Guides › Financial Advisor Fees
Updated September 19, 2026. Quick answer: Vanguard Personal Advisor is less expensive at $500,000: $1,750 a year, versus $12,500 a year for Osaic, 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 | Osaic (annual fee) | Vanguard Personal Advisor (annual fee) |
|---|---|---|
| $250,000 | $6,250 | $875 |
| $500,000 | $12,500 | $1,750 |
| $1,000,000 | $25,000 | $3,500 |
| $2,000,000 | $50,000 | $7,000 |
Osaic discloses a maximum, individually negotiated rate of 2.5% (Osaic Advisory Services, LLC (d/b/a Osaic Advisors) Form ADV Part 2A Brochure, Current as of August 31, 2026); Vanguard Personal Advisor discloses a published gross rate of 0.35% (Vanguard Digital Advisor and Vanguard Personal Advisor Brochure (Form ADV Part 2A), 2026-08-20).
What the fee includes, in each firm’s own words
Osaic (Osaic Advisory Services, LLC (d/b/a Osaic Advisors) Form ADV Part 2A Brochure, Current as of August 31, 2026): “The Ally Account has no minimum account size and advisory fees are negotiable. Advisory fees are billed monthly or quarterly and you have the option of choosing the billing methodology (flat, linear, or tiered); these elections are made on your advisory agreement. Advisory fees are negotiable, but the maximum annual fee allowed, regardless of account size, is 2.50%.”
Checked both Osaic Wealth, Inc. (CRD 23131, the broker-dealer-affiliated entity) and Osaic Advisory Services, LLC (CRD 171070, the corporate RIA sub-brand ‘Osaic Advisors’). Osaic Wealth’s Part 2A repeatedly states each Advisory Representative negotiates his/her own client fee schedule with no firm-wide cap disclosed for its general asset-management programs (only narrow caps for a retirement-plan consulting product and an annuity sub-fee, neither a general AUM schedule). Osaic Advisory Services’ Part 2A does disclose a firm-wide ceiling for its flagship Ally Account and repeats an identical 2.50% maximum for its Counsel and Partner wrap programs (Part 2A Appendix 1 brochures, brochureVersionIDs 1056419 and 1056418, also downloaded to sources/osaic/), so that entity/rate is used. No breakpoint table by account size is disclosed – 2.50% is a flat ceiling applied at any balance, individually negotiable downward. dollar_at values are simply balance x 2.50%: $6,250 / $12,500 / $25,000 / $50,000. This is honestly a ceiling, not a graduated schedule.
Vanguard Personal Advisor (Vanguard Digital Advisor and Vanguard Personal Advisor Brochure (Form ADV Part 2A), 2026-08-20): “Personal Advisor’s annual gross advisory fee for Vanguard Brokerage Accounts is 0.35% for its all‐index investment options and 0.40% for the exclusive active/index mix. … Enrollments in Personal Advisor require an aggregate $50,000 balance or greater” All-index investment option (any enrolled balance; $50,000 aggregate minimum to enroll): 0.35%; Active/index mix investment option (any enrolled balance): 0.40%.
Flat (non-tiered) gross advisory fee applied to the entire enrolled Vanguard Brokerage Account balance regardless of balance size: 0.35% for the all-index investment option (used here as the base case) or 0.40% if the active/index mix is elected. Dollar figures = balance x 0.0035. This is Vanguard’s disclosed gross fee before the affiliate-revenue credit that Vanguard also applies (which further lowers the net fee actually charged, per the same brochure); the gross rate is used here because it is the stated contractual rate, not an estimate.
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, Osaic runs $12,500 a year and Vanguard Personal Advisor runs $1,750 a year: a difference of $10,750 a year at that balance.
Want the full breakdown for either firm on its own? Read the Osaic fee page or the Vanguard Personal Advisor 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 Osaic, or read the general mechanics of switching financial advisors.
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- Osaic Advisory Services, LLC (d/b/a Osaic Advisors) Form ADV Part 2A Brochure (Current as of August 31, 2026): https://files.adviserinfo.sec.gov/IAPD/Content/Common/crd_iapd_Brochure.aspx?BRCHR_VRSN_ID=1056417
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Osaic Advisory Services, LLC d/b/a Osaic Advisors (CRD #171070): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/171070
- Vanguard Digital Advisor and Vanguard Personal Advisor Brochure (Form ADV Part 2A) (2026-08-20): https://files.adviserinfo.sec.gov/IAPD/Content/Common/crd_iapd_Brochure.aspx?BRCHR_VRSN_ID=1055528
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Vanguard Advisers, Inc. (CRD #106715): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/106715
Methodology. This page was built September 19, 2026, re-pairing figures already archived and independently verified for Osaic and Vanguard Personal Advisor 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.