources

• Edelman Financial Engines Wrap Fee Brochure (Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C.), Form ADV Part 2A (March 31, 2026): https://www.edelmanfinancialengines.com/content/dam/efe/corporate-brand/Legal-Documents/Wrap_Fee_Brochure.pdf
• SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. (CRD #104510): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/104510
• TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC, Advice & Planning Services, Private Asset Management Disclosure Brochure (Form ADV Part 2A) (March 31, 2026): https://files.adviserinfo.sec.gov/IAPD/Content/Common/crd_iapd_Brochure.aspx?BRCHR_VRSN_ID=1028127
• SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC (d/b/a Advice & Planning Services, sponsor of the Private Asset Management Program) (CRD #20472): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/20472

Methodology. This page was built October 3, 2026, re-pairing figures already archived and independently verified for Edelman Financial Engines and TIAA Wealth Management 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.