Guides › Financial Advisor Fees
Updated September 18, 2026. Quick answer: Yes, on every account. Empower Personal Wealth is registered with the SEC only as an investment adviser (it is not a broker-dealer), so the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 requires it to act as your fiduciary. Its own Form CRS states: “When we act as your investment adviser, we have to act in your best interest and not put our interests ahead of yours. At the same time, the way we make money creates some conflicts with your interests.”
Is Empower a fiduciary?
Yes, on every account. Empower Personal Wealth is registered with the SEC only as an investment adviser, so the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 requires it to act as your fiduciary.
How it’s registered
From Form CRS (Client Relationship Summary) (April 1, 2026): “EAG is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as an investment adviser.”
The standard of conduct, in its own words
“When we act as your investment adviser, we have to act in your best interest and not put our interests ahead of yours. At the same time, the way we make money creates some conflicts with your interests.”
On commissions: “In addition to their salary, our representatives may earn bonus compensation based upon engaging plan sponsors to offer EAG’s services. Additionally, our representatives receive incentive compensation paid by Empower when they refer a retirement plan participant to its rollover/distribution call center to consider whether to rollover plan assets into advisory accounts with us.”
Fiduciary status by capacity
| Capacity | Registration | Standard you’re owed | Can earn commissions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| As your investment adviser | SEC-registered investment adviser | Fiduciary duty (Investment Advisers Act of 1940) | No (asset-based advisory fee: $4,450 a year, 0.89% on a $500,000 account) | Form CRS (Client Relationship Summary), April 1, 2026 |
What this means for what you pay
Fiduciary status is one input, not the whole picture. Empower Personal Wealth discloses a published fee that runs $4,450 a year on a $500,000 account; see the full dollar breakdown from Empower Personal Wealth’s own fee disclosure before deciding whether the standard of conduct here changes your answer.
If the answer above changes your mind about staying, read the general mechanics of switching financial advisors, or use a dated termination letter once you decide.
Compare your next step
Just comparing fees? Keep reading the fee guide.Optional next step
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The form is run by Kapitalwise, our advisor-matching partner. Kapitalwise sends your details to advisers who pay for the introduction, so expect calls and texts. Clear Money Guide is paid when you submit the form, whether or not you ever hire anyone. This is free to you and there is no obligation to hire anyone.
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Ask about the full fee, what it covers and how the adviser is paid. A match is an introduction, not a recommendation from Clear Money Guide.
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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. Advisers pay for the introduction. Clear Money Guide is paid when you complete the form, whether or not you ever hire anyone. There is no obligation to hire anyone.
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Source: WiserAdvisor’s service descriptionSources
- Form CRS (Client Relationship Summary) (April 1, 2026): https://reports.adviserinfo.sec.gov/crs/crs_112058.pdf
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Empower Advisory Group, LLC (CRD #112058): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/112058
- Empower Advisory Group, LLC, SEC Form ADV filing: https://reports.adviserinfo.sec.gov/reports/ADV/112058/PDF/112058.pdf
Methodology. This page was built September 18, 2026, quoting directly from Empower Personal Wealth’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.
What does it actually take to open an account? See Empower Personal Wealth’s minimum investment, quoted verbatim from its own Form ADV Part 2A / wrap-fee brochure.
Comparing Empower Personal Wealth against other options? See Empower Personal Wealth alternatives, including a lower-fee full-service firm, a flat-fee route, and a robo/hybrid.
How does this compare? See how 127 advisory firms are registered, from each firm’s own SEC record.
Checking how another firm describes its standard of conduct? See Is LPL Financial a Fiduciary? What Its Own Form CRS Says (2026).
Checking how another firm describes its standard of conduct? See Is Merrill Lynch a Fiduciary? What Its Own Form CRS Says (2026).
Checking how another firm describes its standard of conduct? See Is Morgan Stanley a Fiduciary? What Its Own Form CRS Says (2026).
Checking how another firm describes its standard of conduct? See Is Northwestern Mutual a Fiduciary? What Its Own Form CRS Says (2026).
Checking how another firm describes its standard of conduct? See Is Primerica a Fiduciary? What Its Own Form CRS Says (2026).
Checking how another firm describes its standard of conduct? See Is Thrivent a Fiduciary? What Its Own Form CRS Says (2026).
Checking how another firm describes its standard of conduct? See Is TIAA Wealth Management a Fiduciary? What Its Own Form CRS Says (2026).
Checking how another firm describes its standard of conduct? See Is UBS a Fiduciary? What Its Own Form CRS Says (2026).
Already with Empower Personal Wealth and weighing a move? How to leave Empower Personal Wealth covers what it costs to transfer out.