Guides › Financial Advisor Fees
Updated September 19, 2026. Quick answer: TIAA Wealth Management is less expensive at $500,000: $4,500 a year, versus $15,000 a year for Lincoln Financial Advisors, 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
| Account balance | Lincoln Financial Advisors (annual fee) | TIAA Wealth Management (annual fee) |
|---|---|---|
| $250,000 | $7,500 | $2,250 |
| $500,000 | $15,000 | $4,500 |
| $1,000,000 | $30,000 | $9,000 |
| $2,000,000 | $60,000 | $16,000 |
Lincoln Financial Advisors discloses a maximum, individually negotiated rate of 3.0% (Osaic FA, Inc. Premier Series Wealth Management Program, Form ADV Part 2A – Appendix 1 (Wrap Fee Program Brochure), October 1, 2024); 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
Lincoln Financial Advisors (Osaic FA, Inc. Premier Series Wealth Management Program, Form ADV Part 2A – Appendix 1 (Wrap Fee Program Brochure), October 1, 2024): “OFA updated this Brochure and Items 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 to reflect the fact that Lincoln Financial Advisors Corporation has rebranded and changed its name to Osaic FA, Inc. effective June 6, 2024. … Prior to the rebrand and name change effective June 6, 2024 as detailed above, Items 4, 6, and 9 of this Brochure were updated on May 28, 2024 as part of an interim updating amendment to reflect the fact that Lincoln Financial Advisors Corporation was acquired by Osaic Holdings, Inc. effective May 6, 2024. … The maximum annual program fee in Premier is 3.00% of the client’s assets under management.”
IMPORTANT CONTEXT: Lincoln Financial Advisors Corporation ceased to exist as a distinct legal entity effective June 6, 2024 – it was acquired by Osaic Holdings, Inc. and renamed Osaic FA, Inc. (same CRD/registration, direct successor). CRD 3978’s SEC investment adviser registration was later terminated, effective January 28, 2025, and Osaic’s advisory business now runs through a different entity, Osaic Advisory Services, LLC (CRD 171070), which is SEC-registered today; both checked against SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure on September 19, 2026. The October 2024 brochure above is the last Premier Series brochure filed under CRD 3978 and is the source for the figures on this page. The Premier Series Program’s combined program fee (Sponsor Fee + Firm Fee + negotiable Adviser Fee + Manager/Strategist Fee + Broker-dealer/Custodian Fee, plus optional Overlay Services Fee) is capped at a disclosed maximum of 3.00% of AUM across all four Premier sub-programs; there is no single fixed published schedule since the Adviser Fee component is individually negotiated per client/IAR. dollar_at applies the disclosed 3.00% ceiling uniformly as the maximum a client could be charged (250000*0.03=7500; 500000*0.03=15000; 1000000*0.03=30000; 2000000*0.03=60000). Actual fees are typically lower and individually negotiated.
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. … PAM Fee Blended Schedule Value Bracket Annual Fee as % First $1,000,000 of market value 0.90% Next $2,000,000 0.70% Next $2,000,000 0.50% Over $5,000,000 0.40%”
Marginal/tax-bracket-style tiers from the PAM Fee Blended Schedule (the Private Asset Management program run by TC Services, TIAA’s high-net-worth wealth-management arm, sub-advised by TIAA Wealth Investment Management LLC). $250k: 250,000 x 0.90% = $2,250. $500k: 500,000 x 0.90% = $4,500. $1M: 1,000,000 x 0.90% = $9,000. $2M: first $1,000,000 x 0.90% = $9,000, plus the next $1,000,000 (of the $1,000,001-$3,000,000 tier) x 0.70% = $7,000, total $16,000. TIAA Wealth Investment Management LLC (CRD 334925, SEC file 801-132296, the WIM sub-adviser entity) has no client-facing fee schedule of its own – it is paid a flat sub-advisory basis-point fee by TC Services/TIAA Trust; the PAM brochure sponsored by TC Services is the entity that actually bills clients and is the correct primary source for a buildable schedule. A separate ‘PAM Fee Exclusively Fixed Income Schedule’ (0.50%/0.35%/0.25%/0.20%/0.15% tiers) applies only to all-fixed-income accounts and was not used here.
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, Lincoln Financial Advisors runs $15,000 a year and TIAA Wealth Management runs $4,500 a year: a difference of $10,500 a year at that balance.
Want the full breakdown for either firm on its own? Read the Lincoln Financial Advisors 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.
Compare your next step
Just comparing fees? Keep reading the fee guide.Optional next step
Explore an adviser match
Compare the services and the full fee before deciding whether to hire anyone.
- No fee to request a match
- No obligation to hire
Expect questions about your situation, your name, email and phone, and phone verification by text. A match is not guaranteed.
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.
Opens here. Nothing loads and nothing reaches Kapitalwise until you press the button.
How our partner relationships workCompare an adviser match before you decide
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.
- Free matching service
- No obligation to hire
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.
Continue to WiserAdvisorOpens on WiserAdvisor’s site in a new tab.
Source: WiserAdvisor’s service descriptionSources
- Osaic FA, Inc. Premier Series Wealth Management Program, Form ADV Part 2A – Appendix 1 (Wrap Fee Program Brochure) (October 1, 2024): https://files.adviserinfo.sec.gov/IAPD/Content/Common/crd_iapd_Brochure.aspx?BRCHR_VRSN_ID=926535
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Osaic Advisory Services, LLC (CRD #171070): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/171070
- Registration note: K74’s own fee page for Lincoln Financial Advisors cites CRD 3978 (Osaic FA, Inc.), whose SEC investment-adviser registration was terminated January 28, 2025. Lincoln’s advisory business today runs through Osaic Advisory Services, LLC (CRD 171070), the entity cited here.
- 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 September 19, 2026, re-pairing figures already archived and independently verified for Lincoln Financial Advisors 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.